Special Interest Group Meeting VIII: Unleashing the Power of Prevention

Unleashing the Power of Prevention is an initiative developed by the Coalition for the Promotion of Behavioral Health (CPBH; https://www.coalitionforbehavioralhealth.org). CPBH is an interdisciplinary group of 150 researchers, policymakers, educators, and practitioners dedicated to advancing preventive interventions that promote behavioral health among young people from birth through age 24. The Coalition is implementing an action plan for Unleashing the Power of Prevention that includes seven steps necessary to decrease the prevalence of behavioral health problems in young people by 20 percent within a decade. Unleashing the Power of Prevention was developed as a response to the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare’s Grand Challenges for Social Work Initiative (http://aaswsw.org/grand-challenges-initiative/12-challenges/ensure-healthy-development-for-all-youth/). It is also available on the National Academy of Medicine’s website at http://nam.edu/perspectives-2015-unleashing-the-power-of-prevention/. This Special Interest Group meeting will offer a forum for SPR members to learn about progress being made in the Unleashing the Power of Prevention initiative.