Communities mobilizing for change on alcohol

CMCA is a community organizing effort designed to change policies and practices of major community institutions in ways that reduce access to alcohol by teenagers. CMCA was developed and evaluated in a 15-community randomized trial by the Alcohol Epidemiology Program at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health, under the direction of Professor Alexander C. Wagenaar. The intervention approach involves activating the citizenry of communities to achieve changes in local public policies and changes in the practices of major community institutions, such as law enforcement, licensing departments, community events, civic groups, churches and synagogues, schools, and local mass media. The objective is to reduce the flow of alcohol to youth from illegal sales by retail establishments, and from provision of alcohol to youth by other adults in the community. Effectively limiting the accessibility of alcohol to teens not only directly reduces teen drinking, but also communicates a clear social norm in the community that underage drinking is inappropriate and unacceptable.