The mission of the Center for the Study of Law and Enforcement Policy is analysis of the role of legal and enforcement policy related to alcohol, tobacco, and other drug (ATOD) problems. We recognize that with increased attention on environmental strategies, legal policies and their enforcement have become an integral part of the ATOD field. Effective ATOD policy reform requires basic legal research, research on the role and impact of enforcement practices, and effective communication and working relationships among legal and enforcement professionals, social science researchers, policy makers, and community groups. Hence, we seek an integrated approach to addressing these critical functions in the ATOD field.
CSLEP is a Center within the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE) headquartered in Calverton, Maryland. Pacific Institute is one of the nation's preeminent independent, nonprofit organizations merging scientific knowledge and proven practice to create solutions that improve the health, safety and well-being of individuals, communities, nations, and the world. Historically, the focus of Pacific Institute's work has been on individual and social problems associated with the use of alcohol and other drugs. This focus has broadened to include a range of issues related to public health and safety and applications of social policy. The Institute maintains a commitment to active involvement in both the scientific and the policy-making communities to solve real world problems.
Substantive Areas of Expertise within the Pacific Institute in the national and international context:
* Etiology, epidemiology, and prevention and treatment of alcohol and other drug use and related problems;
* Impaired driving and traffic safety;
* Perinatal drug effects and reproductive health
* Health systems and health care finance and managed care
* Tobacco use and policies
* Alcohol policies
* Adolescent health
* Family systems
* Crime, violence, and delinquency
* Mass media, advertising, and media advocacy
* Health professional education
* Community mobilization
* Organizational behavior
* Human factors research
CSLEP's legal and policy work on alcohol, tobacco and other drugs resides squarely within PIRE's mission and history. It is also the only PIRE Center with a staff of legal researchers to broaden social science and public policy analyses of real-world public health issues. Our multi-dimensional expertise brings a critical perspective to the creation and implementation of policies designed to improve the health of U.S. citizens and citizens of the world.
