Forum “From Violence to Dialogue: Understanding and Preventing the Social Crisis”
On May 12, 2025, the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics held the forum entitled “From Violence to Dialogue: Understanding and Preventing the Social Crisis”, an event that brought together renowned experts from various disciplines to analyze, based on data, the multiple expressions of violence currently faced by Puerto Rico. The main objective of the meeting, held in Carolina, was to promote an informed dialogue that contributes to the understanding and prevention of violence in all its forms. The forum program included presentations on topics such as armed violence, drug trafficking, intimate partner violence, feminicide, education, social inequality and suicide. Each paper was supported by rigorous statistical evidence, as well as proposals aimed at strengthening public policies aimed at preventing these social problems.

The initiative:
The forum “From Violence to Dialogue: Understanding and Preventing the Social Crisis” focused on the importance of creating a space in which the context of current violence in Puerto Rico was addressed, where the intersection of various types of violence requires a comprehensive and evidence-based analysis. This multidisciplinary meeting not only allowed us to examine the different manifestations of violence, but it also established an important precedent in the use of statistical data for the development of public prevention policies. The participation of experts in different fields contributed to a deeper understanding of the magnitude of violence and the social challenges faced by Puerto Rico for the development of effective strategies that promote a safer and more equitable society.

Special Guest Presentations:

• Raúl Figueroa Rodríguez, A Comprehensive Approach to Suicide Prevention in Puerto Rico
• Dr. Eduardo J. Zavala-Mendoza, Structural Violence and Psychoactive Substances in Puerto Rico
• Dr. Rafael A. Boglio Martínez, Firearms, Violence and Gender
• Captain Aymée Alvarado Cardona and Myribel Santiago Torres, MPH, NPPR-Domestic Violence in Puerto Rico, 2014-2024
• Prosecutor Laura Hernández Gutierrez, Strangulation Protocol

Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics

• Dr. Diego E Zavala, Context of Violent Deaths in Puerto Rico Using the Typology of Violence in OMS.pdf
• Mariluz Bezares Salinas, Beyond the Visible Tertiary Deaths Due to Intimate Partner Violence in Puerto Rico
• Manuel Mangual, Femicide Data Collection System

Materials:

Agenda

Pics

Press Release

Video Summary

Agenda Poster of the activity

• Presentations
  • Office of the Chief Information Executive
  • Interactive panel for users of economic statistics

Exploring Economic and Social Reality: Statistics and Their Impact

The collaborative activity, between the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics and the United States Census Bureau, took place on Friday, October 4, 2024, at the Criollo Center for Caribbean Science and Technology (C3Tec). The purpose of the conference was to clarify various sources and statistics available to the public. As part of the mission of both entities, to provide statistical information on the jurisdiction of Puerto Rico, two sections were organized aimed at the audience of the government, private sector, academia and researchers, as well as the general public.

The Initiative:

The conference focused on economic and social indicators for the jurisdiction of Puerto Rico, covering multiple specific indicators and showing participants the tools or sources to access them. Among the topics presented were the following: Building Permit Survey, Quarterly Workforce Indicators, Community Resilience Estimates, Census Business Builder, Puerto Rico Profile webpage, Migration and Workforce Structure and the Cost of Living Index (COLI). At the end of the conference, the diverse information shared was reviewed and related questions and doubts were addressed, in order to guide participants to explore economic and social aspects of Puerto Rico using the available statistics.

Presentations:

U.S. Census Bureau

• Ana G. Jara Castro, Economic Indicators Building Permit Survey, Quarterly Workforce Indicators; Links QwiExplorer , Census Visualizations Statemap, Census Visualizations Datatool
• Javier Gomez, Community Resilience Estimates (CRE); Links Community Resilience Estimates for Puerto Rico Viewer
• Clara E. Santiago Bello, Census Business Builder ; Links Census Business Builder (CBB) , CBB MAP & Industries
• Marijulie Martínez Lozano, Link Census Puerto Rico Profile Webpage

Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics

• Dr. Ronald G. Hernandez Maldonado, Cost of Living Index (COLI)
• Alberto L. Velazquez Estrada, Migratory Flow and Labor Group Structure in Puerto Rico

Materials:

Agenda

Pics

Video Summary

Press Release

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