Our Campaign's core beliefs: All youth are "equal" in importance, meaning, value, and worth, without exception. All youth's "destiny" is to live a long and healthy life. Every youth is special, unique, and "one-of-a-kind." Violence, bullying, and abuse (VBA) are the "Head of the Snake." This is the number one root "problem" of humankind. We aim to "stay ahead of the curve," meaning violence and conflict "prevention." Youth's no. one job is to "survive" their youth.
Violence, bullying, and abuse (VBA) are the "Head of The Snake". They are the number one root cause of many of society's woes including mental health, social health, physical health, substance abuse, unhealthy eating, risky behaviors, and extreme poverty. Fortunately, we know how to stop it; school-based universal, cross-cutting, comprehensive violence prevention education for youth.
Universal school-based programs decrease rates of violence and aggressive behavior among school-aged children. Program effects were demonstrated at all grade levels. (CDC). Education and life skills (e.g. providing children with life and social skills training, including the skills to manage emotions, maintain self-control, empathize with others and express themselves assertively) Evidence-Based Measures. (World Health Organization). Less than 1 in 5 countries teach peace education. (UNESCO)
Violence is the second leading cause of death in boys aged 10-19 years. Some 200,000 homicides occur among youth 10-29 years of age each year, which is 43% of the total number of homicides globally each year. The disproportionate impact of homicide on youth is a consistent pattern across all levels of country income. It is, however, much more pronounced in low- and upper-middle-income countries. Most of the world's most violent conflicts occur in countries with the most youthful populations.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
