For over a decade, retired elementary school teacher Kimiko Iino has been involved in the rehabilitation of parolees, regularly inviting them into her home to provide guidance on probation rules and to listen to their concerns.

Iino, a volunteer probation officer and president of the Noda Probation District VPOs' Association in Chiba Prefecture, shared her experiences recently at the Third World Congress on Probation.

The congress, held in Tokyo in September, is the largest forum in the field, gathering policymakers, professionals and researchers from around the world. The event this year was the first to be held in Asia.