This past summer, I attended the Eastern States Youth to Youth Conference to foster leadership and prevention skills. The conference was held in July on the campus of Bryant University and welcomed over 700 students. The theme for this year’s conference was to discover “the other side of impossible” – that is, working to identify an individual’s inhibitions, and channeling that fear toward conquering any so-called “impossible” tasks or goals. The diverse schedule featured speakers, workshops, and drug-free fun events, all of which were active and experiential.

To organize the swarms of students, attendees were divided into 41 “family groups” which consisted of students from different states and backgrounds. We met with our family groups throughout the day for team-building activities and to reflect upon the day’s events. An interest in preventative action was common, yet the visible and invisible differences between the members prompted the most genuine connections. My own family group consisted of high schoolers from North Dakota, Connecticut, and New York, among other states. Each locale and unique set of experiences highlighted their individuality, and my urge was often not to talk, but to listen. Conferring with my family group was a practice in empathy, a skill that I will bring back to my community.

In addition to the familial itinerary, students enjoyed four staff-led workshops. These classes were created and taught by both adult and youth staff. Students were able to select from an extensive list of workshops. Options included The Neurobiology of Addiction, which focused on the impact of addictive substances on the brain; Beautiful Me, which uncovered the detriments of low self-esteem while encouraging self-love; and Procrastination Elimination, a class that described good habits as the center of proactivity. The workshops were not a mere echoing of anti-drug sentiment. They forged paths to mental, physical, and social self-improvement.

Youth to Youth’s mission transcends the four days of the conference and is now instilled in hundreds of participants. For each student, the takeaway is different. However, the message rings the same. The first step is to make happy, healthy, and productive choices. The next step is to share that knowledge with others in the community. It’s important for teenagers to create places to connect, have fun, and be their authentic selves without substance abuse – and, most importantly, without a fear of the impossible.