Prevention Institute is a member of the WHO’s global Violence Prevention Alliance (VPA), a network of WHO Member States, international agencies and civil society organizations working to prevent violence.

At Prevention Institute, our vision is that all people experience their full potential for health, safety, and wellbeing across the life course through thriving, equitable communities. Safety allows people to thrive and live fulfilling lives—it is freedom from violence and the threat of violence. Our work addresses multiple forms of violence (e.g., school, community, intimate partner, sexual assault, and child abuse and exploitation) and the relationships between them.
Violence is preventable, not inevitable. There is a strong and growing evidence base, grounded in research and experiential practitioner and community evidence that supports this fact. Changing the underlying conditions that contribute to violence—in homes, schools, and neighborhoods—prevents violence from occurring in the first place.
Prevention Institute engages leaders from housing, healthcare, and multiple other sectors at the local, state, and national levels and cultivates a systems approach to prevention that reduces the need for criminal justice intervention. Recognizing violence as a crucial prevention issue for health and equity, Prevention Institute has made a major commitment to helping cities devise comprehensive plans and strategies for reducing and preventing multiple forms of violence. By cultivating communities of practice such as UNITY (Urban Networks to Increase Thriving Youth through Violence Prevention) and Safety Through Connection, supporting policy and systems change, and providing strong technical assistance, Prevention Institute catalyzes momentum for safety.
Prevention Institute is a member of the WHO’s global Violence Prevention Alliance (VPA), a network of WHO Member States, international agencies and civil society organizations working to prevent violence.
Advancing health equity is a central piece of our work in preventing violence, as we aim to address the underlying systems and conditions of inequity that create and perpetuate violence in the first place. Our research and trainings in this area address land use practices; community trauma and resilience; early childhood development; and the critical role of urban youth in fostering safe communities.
This document describes a framework that incorporates public health, law enforcement, social service, and education perspectives in preventing violence. Violence is among the most serious health threats in the nation today, jeopardizing the health and safety of the public. Recognizing that law enforcement alone cannot solve the problem of violence, practitioners have increasingly turned toward a broader, more comprehensive approach.
Prevention Institute and the Center for the Study of Social Policy collaborated to identify the strategic policy, practice, systems, and norms change levers to make communities safer, so that all children have the opportunity to develop optimally and participate fully in the fabric of community life.
Prevention Institute developed a Safety in All Policies framework and actionable recommendations to advance community safety and violence prevention in California through a multi-sector public health approach. This work builds on the growing base of research and practice evidence and growing attention to Health in All Policies.
Prevention Institute staff recognizes the links among multiple forms of violence and also has deep expertise in preventing specific types. This selection of projects illustrates our breadth in preventing violence.
Child Maltreatment
Links among Multiple Forms of Violence
Community Determinants of Domestic Violence
Prevention Institute analyzed the community determinants that give rise to domestic violence, in order to mobilize various sectors in a shared solution. Funded by the Blue Shield of California Foundation, this project draws upon the THRIVE framework and Collaboration Multiplier tool to identify key sectors and prime opportunities for transforming these community conditions.
Safety in All Policies
Community Trauma and Resilience
Join us in advancing health equity and community empowerment — get in touch today to support the Prevention Institute’s efforts.