Restorative Practices
Joseph’s keynote at the 2025 World Conference for Restorative Practices
With a Master of Science in Restorative Practices, specializing in Community Engagement, Joseph is a frequent contributor to the global dialogue on Art in the field of Restorative Practices / Restorative Justice and the use of Art in Mediation. Through lectures, writing, and keynote talks, he is shares his practice and perspective with others around the intersection of Public Art & Public Health.
You can listen to his 2025 interview with the Restorative Works podcast here.
Explore below for upcoming and past public events, news, and learning opportunities around Art and Restorative Practices.
XIIIth Conference of the World Mediation Forum
Joseph will be honored as an artist-in-residence and present as a keynote speaker at the the XIIIth Conference of the World Mediation Forum "Cultures of mediation and mediation as transformative culture", which will take place in Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain, from 16 to 19 November 2026.
The conference will address mediation in a wide variety of fields: justice, universities, schools, businesses, NGOs, sports and leisure organizations, religious fields, health systems, neighborhoods, municipalities, etcetera. It will thus address the most traditional themes, while questioning the prohibitions and limitations of the practice of mediation, restorative justice, therapeutic justice, transitional justice and transformative justice.
Graduate Course for International Institute for Restorative Practices
Joseph collaborated with the provost at the International Institute for Restorative Practices to co-design this graduate course, RP 590 Special Topics in Restorative Practices I: Engaging Community for Positive Change: Restorative Tools and Strategies which launched in Fall 2026. The course explores the theory, practice, and critical dimensions of community engagement, examining how 'community' is defined, formed, and sustained.
2025 World Conference for Restorative Practices
Joseph was a keynote speaker at the 2025 World Conference, Artful Integration: The Art & Science of Restorative Practices. He will also present a signature workshop “Public Art Through Restorative Engagement”. The conference took place October 19 - 22 2025 in Chattanooga, Tennessee (USA).
Restorative Works Podcast: Murals as a Tool for Change with Joseph Iacona
Claire de Mézerville López welcomes Joseph Iacona to the Restorative Works! Podcast.
Joseph takes us behind the scenes of projects in schools, libraries, prisons, shelters, and behavioral health facilities, revealing how restorative practices create authentic collaboration between artists and communities. He shares powerful stories, including a mural co-created with youth aging out of the foster care system—a project that evolved into a living, breathing space of connection and care years after the paint dried. He issues a call to action for more intentional partnerships between artists and restorative practitioners to use art as a tool for authentic collaboration and social change.
Tune in to hear more from Joseph as he explores how defining “community” is an essential first step, and how tools like narrative mapping can uncover shared values and vision.
Joseph inside the terrace of the United Nations headquarters in New York, New York before entering into the convening of the world conference for public art.
World Public Art Conference at the United Nations New York
Joseph was selected as a distinguished guest and scholar for the 2025 World Public Art Conference: “Connection—Art for the Public”. The 2025 United Nations World Public Art Conference features expert global perspectives on the burgeoning and impactful field of public art, presented on the UN platform and designed to foster interdisciplinary dialogues between academics and practitioners from around the world.
His paper “Restorative Practices to Enhance Social Collaboration in Public Artmaking” will be included in the upcoming journal “International Public Art” published the United Nations Institute for Training & Research (UNITAR). The convening took place on December 3rd 2025 in New York, New York (USA).