ONDCP Recruits Teen Voices to Above the Influence Campaign

The National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign is re-launching its Above the Influence campaign, calling on youth to engage more directly with the brand. The ATI brand has been refreshed to incorporate messaging focused on substances most abused by teens, and to deliver broad prevention messaging at the national level and more targeted efforts at the local community level.

Research shows that teens understand and embrace the ATI brand and its authentic peer-to-peer messaging approach and it has become a philosophy that inspires teens to make informed choices. In that spirit, ATI will continue to capture the attention of youth by challenging them to think critically about the adverse effects of drug use and the potential negative influences surrounding them.

To reintroduce and emphasize the renewed local focus of the Campaign, the Campaign is launching the "Influence Project," a new initiative aimed at getting teens to share their insights about the positive and negative influences they see around them and their approach to "staying above it."

Encourage teens in your community to go to www.AbovetheInfluence.com/HeatMap to share what influences them on the "Influence Map." The three communities with the highest number of entries on the "Influence Map" will receive the "ATI Experience" in their town, including an Above the Influence wall mural, a "creation station" for teens to create their own versions of the Above the Influence symbol, advertising featuring artwork produced by local teens, and additional activities that support anti-drug choices. The first community to receive the "ATI Experience" will be named on June 30, 2010, and two more communities will have the opportunity to bring ATI to their community before the end of the year.

A new toolkit will soon be available to help community group leaders engage teens in discussions and activities that will build their understanding of influence and build skills to resist negative influence. The Campaign aims to make it easy for community leaders to apply ATI messages in the work they are already doing to provide teens the foundation they need to stay safe and succeed.

Since its inception in 1998, the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign has been authorized by Congress to reduce and prevent teen drug use. The Campaign recognizes that community prevention efforts are vitally important in the effort to keep teens drug-free, and we need your help to keep teens engaged in positive youth activities that support anti-drug choices. For more information on the ONDCP National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign, visit www.MediaCampaign.org.