For Responsible Fallas: Dénia's commitment to safe and healthy festive leisure

The Councilor for Addiction Prevention of the Dénia Town Hall, Melani Ivars, participated yesterday, Wednesday, March 6, in the delivery of the badges and posters with protocols to the Fallas participants in the national program 'Responsible Service', which was developed at the headquarters of the Local Board Fallera. Ivars was accompanied by the technical staff of the UPCCA (Community Prevention Unit for Addictive Behaviors), by representatives of the Local Fallera Board, by the Falleras Mayores of Dénia, as well as by falleras and falleros from the different casales participating in the course.

Presentation of Responsible Failures

The Responsible Service program is an initiative of the Government Delegation for the National Plan on Drugs that has the participation and involvement of the professional and business community in the hospitality sector. The program is developed within the framework of the collaboration agreement between the Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality and the Spanish Hospitality Federation. In Dénia it began to be implemented in the hospitality industry in 2014. However, last December 2023, the Department of Addiction Prevention organized some courses aimed at the festive entities of Dénia, the Local Fallera Board (Falleras Commissions), the Femmicc (Federation of Moors and Christians), among other. These actions have made it possible to highlight the commitment and good work of the different festive groups and entities to promote increasingly safer and more responsible popular festivals.

The main purpose of this program is to prevent and reduce the risks that the abusive consumption of alcohol and other drugs can produce in leisure contexts, including popular festivals. Popular festivals represent a characteristic example of the culture and identity of a town, a particularly ideal moment in which to transmit, both to members of the community and to its visitors, the values ​​and traditions of its people.

Furthermore, the implementation of the program has helped raise awareness in the festive sector about the importance of the role they play as social and health agents to avoid or reduce the risks associated with the consumption of alcohol and other drugs in festive leisure contexts. The launch of the national 'Responsible Service' program has meant a new stage of dialogue and collaboration between the Fallas and the administration, based on mutual trust and the ability to activate programs and campaigns capable of promoting greater risk reduction and therefore, safer, more responsible, healthier and quality popular festivals for everyone.

For this reason, yesterday the program badges were delivered to the Falleros camps that participated in the training held last December, as well as some posters with protocols on how to act in certain situations that were developed jointly in this same training. Below, this is the list of the Fallas participating in the 'Responsible Service' program and who received the Distinction and two Action Protocols posters:

• Local Board Fallera
• Falla Baix la Mar
• Falla Nou Camp Roig
• Falla Campaments
• Falla Darrere del Castell
• Falla Diana
• Falla Les Roques
• Falla Oeste
• Paris Falla Pedrera

Delivery of badges and posters for Responsible Failures

This commitment acquired by the Dénia Fallas goes beyond the festive dates themselves, since what is intended is to have a fluid relationship that will allow for monitoring and feedback to see to what extent the training carried out has It has been useful and has been able to help face specific situations that have had to be dealt with.

Mélani Ivars thanked the involvement and willingness of the municipality's party groups to be part of the healthy circuit of the 'Responsible Service' and opted for a long and fruitful relationship of this joint collaboration.