For our final Spotlight of 2021 we profiled Checkr.org, the brand new philanthropic arm of leading technology company Checkr, and their Executive Director Ken Oliver. The organization was founded to fundamentally rethink how we provide second chances - through fair chance hiring, background checks and beyond. It is a mission that Ken, who himself spent almost 24 years behind bars, knows a great deal about.

Happy holidays from the whole team here at RBIJ! We hope you are keeping well and safe in these trying times. We wanted to take this opportunity to share our 2021 electronic card. It features the artwork and story of the incredible Ndume Olatushani, who spent 20 years on death row for a crime he didn’t commit.

For November’s Spotlight, RBIJ sat down with Jeff Baldassari, CEO at U.S. Rubber Recycling - a triple-bottom-line businesses fundamentally committed to creating second chances in California. Having adopted second chance hiring over 20 years ago, formerly incarcerated people now make up half their workforce, and they remain deeply committed to both the business case and the social purpose of tapping into the justice-impacted talent pool.

For our October Spotlight we are profiling HiddenLight and their CEO Johnny Webb, who founded the production company with the Clinton family in 2019. They use filmmaking to tell some of the most important stories of our time and, in doing so, shed light on today's most urgent social issues. This includes the death penalty, and RBIJ were honoured to join forces with HiddenLight to promote the "It Could Happen To You" films - which looked at innocent people exonerated from death row.

For our September Spotlight we are profiling the journalist and broadcaster Raphael Rowe. After spending 12 years in prison for a crime he did not commit, Raphael was determined to shine a light on injustices around the world. Less than a year later he was working at the BBC, starting on Radio 4's Today Programme and has since then become one of the world's most prolific justice reporters - hosting the Netflix series World's Toughest Prisons, corresponding for Panorama, and presenting his own preeminent podcast Second Chances, to name just a few career highlights.

This month’s Justice Champion Spotlight falls on Tatiana Begault, Re-Entry Community Coordinator at Goodwill Industries of Southeastern Louisiana. Based in Louisiana, Tatiana utilizes her in-depth understanding of mind and behaviour to help justice-impacted individuals successfully reenter society in Louisiana - and works with businesses to do the same. We sat down to talk to her about the need for meaningful second chances, and the role that employers can play in creating a fairer and more equitable society.

For our July Spotlight we interviewed Joe DeLoss, the owner and Head Fryer at Hot Chicken Takeover. Joe founded HCT with a simple mission: to create extraordinary experiences for extraordinary people. That mission is about way more than food. Find out how and why they provide meaningful employment opportunities for people disadvantaged by adversity.

For June we are Spotlighting a Justice Champion that helps place justice at the heart of a corporation’s purpose: Porter Novelli. Born from the idea that communication can advance society, they help companies stand up and speak out about the most pressing issues we face today - including the inequality and unfairness that pervades our justice system - with Conroy Boxhill (Managing Director, North America) leading the charge.

This month’s Justice Champion Spotlight falls on Jeffrey Korzenik, the Chief Investment Strategist at one of the U.S's leading business banks, Fifth Third Bank. Jeff is a leading advocate for hiring individuals for criminal records and his recently released book 'Untapped Talent' focuses on the business case and best practices around doing so. We caught up with him to discuss the economic rationale behind fair hiring, and why businesses that don't adopt the talent strategy risk being left behind.

For Second Chance Month, we are highlighting a purpose-built business and long-standing RBIJ ally committed to helping people with felony convictions and problems with addiction - Nehemiah Manufacturing. By providing justice and addiction impacted individuals with the employment opportunities and support necessary to effectively re-enter society, this company - and their founder Dan Meyer - are amazing examples of the transformative role that businesses and their leaders can play in their communities.

For the first time ever, business leaders are joining forces to help end capital punishment. On March 18, on a panel at South by SouthWest, RBIJ CEO Celia Ouellette and Virgin founder Richard Branson launched the Business Leaders' Against the Death Penalty Campaign. Joined by Sabrina Butler Smith, the first woman ever exonerated from death row in the United States, they urged governments everywhere to end capital punishment and called on fellow business leaders to get involved.

Jochebed consults with RBIJ on financial sector engagement in the social equity space and the coordination of financial actors in the fight for fairer systems of criminal justice.

We sat down to understand her story, what inspired her to set up J Aduke Consulting, what made her get involved in justice reform, and the role she feels investors play in creating a fairer and more equal society.

For Black History Month, we are highlighting the work of GRID 202 - a financial advisory firm using investment to address racial injustice, and their founder and managing partner Keith Beverly, who works with individuals in institutions to “generate returns with impact and discipline” - with a specific focus on racial equity.

For January’s Spotlight we profiled 70 Million Jobs - an employment agency for people with criminal records - and their founder Richard Bronson, who was inspired to help people back on their feet after he struggled to find work post-incarceration.

For our end-of-year Spotlight we wanted to profile a company that has long been a vanguard of the justice-impacted community, and the amazing work they are doing to help returning citizens: Dave’s Killer Bread.

For this month’s Spotlight, RBIJ are celebrating the great work being done by our partner Flikshop and their founder Marcus Bullock, to connect incarcerated people with their loved ones.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away on September 18, 2020. In this tribute, RBIJ Chief Executive Celia Ouellette reflects on the departure of an icon - her immeasurable achievements, the lessons she left us with, and her advice for carrying on.

In this month’s Justice Champion spotlight, RBIJ are highlighting our partner Cisco’s work delivering digital education in our prisons and providing incarcerated people with the skills they need to rebuild their lives on release.

In this month’s Justice Champion spotlight, RBIJ are highlighting the brilliant work of our partner The Body Shop, and their success providing meaningful second chances to those looking to return to the workforce.

For our inaugural “Spotlight”, celebrating the amazing work of justice engaged businesses, we profiled Televerde and its Chief Social Responsibility Officer Michele Cirocco. Televerde is a B2B demand generation company that employs and trains incarcerated women, whilst at the same time generating billions for its customers. Michelle leads these efforts with first hand experience, having started working for Televerde as an incarcerated women herself.