What Surrounds Us Shapes Us: Greening and other physical/built environment strategies for preventing domestic and sexual violence

As evidence on community-level approaches to domestic and sexual violence prevention continues to emerge, practitioners are learning how physical spaces play a role in shaping social connections, behaviors and motivations that influence the likelihood of violence. Changing the physical/built environment holds promise in achieving population-level impacts and addressing multiple forms of violence at once. In this web conference, practitioners in Michigan will share how and why they are seeking to increase green spaces (e.g. parks) for domestic violence prevention through their DELTA Impact state- and local-level work. Practitioners in Salinas, CA will describe how they’re implementing environmental design strategies to prevent violence affecting youth. Join us as we discuss how to leverage these learnings to transform physical spaces for prevention.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• Describe the connections between the physical/built environment and multiple forms of violence, including domestic and sexual violence.
• Highlight local strategies that communities are operationalizing for prevention.
• Identify roles that the field of domestic and sexual violence prevention can play in environmental strategies.
• Engage in a candid discussion on transforming the physical/built environment for prevention

HOSTS: Ashleigh Klein-Jimenez & Tori VandeLinde, PreventConnect and CALCASA

FACILITATORS: Alisha Somji & Abena Asare, Prevention Institute

MATERIALS:

• Web Conference PowerPoint Slides [PDF]
• Text Chat Transcript [PDF]
• PreventConnect blog on resources and reflections from the web conference [link]
• Guest Profile: Supporting thriving youth in Salinas, CA through community-informed environmental design strategies [PDF]
  • En español: Apoyando a la Juventud Próspera en Salinas, CA Mediante Estrategias de Diseño Ambiental Informadas por la Comunidad
• Guest Profile: Greening Spaces as an Intimate Partner Violence Prevention Strategy in Michigan [PDF]
  • En español: Espacios Verdes como una Estrategia do Prevención de Violencia de Pareja Intima en Michigan

GUESTS:

• Anne Menard, National Resource Center on Domestic Violence
• Amanda Barratt, Michigan Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence
• Phalguna Siddapureddy, Michigan Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence
• Jessica Edel Harrelson, Michigan Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence
• Linda McGlone, Monterey County Health Department
• Gabriela Manzo, Building Healthy Communities