What Is CVI?

Community Violence Intervention, or CVI,
is an evidence-informed, non-punitive public health approach to reducing gun violence. It offers a suite of services that proactively engage individuals with the highest likelihood of being involved in gun violence, with the goal of promoting healing and building safer and stronger communities.

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CVI Strategies

In Chicago, Community Violence Intervention is made up of a comprehensive ecosystem, each part working together to create lasting change. This strategy includes:

  • Street Outreach and Victim Services
  • Case Management and Life Coaching
  • Mental and Behavioral Health
  • Legal Aid
  • Re-entry Services
  • Education
  • Employment
  • Youth Interventions
  • Hospital Violence Intervention Programs
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Video courtesy of City Club of Chicago

Reimagining Public Safety

Community Violence Intervention is a rapidly growing field that reimagines public safety in communities around Chicago and across the country. Its approach is hyperlocal, trauma-informed, restorative, and nonviolent.

Watch as public safety experts explore the ways in which CVI and law enforcement intersect, and how they work independently.

FAQS

Learn more about Community Violence Intervention below.

Community Violence Intervention, or CVI, is an evidence-informed, non-punitive public health approach to reducing gun violence. It offers a suite of services that proactively engage individuals with the highest likelihood of being involved in gun violence, with the goal of promoting healing and building safer and stronger communities. 

Community Violence Intervention deploys individuals who have credibility in their communities (Street Outreach Workers) to engage and build relationships with individuals and groups to prevent and disrupt cycles of violence and retaliation. Once there is trust and openness to change, the outreach worker introduces a case manager to the team. The case manager administers an intake and assessment to identify the specific needs of the individual and ensures they can access the resources necessary to improve their physical, social, emotional, and economic conditions, to put them on a path to living a life free of violence.

From the individual to the community to our larger city, we all benefit from the efforts of Community Violence Intervention. High-risk individuals get the vital resources they need to transform their lives. Communities experience reductions in violent crime and safer environments. More employable individuals are added to our workforce. New, existing, and potential businesses feel confident in servicing customers. And, residents and visitors alike can safely enjoy the great city of Chicago. With collective buy-in, we can help reduce gun violence.

Communities Partnering 4 Peace (CP4P), convened by Metropolitan Peace Initiatives (MPI), is a coalition of 15 community-based organizations focused on reducing gun violence in 28 of Chicago’s highest-risk communities. These organizations provide street outreach, case management, and victim services, as well as host Light in the Night events, among other services.

Street Outreach Workers are individuals who have a license to operate and are credible messengers in their neighborhoods. They interrupt violence, provide mentorship, and support those likely to be involved with gun violence. They mediate conflicts, form peace and non-aggression agreements amongst conflicting groups, and influence individuals to utilize available resources to achieve their personal goals.

While Street Outreach Workers have a professional understanding with the police, they do NOT work with law enforcement. Community Violence Intervention professionals and the Chicago Police Department (CPD) have both complementary and independent roles and rules of engagement. Street outreach workers have a unique role in the community, which precludes them from communicating with CPD. It preserves their credibility and enables conversations with those most vulnerable to gun violence.

According to Chicago’s Violence Reduction Dashboard, as of August 2025, the city has reported murders are down more than 30% in the past year and cut in half since 2021; robberies are down 33% from 2024 and 37% since 2023; shooting incidents are down 36% from 2024 and cut by more than half since 2021; burglaries are down 21% compared to 2024; and motor vehicle thefts are down 26% compared to 2024.

Investments in Community Violence Intervention come from several different avenues, from the philanthropic, corporate, and public sectors.

Community Violence Intervention can only be sustained through long-term, stable investment. This allows organizations to hire, retain, and train street outreach workers, case managers, and victim advocates who are at the heart of this work. The goal is to expand investments in training, salaries, and career pathways to make Community Violence Intervention a permanent part of Chicago’s public safety infrastructure.

Launched in 2024, the Scaling Community Violence Intervention for a Safer Chicago (SC2) initiative is a collaboration between Chicago’s CVI organizations, philanthropic, business, and government leaders, all with the collective goal of reducing gun violence across the city. Areas of focus include East and West Garfield Park, Little Village, Humboldt Park, New City, Englewood, Austin, and North Lawndale. These communities were chosen based on rates of violence and consideration of geographic and racial equity.

Over the next five years, CVI leaders and professionals hope to serve at least half of the estimated 20,000 Chicagoans at highest risk of shooting or being shot, while reducing shootings and homicides by 50%. The ten-year goal is to serve 75%, while reducing shootings and homicides by 75%.