At the heart of alcohol prevention lie two contrasting truths. First, alcohol prevention begins at the highest levels, with good policy and attentive regulators. Second, alcohol prevention begins in the home, with knowledge, compassion, and care.
Alcohol Justice’s NextGen Youth Advocates™ project refuses to accept these two truths as separate. Continuing the organization’s ongoing dedication to providing outreach and development to the youth in San Rafael’s Canal District, NGYA™ activities provide kids with the knowledge they need to take control of their health, and skills they need to move legislators and decisionmakers on key issues.
Over the course of the year, NGYA™ provided 106 days of youth programming, serving local youth between the ages of 12 and 17. Through twice-weekly workshops, group leader Susan Bryant and Chauncey Bryant helped the participants develop advocacy, substance use prevention, and civic engagement skills—alongside hands-on experience in organic gardening, the fruits of which were shared back with the community. In mid-program surveys, 100% of respondents reported feeling empowered to become leaders at school and in social circles.
Over the course of the program, the attendees showed remarkable initiative. 24 youth from the program were connected with adult mentors, developing the skills to serve as program facilitators, role models, and key peer resources. Another 10 students took on leadership responsibilities for the 2-day Health & Wellness Open House in May, sharing books and produce with the community while demonstrating the skills they had been developing.
These skills form the key to empowered social change. Bringing their experience directly to the health challenges facing young adults, the youth leaders served as ambassadors at the Alcohol & Other Drugs Town Hall event in June. They delivered speeches on self-selected topics, including impassioned outcry against harmful legislation, and an appeal to their peers to look out for themselves and their community. By showing the desire to become pubic faces for prevention, the ambassadors continued the push for “third spaces”—supportive recreational and social destinations that do not depend on alcohol sales to stay open.
The NGYA™ sessions themselves provided one such space. While school was out, the 5-week Summer Academy at Alcohol Justice’s San Rafael offices provided home cooking and earth stewardship, and boasted full enrollment the entire time. Beyond the regular prevention instruction, the youth were able to take advantage of the engaged peer group for regular, alcohol-free, youth-centered Free Our Sports parties. These NFL watch parties drove home the idea that they can be social, have fun, be engaged in the game, and still to talk back to predatory alcohol industry marketing.
The year close with December’s Youth & Family Summit, where participant testimonials were witnessed by parents and adult leaders. The kids shared messages of drug-free decision-making, a sense of duty and leadership, and love for their streets and neighborhood. These visions did not just cap off a year of instruction—they lay the groundwork for a year of greater investment, greater empowerment, and continued positive change for the kids of Marin.
READ MORE about the Alcohol Justice youth programs.