City officials, officials from the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development, academic experts and policymakers from across the Americas gathered downtown on June 8 for a discussion on violence prevention.

Co-hosted by Mayor Eric Garcetti, the Civil + Human Rights and Equity Department, the Strong Cities Network, the Violence, Inequality and Power Lab at the University of San Diego and the McCain Institute at Arizona State University, the four-hour roundtable resulted in a group declaration for continued partnership on violence prevention and safeguarding democratic principles.

The event opened with a panel discussion featuring mayors from Villa Nueva, Guatemala; Puerto Barrios, Guatemala; Moravia, Costa Rica; Bogotá, Colombia; Port of Spain, Trinidad; Denver, Colo.; and Chattanooga, Tenn.; moderated by the L.A. civil rights director of policy and enforcement Joumana Silyan-Saba. The day continued with a series of roundtables, where more than two dozen experts and elected leaders from more than 11 countries shared best practices, direct experiences and multilateral strategies for violence prevention and reduction.

Eric Rosand, executive director of the Strong Cities Network, a global network of more than 150 cities dedicated to addressing all forms of extremism, hate and polarization that can lead to violence, noted the importance of the roundtable “in elevating the crucial roles that cities and local leaders play in violence prevention efforts and strengthening social cohesion and resilience.”

The leaders gathered as violence, including identity-based violence and mass shootings, rise across the U.S. Across the globe, issues of displacement, regional conflict and the rise of trans-national violent groups threaten the security and economy of democratic societies.

Although various forms of violence require specific tools of analysis and response, evidence has also made clear that violence in society is nearly always interconnected, very often reinforced through systems of discrimination and exclusion, and manipulated by narratives of hate and othering. The event focused on strategies that promote social cohesion and resilience, safeguard democratic principles and promote inclusive and equitable societies through the application of violence prevention strategies.

The event highlighted innovative approaches on violence prevention and social cohesion, meant to support governments and non-governmental organizations at the local level. Following the meeting, attendees committed to work together across networks on violence prevention, including mental and emotional health support, collaboration on integrated prevention strategies and promoting inclusive and equitable societies.

The co-hosts will prepare a white paper for wide dissemination that captures the lessons learned and good practices identified and shared during the side-event, which will inform SCN’s follow-up activities, including through a dedicated working group that will target city-level violence prevention practitioners across the network and beyond.