Portal:Partner Departments
From WikiCODOPN
Introduction
The Department of Peace and Nonviolence has been designed to complement existing Departments including:
- Department of Education (DoE),
- Department of Justice (DoJ),
- Department of Health and Human Services (DoHHS)
- Department of Labor (DoL)
- Department of State (DoS),and the
- Department of Defense (DoD).
Each of these departments are involved in efforts to reduce levels of violence and provide opportunities for growth for U.S. citizens. The establishment of a Department of Peace and Nonviolence is not intended to, nor will it, replace these ongoing peacemaking efforts. The Department of Peace and Nonviolence will promote, integrate and provide additional programs that address systemic causes of interpersonal violence, help reduce levels of violence at all levels of society, and provide meaningful opportunities for U.S. citizens to extend their individual and collective abilities.
According to the World Health Organization, the annual cost of interpersonal violence in the United States is estimated to be 3.3% of the Gross Domestic Product. The GDP of the United States for 2006 is expected to be 13.3 trillion dollars. The cost of interpersonal violence (not including external violence) therefore translates to about $440B for 2006.
The cost of violence is non-value-added to our society. The cost of violence detracts from the many productive endeavours we could do.
We can confidently say that even with all the effort from these existing agencies, a more integrated approach is appropriate at this time.
