As 2011 begins, prevention efforts and successes continue to grow. Here are three ways you can bolster and expand prevention work in the new year:

Connect violence prevention efforts to health reform. The role of safety and violence prevention in promoting community vitality and health is receiving renewed attention from the federal government. Join us for a webinar, Understanding the Current Context for Violence Prevention: Updates on Health Reform and Juvenile Justice Legislation, hosted by Prevention Institute's UNITY Initiative. Nancy Gannon Hornberger, executive director of the Coalition for Juvenile Justice, will provide an overview of pending and possible juvenile justice legislation. Prevention Institute Executive Director and UNITY Co-Chair Larry Cohen will discuss opportunities for linking health reform and violence prevention practice. Monday, January 10th, 2:00 – 3:00 EST (11:00 – Noon PST). Register now. (And save the date for our congressional briefing on February 2nd, connecting safety to chronic disease.)

Comment on the National Prevention Strategy Framework. The National Prevention Council has released the second iteration of the National Prevention Strategy and is inviting your feedback. This document will be an important framework to guide federal prevention efforts in 2011 and beyond; we encourage you to submit comments as an individual or on behalf or your organization by January 13th.

Make the economic case for prevention. Our colleagues at The Urban Institute highlight the cost-savings of prevention in January's American Journal of Public Health. "Potential National and State Medical Care Savings from Primary Disease Prevention" shows that reducing diabetes and hypertension by 5% would result in savings of $9 billion in the short term, and $24.7 in the middle term. Their research and findings are based on an updated version of the model conceptualized by Prevention Institute, the New York Academy of Medicine, Trust for America's Health and The Urban Institute in our study, "Prevention for a Healthier America." We invite you to read both studies and include this data in your prevention work.