Posted on Aug 17, 2018

If so, perhaps you would be interested in learning more about the pilot Global Grant that  District 7910 will be submitting focused on Addiction Prevention Education. This is a multi-district program which includes Districts 7910, 7930, 7780, 7850, 7870, 7890, 7950 and 7980, covering most of New England.

There is no doubt that your community is already doing something in this area, and we are so grateful for those efforts. We believe that Rotary excels in three areas: Education, Advocacy and Collaboration. Through a strategic initiative with the Rotarian Action Group for Addiction Prevention, we have created a unified program that can be easily replicated by Rotary Clubs, ensuring a real chance of Making a Difference!
 
What is included in the Global Grant?
 
The program consists of the Toolkit for Rotarians (pictured below) that includes a workbook and a thumb drive with a series of five short, compelling educational videos on the brain science of addiction, tobacco, alcohol, marijuana and opioids. The material outlines the driving forces of addiction where youth and young adults are most vulnerable. As indicated in the Surgeon General's report: Facing Addiction in America, community stakeholders are central to bringing solution to the local problem. With your help, Rotary we can bring accurate, up-to-date scientific information about alcohol and drugs and about substance use disorders as medical conditions to every community.
 
The initial phase of this Rotary initiative is community engagement through an Addiction Prevention Seminar designed to educate all stakeholders, including parents, teachers and municipal leaders. The team will provide the information needed to make informed decisions and have meaningful conversations within their circles of colleagues, friends and family members. Based on a modified version of the World-Cafe model, small groups watch the short, scientific educational videos, share thoughts with each other and subsequently with the group at large.  Through this collaborative learning, participants can then begin to consider local best prevention measures to support in their local communities.
 
The second phase offers prevention education to freshman or sophomore high school students through the device-enabled classroom. The program meets the state health curricula standards, is teacher guided and paced, and integrates simpy and easily into a school's existing health education program.  Students learn information and skills that empowers them to make good choices and successfully navigate the daily, competing good vs bad messages they receive about drugs, alcohol and addiction.
 
Want to learn more about the Rotary Toolkit and the Program?
 
Watch the video by clicking on the Toolkit image:
 
 
This video is located on the Rotarian Action Group - Addiction Prevention webpage. We are working closely with them to build this conversation globally. If you are not a member, consider joining so that we can collaborate with Rotarians around the world!
 
What are we asking you to do in addition to watching the video? 
 
As a Rotarian or community leader, please consider serving as your Club or Community Champion or recommend a delegate that would serve in that capacity.
 
In addition, if your club or community group would like to pledge your support to the Global Grant to help launch the pilot project, please feel free to do so. We anticipate submitting the grant in July; the proposal has been strategically designed for easy replication whenever and wherever the need exists, which I believe, is in almost every community around the globe. But, the global grant model is not the only option: as Rotary can help fund this initiative through district grants or locally with organizations and corporations who have committed corporate social responsibility dollars to the communities they serve. More on this in future newsletters.
 
For now, please let me know if you are in on this intitiative by sending me an email by clicking here!