Highlighting the work that they do around the province, the John Howard Society in Moose Jaw gathered to recognize Saskatchewan Restorative Justice Week on Tuesday.

The guest speaker was Dr. Jerry Goebel who expressed the chemical reaction adolescents go through when they take a risk. He also spoke about what families and friends can do as supporters to help them navigate through life.

"Adolescence is not a disease, it's a stage of life where the brain is leaning toward risk and pleasure." explained Goebel. "I would say that for children and adults, maturity is the ability to live by your values, rather than your circumstances and so if we want young people to be mature then we need to help them identify their values and live by them."

Goebel added that a first step in hoping to engage high-risk youth would be to get them to speak about their support systems and why they feel they made an impact in their lives.