Friday, May 11, 2007

Alcohol in New Zealand - The Hard Facts

I'm continuing to attempt to get my head around all the cultural differences between New Zealand and the United States. One thing I blogged about earlier concerned a travel ad on campus that encouraged drinking. A dynamic that will be very real to our missional approach here is dealing with the fact that most college students drink... legally (drinking age is 18 in NZ). I dug some facts on drinking as it relates to university students here. The figures are sobering to swallow.



* Between 58% and 65% of NZ students have been out binge ("binge" being defined as six or more drinks in a row)
drinking in the past two weeks.

* Drinking and driving accidents are the No. 1 killer of New Zealanders aged 18-24.

* 84% of the students at one NZ University have been impacted negatively by other students' drinking, including humiliation, sexual harassment, and rape. [ALAC media release 4.24.2004]

* One in six students ended up in a sexual situation they were not happy with after drinking. [Adam et al, 2000]

* 87% of students survey at another NZ University reported at least one alcohol-related harm in the past year. [Adam et al, 2000]
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