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The “Prevention Project” is a program put into place by the Richmond Justice Initiative whose objective is to equip, mobilize and educate communities on how to fight human trafficking. RJI believes that the education of high school and college students is the best way to prevent that at-risk population from falling into the hands of traffickers and/or criminals. Through a six (6) lesson academic curriculum students receive information from a comprehensive approach. Attendants are taught about the international dimensions of the crime, their impact at home, the economics of trafficking and the impact it has on culture and in their communities. Also, potential victims receive useful information to identify cases in which they or someone close may be endangered. Currently, the program has been implemented in 7 States of the US, reaching over 11,000 students.

In the desperate situation of violence that El Salvador is living at this moment, alternative solutions are welcomed by the communities. Sequence is a brand founded by Ariela Suster, a Salvadorian who has lived violence first hand when her family experienced a case of kidnapping while the civil war in the country was raging. This clothing brand employs at risk youth to offer them an alternative to the lifestyle of the gang, a common destiny for young men who are unemployed or without access to education. Due to the invisible borders gangs construct to dominate sector of the cities, Suster uses technology to overcome these impositions. Through videocalls in Skype, Sequence educates their employees on the techniques needed to craft bracelets and other products of the brand.

Sports create a sense of brotherhood, trust and empowerment for those who are in it. In poor and segregated communities, is often sports and sports events the cohesive factors needed to bring the community together in a peaceful fashion. Even more, sports help at-risk youth to invest their free time in activities that not only keep them away from illegality but also develop their bodies and minds to reach a new level of performance. Acknowledging these characteristics, The United Nations office on Drugs and Crime has launched a youth crime prevention program that seeks to support the implementation of the Doha Declaration. This program focuses on the positive aspects and externalities of sports to encourage states to implement it in vulnerable communities. “Line Up, Live Up” is the pioneer program on this effort after being backed by the government of Kyrgyzstan.

Trinidad and Tobago has seen its public security deteriorate as the epidemic of violence in Latin America spreads from country to country. This violence is the result of the easy access to firearms and the segregation/exclusion of young men from the society, which translates in the formation of highly territorial gangs. With these conditions, Trinidad and Tobago counted more than 100 gangs and a tenth place on global murder rates in 2016. To tackle this issue the government partnered with the US State Department and the Pan American Development Foundation to create the “Resistance and Prevention Program” (RAPP), which is also present in the Bahamas and Suriname. The RAPP program builds trust between communities and law enforcement agencies through dialogues, community policing and outreach programs. It has brought a whole government approach, where different institution share information and don’t duplicate information. Through efficiency and comprehensiveness the program provides the tools to schools, families, social workers and law enforcement officers for the common reconstruction of the social fabric and harmony in the communities.

When deciding on how to use the public resources in regards to the control of criminality, often politicians engage in reactive policies. Hard-line strategies of policing and incarceration are used as a way to please the electorate and keep popularity high as well. But in reality, keeping the approach to criminality on a reactive stance is only going to increase the costs of the penitentiary system and will tear apart and segregate communities that struggle to make a decent living. In his service at the Irish penitentiary system, John Lonergan discovered the particular characteristics of the imprisoned. Often left behind by the public social services, the delinquents were uneducated and illiterate people who left school at very young age. Without guidance and/or support from somebody else, those young dropouts ended up being caught in the hands of delinquency. Preventive policies, even when they may not be as popular as the reactive ones, have a remarkable impact on vulnerable communities and on crime. Providing education and opportunities for youth at risk proves then again to be the best investment a government can do to improve the conditions of its society.