Objective

To help university students be more mindful of their drinking

To raise awareness of irresponsible drinking and alcohol abuse

To help combat underage drinking

To increase knowledge about spirit drinks among students (the art of distillation, agricultural raw material, origin, tradition etc)

Description

Programme Overview

The "Responsibility on Campus" programme, created by Espirituosos España, aims to promote responsible alcohol consumption among university students by actively involving them in the creation of an awareness campaign. This initiative not only educates students about the importance of responsible drinking but also provides them with practical experience in campaign development, enhancing their readiness for the professional world. By engaging students directly, the campaigns maintain a fresh perspective and use language that resonates with their peers, increasing the effectiveness of the message.

Programme Phases

1. Phase One: Information on Responsible Consumption
   • Information session: Students take part in a session covering topics such as the effects of alcohol on the body, standard drink measurements, responsible drinking guidelines, and legal aspects of alcohol consumption. Prior to the session, students complete a survey about their consumption habits to tailor the educational content effectively.
   • Optional Distillery Tour: To deepen their understanding, students can visit a distillery. These tours include presentations on the art of distillation, the agricultural raw materials used, and the historical significance of spirit drinks, providing insight into the production processes and cultural heritage of spirits.
2. Phase Two: Campaign Creation and Presentation

• • Campaign Development: Over approximately six months, students collaborate in groups to design responsible drinking campaigns targeting young adults or discouraging underage alcohol consumption. University faculty provide guidance throughout this process to ensure the campaigns are both creative and impactful..
  • Presentation and Selection: Upon completion, selected teams present their proposals to Espirituosos España’s marketing committee. Winning campaigns are recognised not only with awards but also with the opportunity to see their campaigns launched publicly.
  • Award Ceremony and Dissemination: An award ceremony is held to honour the winners, accompanied by press releases to raise awareness about the project. Espirituosos España facilitates the distribution of the winning entries, making them available for use by municipalities and organisations on platforms such as social media, thereby amplifying the reach and impact of the students’ work.

Peer-to-Peer Communication

A cornerstone of the programme is its emphasis on peer-to-peer communication. By empowering students to create and disseminate messages, the initiative leverages the influence peers have on each other, ensuring that the campaigns are relatable and effective in promoting responsible drinking behaviours.

Academic Highlights

The Responsibility on Campus programme has fostered both creativity and a sense of responsibility among university students through a range of impactful campaigns over the years. Below are highlights from recent academic years:

2024–2025 Academic Year: This academic year has seen several noteworthy developments:

• New Collaborations: The Universities of Murcia, Seville, and Málaga joined the programme and are developing their projects. Their participation is expected to bring fresh perspectives to the promotion of responsible alcohol consumption.
• Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca: The winning campaign will be prominently displayed on MUPIs (urban advertising structures) throughout Salamanca, ensuring broad visibility and community engagement. Also, in collaboration with the Salamanca City Council, all creative pieces submitted by participating groups was exhibited at the city’s youth centre (see results below). This initiative provides students with a platform to showcase their work to the wider community, encouraging dialogue and raising awareness about responsible drinking.

2023-2024 Academic Year:

• Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca: The winning campaign by third-year Advertising and Public Relations students “No es quien corre más, sino quien disfruta major” (It’s not who runs the fastest, but who enjoys it the most), focused on preventing irresponsible alcohol consumption. In addition, fourth-year students produced podcasts exploring responsible drinking and the spirits industry.
• Universidad de Cádiz: Two notable campaigns stood out:
  • Sticker Campaign: The campaign stickers carry the message “Al Menor Cero Alcohol” (Minors, zero alcohol) and are designed to prevent alcohol sales to minors. The winning design was selected in collaboration with the Jerez Hospitality Association, which distributed the stickers to its members.
  • “No toca, bro” (Don’t touch bro) campaign: Aimed at raising awareness among young people about delaying alcohol consumption, this campaign featured four posters with intentionally mismatched scenarios, drawing a parallel to the inappropriateness of underage drinking. The tagline “No toca, bro” effectively reinforced the message.
• Universidad del País Vasco: Students from the Advertising Writing course used artificial intelligence to compose songs promoting responsible drinking. This initiative blended creativity and technology to effectively convey the programme’s core message.

