Awesome Stories 381

This week Awesome Stories brings you humane prison reform.

Compassionate Prisons

A staircase from the APAC prison to the gardens where inmates are responsible for growing their own food. Photo by Michelle Ferng.

Brazil has the third largest prison population in the world, behind only the US and China, with a long history of violence, and a shocking 70% recidivism rate. Valdeci Ferreira was inspired to help during a prison visit in the 1980s. He was shocked at how bad the circumstances were in a system breaking down with overload, violence, greed, bankruptcy, and more. Valdeci decided to make it his mission to help transform the prison system by addressing the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of the inmates.

While researching what he could do, Valdeci came across APAC, the Association for the Protection and Assistance to the Convicted. APAC created a form of incarceration that focuses on rehabilitation, humanizing the punishment, and preparing…