Project VENDA: Empowering Youth Leadership for creating Substance Abuse Free Environments (S.A.F.E.)

This presentation will be featured at Indonesia 2025, on the 17.09.2025.

Authors:

Dayana Vincent

Divyadharshan, Catalyst, Fourth Wave Foundation

Abstract:

Youth leadership plays a pivotal role in driving significant social, environmental, and political change. This presentation explores the youth leadership model adopted by the Fourth Wave Foundation, which over the past two decades has mobilised thousands of young individuals to be catalysts of change through collaborative, community-focused initiatives, including those specifically aimed at substance use prevention.

Project VENDA, of Fourth Wave Foundation is a youth-led substance use prevention intervention for creating Substance Abuse Free Environment (S.A.F.E.) for children and young adults in Kerala, India. Between January 2023 and June 2024, narcotics-related cases in the region reached 41,531 (Antony, T., 2024), a trend further exacerbated by the rise of synthetic drugs (Sankar, 2025), underscoring the urgent need for proactive, youth-driven responses.

The youth leaders at Project VENDA equip children and young adults with the knowledge, skills, and support necessary to make informed health choices and say ‘No’ to substance abuse. They facilitate evidence-based prevention programs, counseling, and rehabilitation support to foster resilience and establish substance-free environments. A key component of the project is its use of sports-based interventions - specifically football - to promote healthy life skills and positive peer influence which keep children away from substance abuse. The intervention also focuses on a gender sensitive approach while simultaneously advancing gender equity through the inclusive participation of girls.

Recognised by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) as a best-practice model for civil societies for substance abuse prevention, Project VENDA has positively impacted the lives of over 10,00,000 children. Initiatives such as the So-Y! (So Why I Engage) platform further exemplifies how youth are not merely participants but active agents in shaping policies and driving transformative community change. This presentation will discuss the strategic framework, outcomes, and broader implications of youth-led approach in substance use prevention.