The phrase "a key to avoiding" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when discussing strategies or methods to prevent something undesirable from happening.
Example: "Establishing clear communication is a key to avoiding misunderstandings in the workplace."
Alternatives: "a way to prevent" or "an approach to evading".
A deal on how to proceed on a nuclear-free zone in the Middle East remains a key to avoiding another fiasco like 2005, as my colleague Ed Pilkington is reporting.
For instance, being able to predict the mechanical behavior of underground formations is a key to avoiding borehole instabilities during drilling.
Backing up files that keep vital information on personnel, accounts receivable and trade secrets is a key to avoiding a long-term shut down and future risks to the business.
A key to avoiding them is better health care – particularly during pregnancy, delivery and in the post-partum period.
Having a person well hydrated before beginning to deal with healing may be a big key to avoiding a Healing Crisis.
A tight fit is key to avoiding shoddy-looking ripples, my panelists said.
This study revealed that prevention is critical, and getting help and engaging in proactive, healthy behaviors made a difference, and was key to avoiding extreme distress.
In an emergency maneuver, quick acceleration can be as key to avoiding a wreck as stout brakes.
Conservatives believe that slashing entitlement programs like Medicare is the key to avoiding a future tax increase.
Thomas Pickering, the United States ambassador to the United Nations from 1989 to 1992, said that convincing the Russians was usually the key to avoiding a veto on issues involving human rights.
Sir Mark Lyall Grant, the UK's ambassador to the UN, said persuading Russia to "come off the fence" and put pressure on Damascus to back the Kofi Annan-led peace plan sponsored by the UN and the Arab League was the key to avoiding a slide into civil war.
