Today, we welcome Oswald Newbold, a certified mediator, conflict resolution specialist, and contributing author to the new book Breaking Chains, Building Futures: Pathways to Redemption, Education, and Excellence, edited by Dr. Stanley Andrisse and published by Wiley.

Oswald's Website

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This powerful collection features first-hand stories from individuals impacted by incarceration — stories of struggle, triumph, and transformation. Oswald’s own journey is especially compelling: sentenced to life at 20, he has emerged as a leader in mediation, education, and criminal justice reform.

Through Breaking Chains, Building Futures, Oswald and his co-authors shed light on how redemption, education, and empathy can create real pathways toward healing and social change.

1. Breaking Chains — Finding Purpose in Pain

• Oswald, your story in Breaking Chains, Building Futures is both raw and inspiring. What led you to share such a personal journey in this book, and what do you hope readers take away from it?

1. From Lived Experience to Leadership

• You were sentenced to life at 20, and yet you’ve turned that experience into a lifelong mission to mediate conflict and help others rebuild their lives. What inspired you to take on a leadership role in reentry services and criminal justice reform?

1. The Power of Education and Mediation

• Your background in mediation and conflict resolution is remarkable — with a 90% success rate and now a youth program training young people as certified mediators. How did your own access to education, both formal and informal, shape your path toward healing and leadership?

1. Collaboration and Creative Process

• This book brings together deeply personal stories from many voices, under Dr. Stanley Andrisse’s vision. What was it like to collaborate with other contributors on such emotionally charged material, and how did that creative process affect you?

1. Building Futures — From Systemic Change to Personal Hope

• In your view, what are the biggest barriers people face when reentering society after incarceration? And what gives you hope that we can create more equitable and effective pathways to redemption?
• You’ve built a career around conflict resolution — from prisons to communities to youth programs. What lessons from your time mediating behind the wall still guide you today?
• How do you maintain your own sense of balance, hope, and self-care while doing such emotionally demanding work?
• What does redemption mean to you now, both personally and professionally?
• For listeners who may be navigating their own second chances, or trying to turn pain into purpose — what’s one message you’d like them to carry forward from your story?

And before you go, remember to download your free e-book of A World of Creativity when you visit mark-stinson.com