Idaho Drug Free Youth educates and empowers teens to become youth advocates in their school and communities. For more information about bringing a Youth Advocacy Training to your community, contact greg@idahodrugfreeyouth.org.

Youth the most Powerful Advocates for Drug and Alcohol Prevention

Youth can advocate for policy change.
Young people can be effective at garnering support for policy development and change. Youth capture the
attention of political leaders and the media, making them important partners in policy advocacy.

They project a powerful voice.
Youth have credibility with peers and community members. This allows them to help educate the community
to reduce pro drug, alcohol and tobacco influences and increase healthier norms and behaviors.

Teens can expose tobacco industry tactics .
Young people can be effective partners in the fight against the drug, alcohol and tobacco industry by exposing its manipulative tactics and undermining its efforts.

They offer energy and vitality
Youth bring energy to activities and events. Drug, alcohol and tobacco prevention programs should work to channel this energy into action, resulting in increased awareness and policy change.

They can reflect a genuine concern.
Youth generally volunteer their time to be involved in drug, alcohol and tobacco control efforts. They do this because of the stake they have in their own future.

Young people bring diverse representation and provide generational insight.
Youth can provide important insight about their generation. Involving youth in drug, alcohol and tobacco control efforts ensures the design of effective, population-specific policies.

Teens have creativity and innovation
Young people naturally challenge the traditional attitudes that may restrict and limit how adults think and
act. They add innovation and creativity to any program, making it more attractive to other youth and policy
makers. Their novel ideas for policy advocacy strategies help push efforts forward.

Teens mobilize their peers.
Youth have the ability to mobilize their peers for activities and facilitate access to many arenas. These actions
add strength to tobacco control policy efforts while also broadening the type and number of venues involved
in message delivery.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Best Practices User Guide: Youth Engagement–State and Community Interventions. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on
Smoking and Health, 2010.