Straight Up is a youth development project that promotes social change regarding underage and binge drinking and impaired driving using improvisation and interactive performance and workshops with engaging discussion, exploration of issues, and the development of personal and community solutions to these problems.

Our Goals

Our goal is to create change in community norms — behaviors, attitudes, perceptions, policies and environments — that accept, allow and encourage underage and binge drinking among 15-25 year olds in Ventura County by:

• providing opportunities for teens and young adults throughout Ventura County to take action and participate in environmental strategies to reduce underage and binge drinking, and
• providing communities, schools, youth, parents and youth leaders with information, skills and resources to address underage and binge drinking in Ventura County through environmental prevention strategies.

Environmental Prevention

Environmental prevention concentrates on changing those community conditions that increase the risk for underage and binge drinking. Environmental factors that influence underage drinking include:

• COMMUNITY NORMS
• ACCESS and AVAILABILITY
• POLICIES
• ENFORCEMENT

Newsletters:

• Have you heard of the new Social Host laws?
• What can you DO about underage and binge drinking?

Programs

Our activities directly related to underage and binge drinking and the dangerous behaviors and problems associated with alcohol use include:

• Interactive classroom workshops on high school and college campuses
• Youth leadership development and spokesperson training
• Straight Up intensive workshops series for organizations serving teens and young adults
• Sponsorship of Straight Up Action Teams to plan and implement environmental prevention projects
• Training in Reality Improv and Social Change Theatre techniques for organizations to address related issues
• Presentations of original theatre pieces providing opportunities for exploration of solutions among community members and policy makers
• Youth engagement in video production to increase understanding of the issues and support local alcohol prevention initiatives

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Straight Up is made possible through funding from the Ventura County Behavioral Health Department Alcohol and Drug Prevention Division.