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Educating N.B. youth about risks of driving under the influence of cannabis

(Globe Newswire) Fredericton — MADD Canada and Cannabis NB are educating teens about the risks of cannabis-impaired driving and how they can prevent it.

With financial support from Cannabis NB, MADD Canada is bringing its Weed Out The Risk program to schools around the province. The program, developed by Springboard – a Toronto-based charity organization – with additional content from and delivered by MADD Canada, presents the risks of using cannabis and driving, or being a passenger in a vehicle with a cannabis-impaired driver. It is delivered in classrooms by a trained facilitator.

“Many young people think driving under the influence of cannabis is risk-free,” said MADD Canada’s chief operating officer Dawn Regan. “Our Weed Out The Risk program challenges this and other misperceptions, and gets young people thinking about how they can protect themselves and their peers.”

Thanks to funding from Cannabis NB through the Government of New Brunswick’s Cannabis Education and Awareness Fund, MADD Canada is delivering 50 presentations of Weed Out The Risk to New Brunswick students in Grades 9 to 12.

“We are proud to partner with MADD Canada on this important campaign,” said Lori Stickles, CEO of Cannabis NB. “As the only legal retailer of cannabis in New Brunswick, one of Cannabis NB’s main pillars of operation is a strong commitment to education and safety for the benefit of all New Brunswickers, including minors.”

Weed Out The Risk is endorsed by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health Canada (CAMH), Cannabis Canada, teachers, and most importantly, by the students who participate in the program – over 170,000 youth have been part of Weed Out The Risk presentations since 2015.

Road crashes are the number one cause of death among Canadian youth, and alcohol and/or drugs are involved in more than half of those crashes. MADD Canada delivers Weed Out The Risk and other programs to educate students about the risks of impaired driving, and to encourage them to never put themselves at risk by driving impaired or riding with an impaired driver.

“MADD Canada is pleased to have this valuable support from Cannabis NB. Together we are delivering a life-saving message to students about the dangers of cannabis-impaired driving, and inspiring them to make safe and responsible choices,” said Ms. Regan.