Rethinking Alcohol Harm Reduction

Commentary by @gabrielcaluzzi.bsky.social

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/dar.70152

@latrobeuni.bsky.social @alcoholandmedia.bsky.social

New Editor Recruitment Alert! I am seeking new Associate Editors on International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, a multidisciplinary, fully open access journal.

More details below & as ever, DM me with any Qs!

think.taylorandfrancis.com/editor_recru...

A response to Weatherburn et al. (2025) ‘Risky alcohol use and violence against women: cause or consequence?’

New from @meganpcook.bsky.social, @amypennay.bsky.social and myself in @ijdrugpolicy.bsky.social - we talk about the current focus on how women's consumption influences their risk of assault. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

New paper by Maree Patsouras (+supervisors & @sarjomac.bsky.social). It explores how midlife women's drinking challenges/fits within ideals around femininity, 'good motherhood' and neoliberalism.

A great final qual paper as part of Maree's mixed methods PhD! 😊

doi.org/10.1016/j.so...

Risk versus pleasure: understanding changing attitudes of non- and light-drinking young people as they age There have been significant declines in alcohol use for adolescents in high-income countries since the mid-2000s. Research suggests key factors are driving this, including: (1) negative attitudes t...

Open access: Risk versus pleasure: understanding changing attitudes of non- and light-drinking young people as they age by
@amypennay.bsky.social
@gabrielcaluzzi.bsky.social
@megancook.bsky.social
@michaellivingston.bsky.social

www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

I often suspect it’s something to do with the digital age, but impossible to point to one thing!

“Rethinking drug-related harms as emerging through global systems” by Gabriel Caluzzi & Thomas Norman #accepted

A pleasure hosting the @sarnalcohol.bsky.social mtg yesterday @dundee.ac.uk. Well-attended by researchers & practitioners from across Dundee & Scotland. Great presentations including from visitor @gabrielcaluzzi.bsky.social and our own @ptoner.bsky.social.

Four Pillars drug strategy Vancouver's Four Pillars Drug Strategy is a coordinated, comprehensive approach that balances public order and public health in order to create a safer, healthier community.

And @gabrielcaluzzi.bsky.social discusses #HarmReduction as an addition to structural reforms (pricing, marketing...) and the Q&A highlights the community aspect they may bring into #PublicMentalHealth strategies.

One example
vancouver.ca/people-progr...

#SARN #SubstanceUse #Scotland #Vancouver

Young people, alcohol and risk: A Culture of Caution A recent book by an international team of authors theorises the social, cultural and economic shifts accompanying the decline in youth alcohol consumption observed in many high-income countries since ...

Nice to have this out in popNAD. It summarises key ideas around declines in youth drinking that we explore in our book. Worth a read for overview of this body of work!

@amypennay.bsky.social @soc-researcher.bsky.social @jholmessheff.bsky.social @capraustralia.bsky.social

tinyurl.com/bdzajx8c

A new pill testing service is now open at 95 Brunswick St, Fitzroy to reduce drug-related harm in Victoria. https://www.vicpilltesting.org.au #harmreduction #drugchecking #pilltesting #humanrights #PWUD

Why alcohol policies miss those at the highest risk from drinking Campaigns designed to help us cut back on alcohol don’t always reach those most at risk of harm. Here’s what we should be doing instead.

Excited to be starting work to better understand the Alcohol Harm Paradox in Australia; thanks to the Conversation for their interest in this work

@theconversation.com

theconversation.com/why-alcohol-...

Young people represent a "unique social generation with regards to alcohol".

Dr @amypennay.bsky.social explains why on our latest podcast with Prof @jholmessheff.bsky.social 🎙️

Listen here: ias.org.uk/podcast/why-...

I've written a piece for @addiction-ssa.org on Alcoholics Anonymous, exploring it's current role - and tensions - within the current recovery landscape 90 years after its first meetings were held. Please share 🙏

www.addiction-ssa.org/features/ess...

#alcoholicsanonymous #recovery #addiction

What a big week at #KBS2025!

The #CAPR team showed up in full force this year — presenting across a huge range of topics and joining global talks on alcohol research, policy, and harm

Huge thanks to @kettilbruunsociety.bsky.social and everyone who made it such a vibrant and collaborative week! 🌍💬

Sage Journals: Discover world-class research Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.

“I Don’t Know for Certain”: A Content Analysis of Reddit Posters’ Accounts of Drink Spiking

New paper looking at relationships, contexts and impacts of alcohol & drug-facilitated sexual violence ('drink spiking'). Led by Jess Ison & @alcoholandmedia.bsky.social

journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

#KBS2025 Day 4 started with a plenary session on Public Health Framing and Policy Processes.

