What we do here

SOCIAL IMPACT : we reach up to 200,000 people organically through our social media and through these networks we collect, amplify and share the stories of other rural people choosing to cut back or quit alcohol - creating a powerful ripple effect that is reaching across the bush.

PEER SUPPORT : we have connected over 1,000 rural and remote Australians through our Bush Tribe peer group; may of who have gone on to study and work in the Alcohol and Other Drugs (AOD) sector and help others.

ADVOCACY : our Founder and CEO Shanna fights on the frontlines tirelessly to advocate for top-down change for the bush and to raise critical awareness with not just community but with leaders.

AWARENESS : we've travelled Australia in person and online - and SITC is now known across the entire outback - along with our #OK2SAYNO message and movement for better health.

COLLABORATION: the SITC team works alongside Australia's key alcohol awareness organisations as the bush voice to represent those of us who are out of sight and too often out of mind.

OUR KEY MESSAGES:

rural | remote Australians are 150% more likely to experience alcohol harm, and only 17% will get help (SOURCE: Australian Drug Foundation.)

we are not anti-alcohol or prohibitionist in our approach, nor rigid or fixed in our language and we find that sharing, and telling our own stories is far more impactful than ''telling'' others what to do. This is why our #OK2SAYNO campaign is so powerful and effective because it's about supporting mates.

''ISO'' is our normal - yet there is little recognition of this truth, and little equality in services or support for this specific area: eg: in our SITC survey of 900 rural men and women (wanting to cut back or quit alcohol altogether) we learned that every respondent shared the same concerns around social exclusion, and, horrifyingly - that not one single person who actively sought support for alcohol use, abuse, or addiction - could access safe, confidential, or timely local services.

SITC has both anecdotal evidence & data that confirms alcohol abuse / misuse / addiction is a common binding thread across adversity for rural & remote people; from mental health to suicide to physical health, farm safety, and other key issues that are readily addressed.

we believe in going 'upstream' and catching people before they drown. This is working powerfully through SITC's peer group, The Bush Tribe, which is connecting this overlooked demographic and proving a literal lifeline and a safe space and beautiful online community for many and preventing harm | crisis

rural Australians are stepping up to acknowledge it's time to change the conversation around alcohol, and SITC is providing the leadership, language, information and education to make that possible

leading rural organisations and employers are now endorsing SITC's simple messaging in their workplaces in the same way we now include OH&S, safety in the workplace, and other non-negotiable standards