Simple Gifts

So imagine you are in a room two blocks from the US Capitol.  Imagine about a hundred leading scientists and prevention specialists in the world are in that room.

That is the situation I was in a few weeks ago.

I asked everyone to imagine that they had $100, with the instruction to go out on the street buy alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs. I said, “How long will it take you to bring back tobacco, alcohol and illegal drugs?”  Most people thought they could do it in minutes.

Then I turned the tables.  “Imagine that a hundred people outside on the streets all wanted to prevent tobacco, alcohol and drug use among their kids.  And each of those people had $100 to spend, and they come into this room to buy $100 of prevention RIGHT NOW from us.  How long would it take us to help them?”

Dead silence.

Then, a few folks said that they could make a referral to a program. But nobody was prepared to give an immediate solution to the request. 

What is this saying to families in America? 

First, the problems that our families face such as addictions are a consumer product. Strategies to prevent these problems are not retail or consumer driven.

Second, until prevention strategies are as easy to get as alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs, nothing will change.  Our drug demand will continue to be insatiable until prevention is a consumer product.

Presently, no parent or teacher can get any evidence-based strategy to prevent substance abuse at Amazon.com, at the local drug store, discount store or grocery store.  Yet, you can certainly get tobacco or alcohol at those sites, and illegal drugs are probably available nearby those sites. 

Presently, most high-school students report being able to buy drugs on campus, yet no students being able to “buy” a prevention strategy on campus from peers.

My colleagues and I aim to change this. We aim to make solidly proven, low-cost prevention strategies a retail or consumer product.  We intend www.SimpleGifts.com to be as revolutionary as Itunes has been to the music industry.

• Consumers all over the world will be able to select, view, and download scientifically proven prevention strategies.

• Researchers and practitioners all over the world will be able to contribute scientifically proven strategies to the website.

 Instead of prevention products costing thousands of dollars, SimpleGifts.com will price scientifically prevention strategies for individuals all at the same price—about the cost of a music CD album. Companies, civic organizations, healthcare, Drug Free Communities, Community Anti-Drug Coalitions, faith-based organizations, state and community agencies or others will be able to buy gift cards for Simple Gifts. Bulk gift cards will cost much less than individual purchases.

How is the site going to revolutionize prevention science?  By making prevention science practically accessible to everyone.