Education campaign for Indigenous youth aims to reduce cannabis use before driving

New impaired driving campaign targets youth Fourteen per cent of young drivers say they've gotten behind the wheel impaired. CTV Edmonton's Amanda Anderson reports.

There is a new impaired driving video to help educate Indigenous youth about cannabis use and driving.

The video, called DUI FYI, was created by BearPaw Media. It is 12 minutes long, and features two Indigenous actors who use humour to get the message across.

"There's 3D animation to explain some of the legislation, they have a lighting round game explaining myths and truths around impaired driving," said Lese Skidmore, the video's producer.

According to Statistics Canada, about 25 per cent of Canadians between the ages of 15 and 24 report using cannabis.

"We can't tell young people what to do. That never works, so instead we provide them the information that they need in order to make their own decisions," said Dr. Daena Crosby, director of research, communication and legal education with Native Counselling Services of Alberta.

Crosby also explained why the campaign targeted Indigenous youth: "Too often they don't see themselves represented in the media. They don’t see themselves reflected positively, so we wanted to do that."

BearPaw Media, which makes free, culturally-relevant education resources for Indigenous people plans to share the video with educators as part of a workshop about impaired driving.

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Amanda Anderson