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Violence occurs everywhere, but disproportionately in low- and middle-income countries (LMCs). The rate of violence-related deaths-of which an estimated 1.6 million occurred in 2001-was more than twice as high in LMCs as in high-income countries. On the order of 90 percent of violent deaths worldwide occur in LMCs. The much greater burden of non-fatal violence is equally skewed toward LMCs, exacerbated in many cases by the inaccessibility of appropriate medical care. The patterns of violence also vary tremendously by region, by country and by area. Following reasoning common to chronic disease epidemiology, this very variation suggests that some large portion of violence should be preventable.
The causes and risk factors, and approaches to prevention and mitigation vary by the nature of the violence. A few major categories have been used to divide the types of violence for policy and programmatic purposes. The broadest categories are self-directed violence, interpersonal violence, and collective violence. On a practical level, the groupings that are generally addressed are:
- youth violence
- child abuse and neglect
- violence by intimate partners
- abuse of the elderly
- sexual violence
- self-directed violence
- collective violence
An ad hoc committee will organize a 2-day public workshop with invited presentations and discussion to bring together the full range of experts who deal with violence prevention issues in the United States, representatives of the general global health community, and those who are most knowledgeable about violence in low- and middle-Income countries (LMCs). The committee will plan the agenda, select and invite speakers and discussants, and conduct the workshop to: (1) promote information exchange and (2) highlight public health approaches for preventing violence in LMCs with greater technical assistance and resource support from the United States, both public and private sectors. A summary of the workshop will be prepared by a rapporteur who is not part of the ad hoc committee.
When: June 26-27, 2007; 8:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. each day
Where: Keck Center of the National Academies, Room 100; 500 Fifth Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20001
Who Should Attend? Policymakers; researchers in social sciences, nursing, medicine, public health, epidemiology, health services, mitigation, law, conflict resolution, human rights, global development; ethicists; congressional staff; representatives of philanthropic organizations; journalists/media; Department of State officials/others interested in national and global security; and those interested in global violence prevention.
Registration is free, but space is limited. Please RSVP by filling out our online registration form. Registration closes 12 June 2007.
Immediately following the first day of the workshop on June 26, 2007, Global Violence Prevention Advocacy will host a networking reception and dinner. Be sure to RSVP for these events on your registration form.
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