@gabrielcaluzzi.bsky.social presented his thoughts on Alcohol Harm Reduction.

Great presentation from @dremekadumbili.bsky.social on alcohol marketing in Nigeria as a commercial determinant of harm — framed in the context of the alcohol industry’s shift towards countries in the global south. #KBS2025

Young People, Alcohol and Risk: A Culture of Caution - Institute of Alcohol Studies A new book explores why young people in high-income countries are drinking less, linking the decline to growing health consciousness, closer parental relationships, and a broader culture of caution. I...

'Young People, Alcohol and Risk: A Culture of Caution' | @amypennay.bsky.social @gabrielcaluzzi.bsky.social @soc-researcher.bsky.social @jholmessheff.bsky.social et al @ias.org.uk www.ias.org.uk/2025/05/28/y...

Young People, Alcohol and Risk: A Culture of Caution - Institute of Alcohol Studies A new book explores why young people in high-income countries are drinking less, linking the decline to growing health consciousness, closer parental relationships, and a broader culture of caution. I...

A new book explores why young people in high-income countries are drinking less, linking the decline to growing health consciousness, closer parental relationships, and a broader culture of caution.

In our latest blog, the authors discuss the findings.

www.ias.org.uk/2025/05/28/y...

Gender Differences in Alcohol Research: A Focus on How Men and Women Are Studied in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand Click on the article title to read more.

Have a read of our editorial in @apsad-dar.bsky.social, led by @meganpcook.bsky.social, where we argue that we need to start focusing more on men in non-medical alcohol research in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Men bear the brunt of alcohol harm - so why the focus on women? - Institute of Alcohol Studies Despite men drinking more and experiencing more alcohol-related harm, a new study has found that women are the focus of more research, particularly relating to behaviour. The study authors explain how...

Men experience more alcohol-related harm than women, yet alcohol studies over the past decade have focused on women’s drinking.

In our latest blog, researchers at La Trobe explore this mismatch - and why it matters for policy, health, and public perception.

www.ias.org.uk/2025/05/14/m...

Addiction isn’t just about brain chemistry – but nor is it just bad choices Addiction isn’t a brain disease – but substance use is rarely a free choice either.

Pleased to be able to share my new article in @theconversation.com. It was inspired by recent papers with colleagues @chrysanthi-bltk.bsky.social @ioanaacristea.bsky.social @samuelacuff.bsky.social & ongoing work with @ambercopeland.bsky.social, and many others! theconversation.com/addiction-is...

Our book is out now! 🥳

In it, we review literature on factors that have shaped international declines in youth drinking. We draw on data from Australia, Sweden and the UK, positioning changes within a generational shift towards risk aversion and caution.

(See @amypennay.bsky.social's 🧵 for detail)

Led by Joanne Bryant with @sarjomac.bsky.social @joneale.bsky.social, Jen Skattebol, Mark Ferry, Andrew Bruun & Jacqui Sundbery

Learning how to live well: the transformative potential of youth AOD biopedagogies We draw on the concept of ‘biopedagogies’ to explore the effects of ‘living skills’ training for young people in alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment; that is, the knowledge and skill needed for ...

In our latest article looking at the needs of young people leaving residential AOD services, we use the concept of biopedagogies to explore how services that teach young people skills for everyday living (to manage work, relationships and self-care) can be transformative.

doi.org/10.1080/1446...

Another great paper by PhD candidate Maree Patsouras. This time a systematic review of alcohol use among working mothers - suggesting that societal level gender equity may have important impacts on alcohol consumption.

Check it out! 🙂

doi.org/10.1016/j.dr...

Gone but not forgotten: Why was the Northern Territory’s Minimum Unit Price removed? - Institute of Alcohol Studies Why has Australia's Northern Territory ended its Minimum Unit Pricing policy? And do the arguments the governing Country Liberal Party (CLP) made against the policy hold up?

A useful primer here from @nic-alcohol.bsky.social and Cass Wright on the evidence and politics behind Australia's Northern Territory removing their Minimum Unit Price for alcohol last month:

www.ias.org.uk/2025/04/01/g...

Over a decade later and Addiction journal is still committed to publishing qualitative research Click on the article title to read more.

Submit your qual work to Addiction! onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

AIAS Seminar: ‘What is ‘alcohol harm reduction’ and how can we do it?’ Speaker: Gabriel Scott Caluzzi, AIAS Visiting Fellow & Centre for Alcohol Policy Research, La Trobe University, Australia

🧐What is ‘alcohol harm reduction’ and how can we do it? Get insights from AIAS Visiting Fellow @gabrielcaluzzi.bsky.social who will present his research on alcohol harm reduction from theoretical, policy and practical perspectives.
📆7 April at 11:00
aias.au.dk/events/show/...