Institute of Alcohol Studies
The Institute of Alcohol Studies (IAS) [1] is an independent registered charity whose core aim is to serve the public interest on public-policy issues linked to alcohol. IAS accomplishes this by promoting the scientific understanding of alcohol and the individual, societal and health consequences of consumption. It also works to encourage evidence-based measures for the prevention of alcohol-related problems, promotes research into beverage alcohol and disseminates useful results [2]. IAS is presently part of the EU–US Civil Society Dialogue on Underage Drinking project funded by the European Commission.This aims to develop closer transatlantic ties between civil society organisations in the US and EU, and develop an increased understanding of the issues relating to underage drinking and harm to adolescents. The main output from this project is the development of a practical ‘how to’ toolkit to facilitate implementation of evidence-informed alcohol policy at the local, national and international levels. This toolkit is designed to complement the publication Alcohol: No Ordinary Commodity. An accompanying Facilitator’s Guide and additional materials follow best-practices in adult learning. The toolkit is currently in the final stages of development and will be available to access at the IAS website soon (summer 2016) [3].