CONFRONTING CRIME AND VIOLENCE IN LATIN AMERICA:
CRAFTING A PUBLIC POLICY AGENDA

A joint initiative of the Taubman Center for Local and State Government and the Institute Fernando Henrique Cardoso
July 2-3, 2007
Contact information: Leandro_Piquet@ksg.harvard.edu

About the seminar:

Urban violence is consistently identified as one of the principal public concerns in Latin American countries. Homicide rates in the region are more than double the world average: 22.9 per 100 thousand inhabitants compared to a world average of 10.7. With the exception of Sub-Saharan Africa, no other region of the world has homicide rates above 9 per 100 thousand. Violence increased critically in the region during the '80s and '90s. When disaggregated at the sub-national level, the homicide rates confirm high concentration of the problem in urban areas, specifically in greater metropolitan regions. Violence outgrew the scale of an endemic phenomenon in Latin American cities over the past two decades and hit epidemic proportions in the present decade.

Challenged by this scenario, the Fernando Henrique Cardoso Institute and the Taubman Center for Local and State Government will hold an international seminar for the discussion of the future of crime control policies in Latin American countries. The seminar intends to bring together leading international scholars, political leaders and top field professionals of criminal justice institutions with the aim of raise public awareness to different sets of successful policies. It also intends to contribute to making up-to-date research results available to those involved with urban and social policies planning and the management of criminal justice system.

CONFRONTING CRIME AND VIOLENCE IN LATIN AMERICA: CRAFTING A PUBLIC POLICY AGENDA seeks an explicit articulation between scientific research and the specialized knowledge of stakeholders in discussion sessions and panels. Its focus is direct to crime control policies at different government levels and attempts to bring together a multi-disciplinary team of researchers oriented toward public policy issues.

Agenda | Participants

Day One Presentations
The Future of Cities and the Control of Crime, Edward L. Glaeser, Harvard University (powerpoint)
Measuring the Contribution of Criminal Justice Systems to the Control of Crime and Violence, Christopher Stone, Harvard University (paper)
Implementing Police Reform and Innovation in Latin America, Hugo Fruhling, University of Chile (powerpoint)
Latin America's Criminal Procedure Reforms: Lessons from the Past Two Decades, Linn Hammergren, World Bank (paper)
Gangs and Maras in Central America: Results From Self-Report Surveys, Maurício Rúbio, Universidad Externado de Colombia (powerpoint)

Day Two Presentations
Crime, Development, and Welfare in Latin America, Rodrigo Soares, Maryland University and PUC-Rio De Janeiro (powerpoint)
Long-Run Crime Prevention Policies, Norman Loayza, World Bank (powerpoint)
Crime, Violence, and Development: Trends, Costs, and Policy Options in the Caribbean, Andrew Morrison, World Bank (powerpoint)
Crime Information and Urban Policies in Colombian Cities, Rodrigo Guerrero, DESEPAZ, Colombia (powerpoint)
Does Disorder Lead to Crime? Evidence from a Brazilian City, Leandro Piquet Carneiro, Kennedy School of Government (powerpoint)
Problem Oriented Policing in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Claudio Beato, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil (powerpoint)
The Homicide Drop in São Paulo, Brazil, Túlio Kahn, São Paulo State Government, University of São Paulo (powerpoint)

Articles

"Cidades só crescem sem crime," José Alexandre Scheinkman, Etrevista Epoca, 02/07/2007.
"Causa e Efeito," Merval Pereira, O Globo, 04/07/2007.
"As faces da violência," Merval Pereira, O Globo, 03/07/2007.
"Cidades violentas perdem negócios," Solange Azevedo, Revista Época, 01/08/2007.