It was a fantastic opportunity to speak on this topic with the incredible panel Caterina Giorgi from FARE Australia, Jasper Vallance from Xstatic Sunsets and Murat KILIC (DJ, Producer, Conscious Club Events) and myself from Untoxicated at the first ever South by South West conference (SXSW) held outside of its birthplace in Austin USA.

Very heartening to see the strong interest; we were moved to a larger capacity space at the last minute because crowd numbers were double the expected. 💃

As a panel we brought our own lived experience of long partying histories and alcohol use to the discussion, as well as our experiences in establishing alternative spaces for people to socialise and connect without booze.

We talked about how we can shift our overconsumption of alcohol as a nation + its heavy enmeshment in our culture and ways we socialise, and paths forward to creating some change including:

👉the need for spaces and communities that offer alternatives to overconsumption, in the same ways we do for exercise, health, wellbeing

👉 'you can't be what you can't see' - representation matters. as humans we are hard wired to belong to our groups. if reducing our alcohol consumption means our place in the group is threatened then we're not likely to stick to it

👉while personal responsibility is of course essential, we need to acknowledge the odds are stacked - alcohol is everywhere, is heavily subsidised by govt, has powerful lobbyists + alcohol is big business w. huge amount of sway (and $$$)

👉why we wait to pick people up after they've already slipped into addiction - surely better to offer options earlier (early intervention)

👉we know prohibition doesn't work and many people are able to consume at levels that work for them. It's not about either or. It's about increasing options and factilitating informed choice.

👉as humans, we may know all the 'right things' to do when it comes to our health. But unless we offer appealing and attractive options - using a carrot and not a stick approach - it's very challenging for people to actually want to make the changes (see: 'Park Run')

👉we face stigma and shame if we have a problem with drinking (which prevents help seeking), and paradoxically also if we stop drinking.

👉sober events don't make money. that comes from booze. this is why they need support to keep going.

Unfortunately orgs like Untoxicated (a charity with no funding) and Xstatic Sunsets are not financially sustainable and come at significant personal cost for those who take up the mantle to deliver, including burn out, and the toll on our own physical, financial and mental health.

People tell us every day they need what we do. But without govt or philanthropic we can't survive. That's the reality.

Thank you to all who came along, contributed to the discussion and to SXSW and the awesome panel.

And massive thanks to Jasper for submitting our panel and those who voted for us meaning we got selected out of 3,000 panels!!!