I landed in Canberra at midnight from Brisbane, finding the hotel key Nic had thoughtfully tucked into a magazine. The lateness of the hour and the quiet of an unfamiliar city gave me space to reflect on what lay ahead - a program born from careful listening and patient relationship building.

Our journey to this moment began months earlier, walking through Bimberi with Professor Lorana Bartels. Casual conversations with young people revealed glimpses of their worlds. Outside their units sat carefully arranged sneakers, earned through the centre's points system. When one young person spoke about wanting to design his own shoes, the energy in his voice carried a spark of possibility that stayed with us.

That spark found fuel through Manoli at Butter in Sydney. His immediate understanding of the vision and generous donation of shoes and materials showed how the right connections can transform possibilities into reality. The store's commitment to displaying these designs alongside established artists offered something beyond a program - a bridge to real opportunities.

One of the most powerful elements of this program emerged from a connection built through earlier work in Canberra's justice system. During a pilot program with the Drug and Alcohol Sentencing Court (DASL), I met Jakye, whose story of transformation has become a beacon of possibility in the ACT justice landscape. Having spent much of his childhood in detention centers across Canberra and NSW, Jakye found his turning point through the DASL program. I watched him speak with quiet power at the Children's Commissioner's Report launch, his words carrying the weight of lived understanding. Now, after contributing to the latest review of Bimberi, he chose to return - not as a resident, but as a mentor and guide.

Our first day opened with nervous energy from all sides. Jakye's presence brought immediate authenticity to our work. When young people tested our intentions, asking if we would really follow through, his quiet "I know" carried the depth of someone who had walked their path. His ability to sit with young people, sharing stories and insights born from experience, created spaces for conversations that textbooks and training could never replicate.

We moved through three separate groups, respecting the centre's mixing restrictions. Each session began with our activity from Ecuador - exploring what we Have, who we Are, and what we Can do. The depth of sharing surprised us all. Young people opened up about their dreams, their struggles, their hopes for something different. One guard's observation about a young person he'd known for years - "I've never heard you talk about getting better as a person" - showed how new spaces can create new conversations.

Between our first and second days, Joe and the Confit Pathways team brought their transformative energy to the centre. Watching these mentors, many with their own experience of the justice system, guide young people through physical challenges while embedding their G-Code principles - Gratitude, Grounding, and Goals - added another layer of connection. Nic joined their session, emerging tired but inspired by how physical discipline could build mental strength.

When we returned for our second day, the energy had shifted. Young people arrived ready to transform blank shoes into personal statements. Despite never having painted shoes before, they approached the challenge with remarkable confidence. Each design emerged distinctly personal - some telling stories of culture, others of family, all carrying dreams of what could be. As we wound down our second day, the connection between our initial storytelling and the final designs became clear. Young people who had opened up about their families wove symbols of connection into their work. Those who spoke of cultural pride brought those elements forward in bold patterns and meaningful colours. Dreams shared in our first session about future possibilities emerged through design choices that spoke to ambition and hope.

As the second day unfolded, we witnessed designs emerge that carried deep emotional weight. The young people worked with quiet focus, each brush stroke seemingly connected to thoughts of life beyond these walls. Their designs spoke to possibility - some through bold colours that demanded to be seen, others through subtle patterns that revealed more with each viewing.

The conversations while they worked flowed between pride in their emerging skills and careful questions about what might happen next. When we talked about their designs being displayed at Butter, about setting their own prices, about money waiting for them upon release, you could feel the shift in the room. These weren't abstract promises but tangible possibilities they could hold onto.

Some worked methodically, planning each element. Others let their designs flow organically, responding to the moment. But each shoe carried something of its creator's spirit - their hopes, their understanding of what waits for them outside, their belief that perhaps this time, effort poured into creation could build something new.

On our final day, I arranged their finished shoes near the bus stop - the place where they'll one day step back into freedom. Each pair spoke of creativity poured into possibility, of stories waiting to be told, of futures waiting to unfold. Some will leave to loved ones waiting with open arms, others to more uncertain welcomes. But each will leave knowing they've created something valuable, with money from their designs waiting to help them build their next chapter.

We drove away carrying a weight of responsibility. The young people's excitement about selling their shoes was tinged with the cautious hope of those who've learned hard lessons about trust. Their experiences with adults who've let them down hover in the spaces between their dreams and their doubts.

The photographs of those shoes lined up at the bus stop will stay with me - a reminder of promises made and trust given. Our words about the sales coming back to them carry the weight of their hopes. Through their designs, they've shown what becomes possible when given space to pour themselves into creation. Our task now is to honor that trust, to prove that effort poured into creativity can build bridges to life beyond these walls.

In a time when youth justice conversations often lean toward punishment over possibility, these young people have shared a different vision. Through their designs, through their willingness to trust once more, they remind us that transformation begins with simple acts of faith - in creativity, in community, and in the power of walking new paths together.

Express interest in buying some shoes

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