Billy Gorter

Billy Gorter is a Research Associate at the Centre for Criminology, University of Oxford, working with Professor Rachel Condry on research concerning the impact of punishment on families in Cambodia. His work focuses particularly on children in conflict with the law, women in prison, children accompanying mothers into prison, and the wider social and family consequences of incarceration in low-income contexts.

Billy is the Founder and Executive Director of This Life, an Australian-registered non-government organisation based in Cambodia. Since founding the organisation in 2007, he has led its development from a small community initiative into a nationally recognised organisation working across child protection, family preservation, community development, and justice reform. His work is grounded in locally led practice and in the belief that people most affected by social problems should be central to defining and acting on the solutions.

Research and practice

Billy’s principal areas of practice and research interest include juvenile justice reform, diversion, conditional release, the reintegration of children and families after imprisonment, and the experiences of women and children in custodial settings.

He has overseen the development of community-based justice programs in Cambodia, including initiatives that support children in conflict with the law to remain safely in their families and communities where appropriate. Through This Life, he has worked closely with government ministries, prisons, civil society organisations, and international agencies to support the implementation of Cambodia’s Juvenile Justice Law and strengthen alternatives to detention.

Billy has contributed to regional and international discussions on justice reform, including diversion, rehabilitation, reintegration, and gender-responsive approaches to imprisonment. He has presented at the World Congress on Justice with Children and delivered regional training in ASEAN settings on people-centred justice reform, including with representatives from supreme courts, ministries, prosecution services, and justice sector agencies.

His practice has included advocacy for women with children accompanying them in prison to be recognised as a group requiring tailored protection and reintegration support. Under his leadership, This Life’s justice work has been recognised internationally, including as a promising practice under the UN Nelson Mandela Rules.

Publications and research

Billy has led and contributed to research that has informed policy and practice in Cambodia, including Why Children Accompany Mothers into Prison (2019) and No Place for a Child: Alternatives to Imprisoning Children in Cambodia (2021).

He is co-author of “Supporting Female Prisoners and Their Families: The Case of Cambodia,” published in Gender, Criminalisation, Imprisonment and Human Rights in Southeast Asia (2022), and “The Price of Punishment: Understanding the Impact of Maternal Incarceration on Low-Income Families in Cambodia,” published in the Palgrave Handbook of Criminology and the Global South.

Other roles

In addition to his role at This Life, Billy serves as an elected Executive Committee Member of the Cooperation Committee for Cambodia, the national membership body for non-government organisations.

His broader work bridges frontline practice, participatory research, and systems change, with a particular focus on how justice systems can better respond to children, women, families, and communities.