2022-2023: The winning campaign is called “Head”. It refers to the fact that regardless of how alcohol is drunk (with a straw, with ice, with orange soda, lemon soda, etc) it should be done “using your head” thus drinking responsibly and not abusively. In addition, the winners also made a graphic to explain that a good drink is one where responsibility makes up the largest part of it.

2021-2022: The winning campaign aims to change young people’s mindset by recalling that “The best toasts are the ones we remember”. It highlights that you shouldn’t drink alcohol to try to forget, as a means of escape or to try to become more extraverted. It should be drunk to accompany the best moments of your life such as a celebration or a toast.  Creatives have a happy tone and show young adults drinking all kinds of alcoholic drinks. Two phrases encourage people to reconsider the value of drinking alcohol and above all to do it responsibly. “And you, which one do you remember” to call for action and “Toast with whatever you like but do it responsibly” to emphasise responsible drinking.

2020-2021: The winning poster campaign addresses underage drinking with curious and fun facts about animals to create a comparison between them and underage consumption.  There are two sets of creatives:

• Set 1 “Temptations”: This set plays with the idea of resisting temptation and shows animals calmly facing temptation.  They encourage the observer to “Resist temptation dude.  If you are a minor, zero alcohol!”
• Set 2 “Data”: This set provides a fact about the animal shown such as “a camel can go more than 10 days without water” then asks, “And are you in a hurry to drink alcohol?”

2019-2020: The winning campaign is called “Historias y punto” (stories of full stop).  The protagonist “punto” is a play on punctuation and alcohol consumption that gives the double meaning in Spanish of “get a buzz”.  The visuals were adapted by Espirituosos España who added logos of the municipalities who used them.

2018-2019: The jury decided both finalists were winners.  The winning proposals are NoTanto (Not too much) and YoNoLoVeo (No Way).

• NoTanto: This creative is comprised of four posters that use examples of daily life to show that moderation is better than excess.  They encourage responsible alcohol consumption by appealing to moderation and common sense and by highlighting the need to live a healthy lifestyle.  The audience then connect the idea of moderation to the consumption of alcoholic beverages. 
• YoNoLoVeo: This creative has five visuals which mix drawing and photography to reflect situations in which there is an obvious misfit.  This serves as an analogy to show that the consumption of alcohol by minors is equally out of place. 

The above underscore Espirituosos España’s commitment to involving more educational institutions in promoting responsible alcohol consumption and providing students with real-world opportunities to positively influence their communities.

Partners

Rey Juan Carlos University (from 2018)

Granada University (from 2018)

País Vasco University (from 2022)

Universitiy of Cádiz (from 2023)

Pontifical University of Salamanca (from 2023)

University of Seville (from 2024)

University of Murcia (from 2024)

University of Málaga (from 2024)

Results

To date, some 3,000 students from the universities of Granada, Huelva, Extremadura and Rey Juan Carlos have taken part. 

In addition creatives have been used:

