The Peace Caucus was founded in 1985 to educate and engage the influential voice of public health professionals in efforts to promote peace. Through outreach and educational activities, we strive to illuminate that peace and social justice are key determinants of the health of individuals and communities across the globe. The Peace Caucus invites abstracts on a broad range of topics relating to peace and social justice, health and human rights. 

We seek abstracts that focus on the broad range of health consequences of war, violence and conflict and on solutions related to the prevention of war, violence and conflict. We welcome abstracts that will advance the uptake of APHA’s 2009 policy “The Role of Public Health Practitioners, Academics, and Advocates in Relation to Armed Conflict and War" within and beyond APHA and build on the 2020 APHA Conference theme "Creating the Healthiest Nation: Preventing Violence."

We encourage co-sponsorship and participation in planning of these sessions by other sections, SPIGs, and caucuses, as well as by new professionals and students. We are seeking oral presentations and films to be included in the convention film festival. We are not allocated any poster session time slots.

Please feel free to contact Program Planner Patrice Sutton at psutton2000@yahoo.com if you would like to discuss your ideas prior to submission.  Broad categories of potential sessions include:

• Global Health: What Do Militarism, Security, and Violence Have to Do with It?
  Topics to focus on the intersection between militarism, global security and violence through the lens of health, and may include: - Emergent forms of violence and “new wars:” asymmetric conflict, era of volunteer forces and mercenaries, etc. - Nuclear weapons and violence - Militarization of science - Militarization of space - War, conflict, and violence as a barrier to meeting the global Sustainable Development Goals and mainstream public health objectives - Unpacking ‘Health Security’ and the securitization of health
• In Their Own Voices: Violence, Truth and Health
  Topics to focus on the framing of peace, war, and health, and may include: - Case studies and perspectives from directly-impacted populations on the health impacts of wars and conflicts, for example, in the DRC, Yemen, the Philippines, MENA region, Xinjang, and elsewhere. - Historical perspectives on the health impacts of violence and prevention - Health impacts of nationalism, demagogues, and Islamaphobia - Journalism, and current challenges re: reporting on violence and health - Mass media, truth decay, and psychic numbing
• Primary Prevention of War and Violence
  Topics to focus on primordial and primary prevention of war and other forms of violence, and may include: - Violence prevention, including preventing war, armed conflict, and structural violence including racism - Peacebuilding measures: for example, health as a bridge to peace: health diplomacy as a mechanism of peacebuilding - Measuring the prevalence of violence
• War and Health at Home
  Topics to focus on how war and armed conflict affects U.S. domestic health status, and may include but are not limited to: - Veterans’ voices on the legacy of violence: on their health, their families, and their communities - Children, violence and toxic stress: adverse childhood experiences and violence - Across the borderline: War, and other forms of violence, climate, displacement, and refugee health - Police violence; militarization of police and domestic security forcesPublic Health perspectives on: preventing and countering radicalization and violent extremism; repatriation of victims and perpetrators of violence to home countries and communities, i.e., ISIS fighters, their wives and children; the return and reintegration of victims of sexual and other violence in war.

Sessions will be developed from the submissions, so do not be completely constrained by these titles. Questions? We welcome phone calls prior to abstract deadline to answer your questions, discuss your ideas and suggestions, and help you submit an abstract. 

Continuing Education Credit: APHA values the ability to provide continuing education credit to physicians, nurses, health educators and those certified in public health at its annual meeting. Please complete all required information when submitting an abstract so members can claim credit for attending your session. These credits are necessary for members to keep their licenses and credentials. For a session to be eligible for Continuing Education Credit, each presenter, panelist, and/or discussant must provide:

1) an abstract free of trade and/or commercial product names

2) at least one MEASURABLE SINGLE outcome ("to understand" or "to learn" are not measurable outcomes and compound outcomes are not acceptable). Use only the following Measurable Action Verbs:

  *   Explain, Demonstrate, Analyze, Formulate, Discuss, Compare, Differentiate, Describe, Name, Assess, Evaluate, Identify, Design, Define or List.

3) A signed Conflict of Interest Disclosure form with a relevant qualification statement

  *   Example of Acceptable Biographical Qualification Statement: (I have been the principal or co-principal of multiple federally funded grants focusing on the epidemiology of drug abuse, HIV prevention and co-occurring mental and drug use disorders. Among my scientific interests has been the development of strategies for preventing HIV and STDs in out-of-treatment drug users.) Please note that I am the Principle Investigator of this study is NOT an acceptable qualification statement.

4) All continuing education learning content must be of sound scientific or professional practice and serve to maintain, develop, or increase the knowledge, skills and professional competence of the health professional. Learning content should be evidence-based if available. A list of over 30 areas will be provided online for you to choose from. You will be asked to choose at least one or up to 6 areas that your presentation will address.

  *   Thank you for your assistance in making your session credit worthy. Contact Mighty Fine at mighty.fine@apha.org if you have any questions concerning continuing education.

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Ready?

Program Planner Contact Information:

Patrice Sutton, MPH
Research Scientist
University of California San Francisco
550 16th Street
San Francisco, CA 94143
Phone: 415-407-8806
psutton2000@yahoo.com

and
Valerie Pacino, MPH, PhDc
College of Public Health
University of Nebraska Medical Center
824 N 50th Ave
Omaha, NE 68132
Phone: 206-251-6603
valerie.pacino@unmc.edu

and
Anlan Cheney, MA, MPH Student, Epidemiology
University of Nebraska Medical Center
984355 Medical Center
Omaha, NE 68105
Phone: 402-389-2576
anlan.cheney@gmail.com