MONTANA METH PROJECT
PO BOX 8944, MISSOULA, MT 59807 www.montanameth.org

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Organizations Filed Purposes: MONTANA METH PROJECT IS A LARGE-SCALE PREVENTION PROGRAM AIMED AT SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCING FIRST-TIME METH USE THROUGH PUBLIC SERVICE MESSAGING, PUBLIC POLICY, AND COMMUNITY OUTREACH.

Historically, Methamphetamine use costs the United States over $25 billion per year. As one of the most addictive substances known to man, Meth imposes a significant burden on individuals and society, and has been cited as one of the leading drug-related crime problems in America. For the last fifteen years, the Montana Meth Project has proudly been the standard-bearer for the Meth Projects innovative Meth prevention model. Founded by businessman Thomas M. Siebel as a private-sector response to a critical public health issue, the research-based campaign has been cited by the White House as one of the most effective prevention programs and a model for the nation. As the pilot project, we have maintained a laser focus on our core missionto reduce Methamphetamine use in the state of Montana.Named the 3rd most effective philanthropy in the world by Barrons in its latest global ranking, the Meth Project has been credited with reducing Meth use in several states. Since the Projects launch, teen Meth use has declined 73% in Montana. Native American Meth use has been reported at the lowest level in Montana since 1999. (Source: Montana Office of Public Instruction Youth Risk Behavior Survey 2019). The Meth Project furthered its work to reduce Meth use through expanded digital and social media outreach and a new classroom-based Meth Prevention Lesson. Central to these efforts is the website MethProject.orga definitive source of information about Meth for teenswhich equips them with facts, tools, and resources to understand the risks of the drug and enables them to influence their peers directly and through social media. CURRENT MONTANA ACCOMPLISHMENTS The Montana Meth Project launched a new 24-part social media adverting and engagement campaign to reduce methamphetamine use. Building on our last Ask MethProject.org campaign, the Montana Meth Project is taking our digital campaign to social media. Our newest effort, ASK ME prompts Montanans to get involved and share original stories, to put a real face on what Meth use can do to your life. Designed to spark engagement, personal accounts from users are told through on-camera interviews as teens and young adults describe their authentic experiences with Meth in poignant detail.This engaging campaign garners 1,000,000 impressions per week through social media, shares, and a small mix of traditional advertising.The Montana Meth Prevention Lesson Video was created to be a one-click tool for teachers and homeschool parents to educate students about the facts of Meth use.The video follows original Meth prevention curriculum created in 2011 by top educators for the Meth Project. Students lives have been turned upside down during the pandemic. Schools are still in a mix of hybrid and remote models. And nothing is certain. Routines have changed and their social lives have been upended. All of this causes stress, anxiety and even depression. Some teens are spending increasing time alone and left to their own devices as parents still need to work. All of these factors make teens much more vulnerable to drug use. And Meth is a widely available drug in our state, unfortunately.This new curriculum was accepted as a Nationwide Resource in the official Red Ribbon Campaign. Montana's Youth Risk Behavior Survey, released July 2019 by the Montana Office of Public Instruction, has found that Meth use among teens in the state has dropped to an all-time low. The survey is conducted every two years by the Montana Office of Public Instruction, in cooperation with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. With a 73% decline in teen Meth use since the inception of the Montana Meth Project fifteen years ago, we are seeing that our tireless awareness and prevention efforts have had a significant impact on our teens. The most recent HIDTA (High Intensity Drug Traffic) Study found that the ability for individuals to produce Meth efficiently and in large quantities in the region has been significantly degraded due to increased legislation and public awareness campaigns such as the Montana Meth Project. MethProject.org is the first result when someone searches for Meth in Google, surpassing Wikipedia and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. We have nearly 170,000 followers on Facebook, leading all other Meth Project states, including the national Meth Project page. A steady stream of real stories and creative content about the impact of Meth has led to a dramatic increase in the Montana Meth Projects engagement with teens and young adults via social media.We credit social and digital growth to: Adding engaging new content: 8-part video series with COVID support, new ASK Me content, New Video Lesson sharing, 15-year iconic imagery all resulting in 40,000 new followers. As soon as our state shut down and support groups and resources shuttered in the spring, we created the 8-part at-home support video series of original content featuring our addiction specialist, reaching our most vulnerable Montanans and underserved user groups. Our site, MethProject.org has changed the way teens get information about substance abuse. MethProject.org is a new approach to prevention. It captures teens attention because it was created based on their feedback, and with their digital behaviors top of mind. There are over 350 individual pieces of content that can be shared through social media furthering authentic peer-to-peer conversations. The recently released study commissioned by the Montana Department of Justice titled Methamphetamine Use in Montana cites that most participants in the study first tried Meth as adolescents aged 10-16. However, the study also noted that those same participants at first feared Meth because of the Montana Meth Projects hard-hitting messaging and school drug prevention programs. Our work is not done. As technology has changed how we consume information, we have agilely adapted to communicate with teens where they are online and in schools to make sure the young people of Montana are well aware of the consequences of using Meth, even once. As we enter another year of the pandemic, our efforts are also vital to reach Montanans who are struggling and most at risk of drug use.

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