Alcohol-free spaces for children in Greenland

Working to create a new culture towards alcohol

More than 7 million children in the EU (9%) live in families adversely affected by

- Parental drinking can affect the environment in which a child grows up through financial strain, poor parenting, marital conflicts and negative role modelsi.

- A large number of studies have reported a variety of childhood mental and behavioural disorders to be more prevalent among children of heavy drinkers than othersii.

-Besides, the risk of child abuse is higher in families with heavy drinking parents

Drastic Measures in Greenland

High rates of alcohol consumption in one far northern settlement in Greenland have led the government to declare it dry in this November. This is an extreme measure but International Blue Cross warmly supports the Greenland Government at its evidence based policy that reduces the access and availability to alcohol and hence dramatically reduces the harm. It is wonderful to see that public health is at the heart of the national policy. Nobody would disagree that alcohol consumption in Savissivik, a settlement in far northern Greenland, is at the high end of the scale. Public intoxication has been one of the visible effects, as are property crimes such as theft and vandalism. Worst of all, child-neglect is said to spike whenever parents hit the drink too hard.

We want to congratulate the local actors at these good advocacy results and hope that in this settlement supermarkets will continue having empty alcohol shelves also in the future. Thank you for your support, together we can influence more!