Prison doesn’t rehabilitate people who use drugs – 50% will return at least 6 times post-release. The Forest is a public health model designed to address the underlying drivers of incarceration. It operates independently from the criminal legal system, organised around principles of harm reduction and decarceration. We co-designed The Forest with criminalised people who use drugs, centring their stories and expertise. The Forest is a physical site where people leaving prison can access services, activities and employment opportunities to support their reintegration into the community. Led by peers and unified under a single governance structure, The Forest will bring reintegration services together in one location for the first time through a four-year community trial. Economic modelling projects that The Forest could generate up to $2.3b in cost savings and improve the health, wellbeing, and social connectivity of entire communities.
The Forest: a partnership to end reincarceration
Jade Lane | Research and Technical Advisor, Burnet Institute
Jade is an antiviolence activist, organiser, and research practitioner working alongside communities impacted by state violence. Jade’s work spans public health, emergency management, and gender-based violence prevention and emphasises community-led interventions that promote harm reduction and decarceration. Jade’s practice is underpinned by lived experience of criminalisation and drug use.
Amy Kirwan | Senior Research Fellow, Burnet Institute
Amy Kirwan has 20 years’ experience spanning research, policy, advocacy, and direct service provision in the health and community sectors. As a qualified social worker and applied researcher, Amy has worked alongside criminalised people who use drugs, leading the implementation of studies in prisons and street drug markets.
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