SOCIETY

As a "narcotic" we consider, according to the existing scientific and legal documentation, any substance obtained from nature or prepared in the laboratory and any combination of them that manifests the following properties:

1. It is a poison, i.e. it is toxic to the body and hostile to life (the effect depends on the amount of the dose and on the state and strength of the recipient's body).

2. It is addictive.

3. It directly affects the intellect and mental processes of the recipient, altering their senses, emotions and the way they perceive reality.

We work closely with the International Foundation for a Drug-Free World (www.drugfreeworld.org, its content is in 20 languages including Greek) which is based in Los Angeles, USA, through the Foundation for a Drug-Free Europe (www.fdfe.eu, its content is in 10 European languages) which is based in Brussels.

To achieve our goal of eliminating the modern scourge of drug use through proper information or education both in the past and in 2020 we have acted in two ways:

A. We have made our printed materials available free of charge to the public in large numbers through our network of volunteers, friends and supporters. This material is basically our now known 14 booklets, one for each substance or basic category of substances, as they are also available free of charge from our website www.notodrugs.gr

  Each booklet with its distinctive characteristic color covers a drug or a class of drugs:

1. The Truth About Drugs (General)                             2. The Truth About Marijuana

3. The truth about Synthetic Drugs                              4. The truth about Alcohol

5. The truth about Ecstasy                                           6. The truth about Cocaine

7. The Truth About Crack                                             8. The Truth About Crystal Meth

9. The truth about Inhalants                                        10. The truth about Heroin

11. The truth about LSD                                              12. The truth about Ritalin

13. The Truth About Painkillers                                   14. The Truth About Prescription Drug Abuse

Our volunteers had a huge intention to spread the Anti-Drug message to our youth before the dealers approach them. They spent several hours a week mainly distributing our pamphlets, which are considered excellent educational material so that whoever reads them can make their own decisions and stay away from Drugs. Our action is PREVENTION through INFORMATION and EDUCATION. We wish to create sensitized citizens, with sound judgment and reason, to fully understand the issue regarding the burning problem of addiction on the planet. In this context, as we mentioned above, our volunteers from 2018 until February 2020, on a weekly basis, have distributed thousands of booklets in central parts of Athens, but also in hundreds of shops in many areas of Attica with repeated visits in them, now having the agreement of those in charge to distribute them in turn to their customers. In addition, our group took advantage of various events (sports, cultural, social) of other organizations, in order to massively distribute its information leaflets. For example, we mention the following:

-2018 In Peristeri, at the Olympic Boxing Hall, we were granted permission to distribute hundreds of booklets to those watching the matches.

-2018-2019 We took part in a volunteering festival (Voluntary action 2019), where we distributed our booklets to visitors, thus spreading our messages widely. In our last participation, the coordinators of the festival evaluated the action of our volunteers and awarded them.

-2018-2019 We took part in the half-marathon in Athens, as well as another marathon in Nafplio, handing out our booklets to the public watching the race.

-2019 In the Municipality of N. Heraklion we distributed hundreds of booklets at a concert held there, as well as at the indoor basketball court, in a match conducted by veteran athletes.

-January 2020, in collaboration with the Action Group of Kaisariani, we distributed booklets in the area to pedestrians and passing cars.

- Our team has been in Karditsa, Amaliada and Trikala, distributing our booklets to the local population.

Due to the pandemic, our actions that required physical presence unfortunately stopped from March 2020.

B. The restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic may have stopped all the actions we mentioned above that required physical presence, but we did not stop implementing our goal through our website. By entering our site, www.notodrugs.gr, one sees the short (<1 min) films about the lies that are told to promote each category of drugs, as well as the documentary "The Truth about Drugs", the which features real user testimonials that aim to reveal to young people the truth about the short- and long-term effects of drugs on their physical and mental health so that they can make an informed decision to stay away from drugs. Also, the well-known booklets distributed by our volunteers can be ordered or read on our website. It goes without saying that references (links) to the documentation sources of the provided data are also included, offering direct access to scientific research, reputable sociological and medical studies, authoritative articles and real statistics. But the most important material on our website above is the Material for Educators. It is a complete and functional material that is provided free of charge to teachers of all school levels and that resulted from long-term scientific work, research and documentation. Its aim is to get the truth about drugs to young people before the dealers reach them. The above material is provided in three sections:

a) Complete online course material as additional support for teachers, educators and drug prevention specialists,

b) Information Package for the Educator and

c) Free Tools and Programs.

From the communication we receive, we conclude that several teachers have used the provided material and this is very encouraging. Our own initiative to free our society from the use of drugs is, as we mentioned above, part of the global movement that has the same goal and that is supported and implemented by the International Foundation for a Drug Free World, www.drugfreeword.org and we feel proud, because our initiative goal is also included in one of the 17 Global Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations Organization, Good Health and Well-Being. We consider our action in terms of the means of achieving its goal to be innovative and unique and it is certain that it will last in the future as well, because we believe that the cornerstone for the realization of all the other goals and in general for a better future of humanity is to ensure its physical and mental health.