The Evolving Role of Community Volunteers in Offender Reintegration: An Example of the Hogoshi System in Japan

ICPA 2025 Presentation by Ayaka Takai, Koichi Hayashi and Miki Yaegashi (PID136)

Authors

Ayaka Takai

Deputy Director of International Affairs, Rehabilitation Bureau, Ministry of Justice, Japan

She is a Deputy Director of the International Affairs Office at the Rehabilitation Bureau of the Ministry of Justice, Japan.

She recently served as an International Consultant at UNODC in Vienna, where she assisted in the development of the UN Model Strategies on Reducing Reoffending (the Kyoto Model Strategies).

She has more than 20 years of professional experience in the field of offender rehabilitation and reintegration, having started her career in 2002. Over the course of her career, she has served as a professor at the United Nations Asia and Far East Institute for the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders (UNAFEI), where she was involved in international training and research activities for criminal justice practitioners from around the world. She has also worked as a probation officer and rehabilitation coordinator at local probation offices in Japan, providing direct support and guidance to justice-involved individuals in their reintegration into society.

She holds national licenses as a certified social worker, a mental health social worker, and a certified psychologist, which complement her professional expertise.

Koichi Hayashi

Section Chief of Rehabilitation Service Development Division, Rehabilitation Bureau, Ministry of Justice, Japan

Mr. HAYASHI Koichi is in charge of crime prevention activities such as the “Yellow Feather Campaign”, which aims to build a brighter society free from crime and delinquency in the Rehabilitation Bureau of Japan’s Ministry of Justice.

He has worked as a probation officer at a probation office. He has also been involved in research on juvenile reintegration and evidence-based rehabilitation practices at the Research and Training Institute of the Ministry of Justice, and has revised a specialized treatment program at the Rehabilitation Bureau.

Miki Yaegashi

Assistant Section Chief of Parole, Supervision Division, Rehabilitation Bureau, Ministry of Justice, Japan

Ms. YAEGASHI Miki is in charge of parole policy and administrative affairs in the Supervision Division of the Rehabilitation Bureau of Japan’s Ministry of Justice. She has worked not only as a probation officer at a probation office but also as an instructor at a juvenile detention center for girls. Ms. Yaegashi holds a Master's degree in Psychology, which provides a strong foundation for her professional background in offender rehabilitation and reintegration, both in community and institutional settings.

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