Term 4 2017 Teachers

Positive Choices Issue #10: Keeping you up-to-date with evidence-based drug prevention.

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The aim of this e-newsletter is to provide our subscribers with information about new research findings and drug prevention resources, and to share relevant news, conferences and events.

Thank you for subscribing to the Positive Choices newsletter, and welcome to our Term 4 issue for 2017.

With the end of the year and holiday season approaching, this issue will focus on "Planning for next year". We are so excited to announce and share with you our new-look portal, which includes an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander portal, new improved navigation, and multiple new resources.
Positive Choices has a wide range of recommended programs, that have been tested in schools and shown to be effective at reducing drug and alcohol related harms. There are also factsheets, videos, games and webinars, to help you stay informed as well as to assist you in providing drug and alcohol education to your students.
Please help us spread the word by forwarding this newsletter to colleagues in your school or networks, and encourage them to subscribe themselves at www.positivechoices.org.au.

New to Positive Choices: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Portal

We are very excited to announce the launch of a culturally appropriate space on Positive Choices with information and resources for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. In this culturally safe space you will find factsheets, videos, programs and games that are developed specifically for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and their teachers and parents.

View these new resources available on Positive Choices.

While you're visiting our new Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander resources, check out the rest of the updates to Positive Choices! You'll see a fresh and updated design on the homepage, student landing page, teacher landing page and a new portal making it easier to find Culturally and Linguistically Diverse resources. Have a look now!

Planning for next year with Positive Choices

First up, we recommend watching the Positive Choices webinar on "How to Engage Your Students with Evidence-Based Drug Education". The webinar will show you how to use the Positive Choices portal to your advantage, providing support on lesson planning and guidance about how to access and evaluate evidence-based resources that are engaging for young people.

Secondly, check out our Recommended Programs. To be included in our list of Recommended Programs, the benefits of the program must be demonstrated in at least one published study, so you can trust that what you deliver to your students is effective in reducing alcohol and/or drug use or related harms.

You may decide you would like to implement one of the Recommended Programs in your workplace next year, so it is good to become familiar with the content and also allow time for any decision-makers in your workplace to consider the program.

Browse through our videos, and sort your search by our 'Links to the Australian Curriculum' filter. This will help you plan lessons relevant to your class, and also ensure your lessons meet the requirements of the curriculum.

Don't forget to visit our "Drugs A-Z" resources, which provide expert reviewed information about alcohol and other drugs you can trust, and our Factsheets, that cover a wide range of topics relating to drug and alcohol education.
Something you'd like to see on Positive Choices that isn't there? We welcome ideas for new content, so send us an email at info@positivechoices.org.au, and we'll look into it.

LATEST NEWS AND EVENTS

Australian Government Department of Health launches the National Drugs Campaign

On 24 September 2017, Minister Hunt launched the National Drugs Campaign. The objective of the Campaign is to increase the likelihood that individuals will avoid, reduce or cease use of illicit drugs by raising awareness of the risks (health, social, legal, family impact) associated with use. The Campaign aims to support and encourage decisions not to use, and direct people to information about further resources, support and treatment services.

Further information about the Campaign can be accessed at drughelp.gov.au

Positive Choices recognised in the Mental Health Matters Awards for 2017!
Positive Choices would like to express our sincere thanks to Way Ahead - Mental Health Association NSW for presenting us with the Mental Health Promotion and Wellbeing Award. Congratulations to all the organisations recognised in the Mental Health Matters Awards for 2017, your work is truly inspiring!

Would you like to get your community involved in prevention of drug and alcohol related harms?

In late 2017, applications will open for community groups and organisations to become a Local Drug Action Team (LDAT). The LDAT program is an initiative under the Australian Government’s four year investment to reduce the harms that drugs and alcohol are having across the country. The program seeks to identify, develop and deliver local solutions to local drug and alcohol issues.

Local Drug Action Teams will work collaboratively to prevent alcohol and other drug harms in their community. With support and resources from the Alcohol and Drug Foundation (ADF), the LDATs will deliver evidence-informed social change activities that strengthen protective factors to minimise AOD harms in their community.

Over the next 3 years, it is hoped that up to 220 LDATs will be established across the country. LDATs might include partnerships between local government, local community groups, local traders/business associations, police, schools, and local not-for-profit organisations. All LDATs will be supported to develop a Community Action Plan and will be eligible to access funding of up to $40,000 per annum to put these plans into action.

More information about the Local Drug Action Team program can be accessed here.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians will have the opportunity to tell Positive Choices about their positive personal experiences through text, art or film. This could include an artwork about their role models, a video about why they don’t take drugs and alcohol or a short story on their favourite parts of their community. The person who enters the most creative and inspiring story will win a Macbook Air and the runner up will receive a $500 JB HIFI voucher.

Listen to the Positive Choices team present, or catch up with us at our booth/display, at these upcoming events.

The Positive Choices newsletter is sent out once every term, and contains updates and information relating to the Positive Choices website. Recently published newsletters will take 48 hours to be listed on this page.