WI Idea Forum

The inaugural Wisconsin Idea Forum took place in Eau Claire on May 14, 2009. There were approximately 230 participants across the state attending at one of 6 sites: Eau Claire, Green Bay, Madison, Milwaukee, Stevens Point and Lacrosse. Each satellite site had a 2-way broadcast with opportunities to ask questions and engage in the Forum discussion.

The topic of the Forum was “Addressing Alcohol Abuse through Public Policy: Finding Common Ground” with business leaders, elected officials, healthcare professionals, students, educators, Alcohol Industry representatives, community representatives, treatment professionals, and others invited to participate. The goal of the WI Idea Forum was to teach, learn, and share best ideas and practices around alcohol abuse.

The Wisconsin Idea Forum “Addressing Alcohol Abuse Through Public Policy: Finding Common Ground,” focused on policy approaches as opposed to solely education/social marketing approaches. The social, physical, and environmental norms present in Wisconsin regarding alcohol use as well as the idea of blending evidence with improving and expanding services were emphasized. The forum speakers provided resources such as websites that are free and easily accessible to participants, and demonstrated the great need to get funding for treatment, prevention, and enforcement. In addition, the forum highlighted the fact that family policy, organizational policy, local and state policies can and should all be changed, but that some strong barriers to these policy changes are funding and cultural norms.

For access to Eau Claire Forum Power Point presentations, reports and to participate in the BLOG to continue discussions around the issue of alcohol abuse, click here.