Denver Looking To Hire PR Agency To Reduce Youth Marijuana Use
The City of Denver is looking to hire a Public Relations firm to work to ensure kids don’t start smoking marijuana too young. They want a team that can prepare a youth communications and engagement plan that will result in a media kit, pop-up informational booth and/or a “class- in-a-box” that will serve to deliver the youth educational messages to target audiences.
In November 2012, Colorado became one of the first two states in the nation to legalize marijuana for adults 21 and older, through voter passage of Amendment 64 to the Colorado Constitution. Based on surveys from 2015, 38% of Colorado high school students report ever using marijuana in their lifetime, and 21% report having used marijuana in the last 30 days. In November 2013, City and County of Denver (the City) voters approved a 3.5% special sales tax on retail marijuana to support the city’s marijuana regulation, enforcement and education efforts.
With this dedicated revenue source, the City has provided grant funding for youth education, prevention and diversion programming and is seeking to supplement the ongoing programming with a broader informational campaign.
The City seeks to educate its youth in a creative, effective and positive manner about marijuana with a multi-month campaign that reaches diverse audiences across the entire city and seeks to reach youth in a range of ages. The campaign shall not strive to scare youth, but rather to teach Denver’s youth about the city’s laws, about the potential harmful effects of youth marijuana use – both socially and physiologically – and to give youth a better overall understanding of marijuana as well as useful tools for avoiding it.
There is a need to establish a citywide message, brand and communications strategy that will convey information on this effort in a coordinated and understandable way, as well as elicit interest and participation on the part of Denver youth in both the planning and execution process.
The campaign must strive to resonate with young, diverse audiences including, African-American, White and Primary goals of the marijuana prevention and education campaigns are:
- Increase accurate knowledge of marijuana laws.
- Increase accurate knowledge of the health impacts of marijuana use.
- Increase accurate knowledge of the social impacts of marijuana use.
- Increase accurate knowledge of positive youth development principles.
- Increase accurate knowledge of the risks of:
- marijuana use during pregnancy or while breastfeeding
- underage use of marijuana
- overconsumption of marijuana-infused products (edibles)
- secondhand marijuana smoke exposure
- public use of marijuana products
This campaign will be grounded in positive youth development principles and will be directed at educating youth about the laws and health effects of marijuana use.
Proposal due by October 11, 2016 to:
Wellington Webb Municipal Office
Building 201
West Colfax Ave, Dept 304
11th Floor Denver, CO 80202
Phone – 720-913-8100
