Once upon a time various bleeding hearts tried to promote the idea that prisons weren't really merely punitive, or shouldn't be at any rate, nor mere retribution. Oh no, they expounded, they should be (and some of the more deluded claimed they actually were) rehabilitative. For a while there were efforts made to actually infuse a tiny slice of rehabilitative endeavors into our jails and prisons. Then, since it was really fiction and wishful thinking, if faded and prisoners were again openly seen as merely suffering their just punishment, which included being used as a source of free or abysmally cheap labor.

Perhaps that may be changing at least a little in at least one locale.

As described here: Innovative program teaches Bay Area jail inmates farming skills - SFGate, the San Francisco County Jail, in San Bruno, CA, is teaching inmates aquaponics. This is a growing field and key to some types of urban agriculture. While no-doubt qualified for entry level jobs at local facilities, the classes at the jail are really preparation for further study and will pre-qualify inmates who complete them for further paid training upon graduation.

We need more of this type of program for the victims of our vastly over imprisoned population. We also need vastly more small to medium scale urban ag projects simultaneously employing and feeding the local populace while conserving both land and resources. This is arguably a good model for rendering incarceration something more than mere retribution and punishment.