MOBi (Mobilizing Society Towards ex Offenders Reintegration)

As other CPIP projects and in the same idea of putting together at work institutions and communities, MOBi project was conceived to respond to an evolving need, namely the social inclusion of (ex) offenders. It’s a project idea that proposes innovative integrated approaches in order to diminish the distance existing between society, in general, and the Criminal Justice System, in particular, by using the tools of adult education. In this sense, the project is totally aligned with the Erasmus+ horizontal priority of social inclusion. It is commonly accepted that offenders are a group of people facing double exclusion; first due to their condition of being apart from society, situation that generates gaps that favor multiple barriers and secondly due to the stigma related to imprisonment.  Moreover, most of them enter in contact with the justice system from an already disadvantaged context, as researchers have shown.

The methodologies developed during the project regard:

• simultaneously work with inmates and civic society in order to combat pre-existing stereotypes and discrimination (from both sides), by deconstructing misconceptions and fostering critical thinking, simultaneously increasing social capital.
• by applying open and innovative practices, in a digital era, the collection of information on adult’s perceptions about Criminal Justice System and offenders social reintegration processes, critical topics to reduce reoffending and use this information to create tailored learning paths. The project aims to target as many people as possible, and to do so proposes an investment on the development of ICTs: online assessment tools and also b-learning trainings for educators.
• elaboration of  guidance and motivation strategies which encourage low-skilled or low-qualified adults, to develop and upgrade their literacy, numeracy and digital skills. Research suggests that desistance from crime are related to some external social aspects of a person’s life (such as the supportiveness of those around them) and to internal/psychological factors (such as what they believe in and what they want from life). MOBi project proposes a multi-modal intervention to mobilize all stakeholders to focus their efforts on crime desistance factors. The priority is to use each person from society as a resource to provide guidance and motivate (ex) offenders to not reoffending. This will be possible by providing more (in)formation about CJS to society, about offenders’ needs when released from prison, in order to enable an integrated case management. Society need to understand that it plays a central role to motivate and guide offenders when released so they can keep focus on upgrade their literacy, numeracy and digital skills.

The constat is that offenders carry a tremendous stigma when released and lack support from the civil society. Although programmes in prison have been developed and continue to improve according to the criminogenic needs of the offenders and long ways have been made from system structures, creating/ developing probation systems after release, the need addressed by MOBY is in and towards the proactiveness of the society.

This is why MOBi project aims at creating a collaborative context whereas both prison & community engage into a “co-working” mindset focus on making reintegration a lifelong learning process for both offenders & civil society.

MOBi project wants to develop a training course on community awareness of (ex)offenders’ rehabilitation & reintegration, breaking cycles of reoffending & social exclusion.

MOBi aims to deliver a multi-modal approach that brings together civil society & (ex) offenders, & in this sense it’s an innovative project. MOBi project proposes a looking glass: how we, civil society, are contributing to be the turning point in each (ex) offender life? What are society’s perception on (ex)offenders? The CJS? And moreover about its role on reintegration? More specific: can the lifelong learning process generated within the civil society impact the reintegration process of inmates?

In fact, if we look out, we’re still not working on the civil society to reduce the potential for re-offending. MOBi proposes a re-thinking on the role of each person in the process, claiming for the corporate social responsibility (public, private & NGOs).

www.mobi-initiative.org