three-day event – following a 2023 convening in Washington, D.C. – featured keynote speeches by New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin

New York, NY – Last week, more than 250 community safety experts, practitioners, funders, and government officials attended the Advancing the Field of Alternative Response 2025 Convening held in New York City. Co-hosted by the Policing Project at NYU School of Law, the Georgetown Law Center for Innovations in Community Safety, and the Alternative Mobile Services Association, the event featured more than fifty speakers on panels and in workshops discussing the future of non-police alternative first response in the United States.

The convening included public officials from more than 30 states and localities, as well as representatives from local and national law enforcement and justice advocacy organizations and philanthropic supporters. Attendees discussed shared challenges and opportunities to continue building momentum for the field of alternative first response, which has made national headlines with notable growth since 2020.

There are currently more than 130 alternative, non-police response programs operating across the country. These programs are typically operated by municipalities within either a community safety, fire, or other existing department, or by contracted service providers. They respond to an increasingly wide variety of 911 calls, for everything from mental health crises and substance use to traffic incidents and conflict mediation.

The event – along with a New York Times op-ed authored by the Policing Project – also marked the launch of the organization’s new 12 Million Calls Initiative to build a national cohort of cities committed to diverting 20 percent of 911 calls to non-police alternative responders. As part of the initiative, participating municipalities will receive technical assistance and research and policy support, including in identifying diversion-eligible calls, as well as access to a growing community of practice. The Policing Project will also collect data on diverted calls for analysis and aggregation.

For a full list of speakers from the event, visit the event website. Sign up here to learn more about the 12 Millions Calls Initiative.