• 2024. All venues affiliated with the Jerez Hospitality Business Association will display the University of Cádiz’s sticker at the entrance of their establishments showing their commitment to the “Menores ni una Gota” Network. The “Head” campaign from the University Rey Juan Carlos was adapted for the Feria del Caballo (horse fair) in Jerez to promote responsible drinking. The campaign will have signage with the slogans “I don't sell alcohol to minors... not even at the Fair” and “at the Fair, with joy and with a sense of purpose” in the booths. In addition, booth owners are informed about responsible consumption before the event. The University Pontificia de Salamanca also successfully launched its campaign, which will be displayed citywide on advertising billboards and in the local youth centre.
• 2023. FAS used one of the Temptations visuals across cinemas in Spain.
• 2021-2022. Espirituosos España used some of the winning visuals to promote responsible drinking during the 2022 Christmas festivities via their Instagram. 
• 2020-2021. The Temptations campain was used by the municipality of Madrid buses EMT Madrid. Empresa Municipal de Transportes de Madrid, S. A. - EMT brindará apoyo a la Fundación Alcohol y Sociedad en sus campañas de sensibilización and also by the Madrid regional buses Interbús y la Fundación Alcohol y Sociedad lanzan una campaña para prevenir el consumo de alcohol en menores de edad | A21 Periódico Gratuito Sierra Oeste de Madrid.
• 2019-2020: Visuals were used by 10 municipalities and by other Universities (like Universidad de Huelva) to spread the responsible consumption message on their social media.  The municipalities have reported more than 40 different posts and more than 3,000 views of the campaign.
• 2018-2019: The posters from the NoTanto campaign are displayed on university campuses in Madrid to raise awareness among students.  The visuals from the YoNoLoVeo were used for Espirituosos España’s “Minors and Not a Drop” campaign and were shown on on-street advertising, buses and bus shelters in Madrid.  They were also used in 2021 by Metro de Madrid for their underage drinking campaign (Metro and the Alcohol and Society Foundation join forces against under-age drinking | Metro de Madrid (metromadrid.es)

Measurement & evaluation

2024 Key Findings: Impact of the Programme - The “Responsibility on Campus” initiative continues to make a measurable impact on students’ understanding and behaviours regarding responsible alcohol consumption. Key improvements in 2024 include:

• Greater awareness of drinking habits: Before the information session, 81.6% of students considered their alcohol consumption responsible. Afterward, many recognised areas for improvement, shifting their perception to “Mostly responsible, but I have room to improve.”
• Increased alcohol-related knowledge: Before the session, most students believed they “knew enough” about alcohol. Post-session, 39.3% reported learning new information, reflecting a stronger understanding of responsible drinking.
• Correction of common myths:
  o    Mixing drinks: Initially, 78.3% believed mixing different alcohol types increases intoxication. Afterward, 92.8% correctly identified this as false.
  o    Alcohol tolerance: Pre-session, 87.4% thought some people have a higher alcohol tolerance. Post-session, 79.3% understood that intoxication levels are primarily due to biological factors, not “tolerance.”

These results highlight the programme’s effectiveness in educating students, dispelling misconceptions, and promoting responsible drinking habits.

2022-2023: Pre-and-post information session questionnaires were given to the university students.  Results show that:

• 3% believed that they drank alcohol responsibly before the session but after it this dropped to 38%.
• 22% already knew that mixing types of alcohol does not make you more drunk but this increased to 80% post session.
• 43% acknowledged that they sometimes overindulge in alcohol.
• 9% say that the session made them rethink their drinking.

Although there is still room for improvement, these data suggest that the information session is very effective in increasing alcohol knowledge.  In fact, 91% said that their knowledge about alcoholic beverages had improved. 

On their future commitments:

• More than 71% said they are “very likely” to use the responsible drinking information.
• 70% say they will drink responsibly from now on. 

What they said about training: 

• It is necessary and you learn a lot from it. Thank you very much.
• It is very interesting.
• I learned a lot about alcoholic beverages.
• Thank you, I really enjoyed it. 

2020-2021: Pre-and-post session questionnaires were given to the university students.  Results show that: 92,3% of students believed that they drank alcohol responsibly and 43% said it was responsible “most of the time” before the session.  However, this dropped to 37% after the session.  24% already knew that mixing alcohol doesn’t make you drunker, but this rose to 90% post session.  10% stated that the session made them to rethink their drinking.  90% said that their knowledge about alcoholic beverages had improved.  More than 70% said they would use the responsible drinking information received and 66% said they would drink responsibly from now on.

2018-2019: The information session helped to break false perceptions and myths held by many students.  The pre-training survey found that 90% of the students believed that young people drink too much.  However, official data shows that 95% drink responsibly.  This shows that the students did not know what “excessive drinking” is and that they lacked general information about alcohol and its effects before the training. 

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