One of the key insights to come out of DrinkWise Australia’s National Youth Forum was the ‘all or nothing’ drinking culture faced by young adults. Participants said they either drank to get drunk or invented some excuse to avoid drinking altogether. Drinking in moderation was not an option because it put them out of sync with the rest of their social group.

About 100 people from around Australia were involved in the Forum, most were young adults and all were over 18. There were also experts from government and non-government agencies working in this area, researchers and communication specialists. The Forum was part of National Youth Week and was held in Canberra on 1 April 2011.

The plea from the participants was for tools to help them deal with ‘group drink’ culture.