How Public Health Can Improve Initiatives to Counter Violent Extremism

Although current countering violent extremist (CVE) efforts were conceived as an attempt to move to a more proactive and positive paradigm to address violent extremism through non-coercive means in the pre-criminal space, they are still tainted by their association with counterterrorism efforts.

A growing consensus agrees that preventing terrorist acts cannot be left only to traditional law enforcement and prosecutorial approaches.  We should also draw from public health, a discipline responsible for preventing diseases and injuries, protecting against environmental hazards, and promoting healthy behaviors and environments. Adopting a public health approach to the issue may be the best way to realize the intent of CVE.