Celebrating five years of Island Health’s Youth Harm Reduction Award
Are you under 19 and living in the Island Health region?
If you or another young person you know are working on a school project to help reduce harms from substances (like alcohol, tobacco, or toxic drugs), you could qualify for Island Health’s 2026 Youth Harm Reduction Award!
Since launching in 2022, this honour recognizes youth who have done amazing work to educate students and others, share knowledge, reduce stigma and ultimately help save lives.
Interested? Learn more below, and print this promotional poster to hang in your school, classroom, or other youth-friendly spaces.
We’ll follow up with a call for applications early in 2026. In the meantime, if you have questions about your project, timelines or anything else related to the Youth Harm Reduction Award, please don’t hesitate to connect with us at harmreduction@islandhealth.ca.
What is the Youth Harm Reduction Award?
Island Health’s annual Youth Harm Reduction Award was created because of three high school students in Greater Victoria. After losing a friend to toxic drugs, they worked hard to bring harm reduction training to their school. Their passion and commitment inspired this award, which recognizes young people who are helping to build awareness and reduce the risk of harm for themselves and others.
Application timeline and details
- Winners receive $1,000 (total) and a framed certificate for each recipient.
- Applicants must be under 19 and live in any community in the Island Health region, which includes Vancouver Island, the islands in the Salish Sea and Johnstone Strait, and mainland communities north of Powell River.
- Applications are accepted from March 1 to April 15. Applications will be reviewed after April 15, with the winning submission announced in June.
Learn about the 2025 award winners.
We look forward to hearing from other young people about innovative and impactful harm reduction projects they are leading in their communities!
