Injury and violence prevention is inherently political in nature because it often requires policy-makers to act in ways that produce outcomes that we cannot produce as individuals.1 2 We often hope that the science we pursue and our interpretations of evidence will translate into social, economic and political practice. As often, we find that policy, laws and resource allocation do not align with what we understand to be in the interest of population health. In early 2020, SAVIR surveyed its members to elicit interest, experience and needs for policy and advocacy engagement. The vast majority of respondents were interested in engaging more actively in advocacy to shape policy, practice and funding priorities across a breadth of interests from firearms to sport to occupational injury prevention.

There are a myriad of opportunities to advocate for policies and programmes that support injury and violence prevention and the growth of the injury and violence research field. Some require training and skill development and others are just a reframing of expertise in scientific writing, research translation and engagement with institutions, media and the public in injury and violence prevention …