Marisol Bravo
Companias Cervecerias Unidas S.A. (CCU) in Chile was looking for
different ways of curbing alcohol consumption among underage
drinkers. The legal drinking age in this South American country is 18,
but the reality is that many adolescents under that age have tried
alcohol at least once.
EDUCATE THE PARENTS AND YOU'LL REACH THE CHILDREN: CCU GIVES LESSONS IN COM MUNICATION
Most educational programmes are geared
towards informing young people. CCU's
'Education within the family' programme is
one of the few that are directed at the par
ents. 'Giving parents the information they
need to educate their children about respon
sible drinking is a really good contribution
to society,' says Marisol Bravo, Manager
Corporate Affairs at CCU.
CCU concentrated on one sector of
Santiago de Chile, a metropolis of five million
people, divided into 33 municipalities. In
2000, the company launched a programme
of two-hour workshops on responsible
alcohol consumption, covering all public
schools in the sector. The workshops, which
are given by specialists hired in by the com
pany, are intended for parents of children
attending the schools, and in particular
parents of 12-13 year olds, 'because at that
age they still listen to their parents,' says
Marisol.
CCU also started a five-day training course
for parents, teachers and psychologists at
the schools where workshops had been held,
to teach them how to give these workshops
themselves. These newly-trained coaches
will then be able to run 'Education within
the family' workshops for parents of children
in their schools in the future, thus ensuring
Active promotion of responsible alcohol consumption
performance ofHeineken world-wide,
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the continuity of the programme.
The results so far are impressive. By the
end of the year, CCU will have given work
shops in 230 schools, covering 15 municipali
ties and reaching 20,000 families. Private
schools have also asked to be included in the
programme, and next year the company
plans to extend it to cities north and south of
Santiago de Chile. Parents come away from
the workshop having learned several things:
that it is important to talk to their offspring
about the subject, teach them the dos
and don'ts of alcohol use and make it clear
that alcohol is only for people over 18. The
workshop also gives parents advice on how
best to pass these messages on to their
children.
'Parents have to be in touch with their
children, because they're responsible for
their children's behaviour,' Marisol Bravo
says. 'We help parents by giving them the
tools they need to improve communication.'
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