The Beyond the Stone Walls Advisory Collective (BSWAC) in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, was established in 2020. As COVID-related restrictions were introduced in Victoria, the BSWAC was introduced as a remote initiative for ex-members of prison-based Think Tanks to collaborate and advise on projects commissioned by government and non-government organizations.
BSWAC members are academics, researchers, higher education students, practitioners affiliated within the social justice space, and ex-incarcerated individuals.The lived experience of people with criminal justice history has been largely omitted by policymakers, making the BSWAC unique to other advisory organizations in the social justice space. This paper discusses the challenges and benefits in the set up of the BSWAC.
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Dr Marietta Martinovic
Associate Professor, RMIT University, Australia
Dr Marietta Martinovic, (PhD, MA, BA CJA) is a Senior Lecturer in Criminology and Justice in the School of Global, Urban, and Social Studies, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia where she has worked for almost two decades. She started the first and only Australian Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program in Australia; it simultaneously engages university students and incarcerated people in studying ‘comparative criminal justice systems’. Research has indicated that these learning and teaching experiences have been transformative for all students. She is a winner of multiple teaching awards. She has established and is leading four prison-based Think Tanks and one community-based Think Tank which consult with government departments, non-governmental organisations and advocacy groups to provide nuanced perspectives on complex issues which affect people experiencing the CJS.
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Tarmi A'Vard
Educator/ Researcher, Monash University/ Bendigo TAFE, Australia
Tarmi A’Vard is a Lecturer in Criminology at La Trobe University and a trained facilitator of the Inside Out Prison Exchange Program. Tarmi has over 17 years of experience working in the Criminal Justice Sector, including Community Corrections, Youth Justice, Aboriginal Co-operatives and delivering education to people incarcerated. Tarmi is specifically interested in prison systems, the re-integration process, and case management strategies for people incarcerated.
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Dwayne Antojado
Lecturer in Sociology and Criminology, Adelaide University, Australia
Dwayne Antojado is the Project Assistant of the community-based Think Tank ‘Beyond the Stone Walls Advisory Collective’ through RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia. He also currently holds the position of Lived Experience Coordinator at the Centre for Just Places, Jesuit Social Services (Australia), and is a member of the Lived Experience Advisory Panel of the Australian Community Support Organisation (ACSO). He has also previously worked at the Victorian Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders (VACRO). Dwayne is also a higher education student completing studies in criminal justice and sociology. He has lived experience in the Australian criminal justice system.
