Ann Dowsett Johnston with Peter Armstrong and Dr. Patrick Smith
Renascent recently awarded Ann Dowsett Johnston the Peter Armstrong Community Award of Excellence for her moving Atkinson series on women and alcoholism. The full series is now available online at The Atkinson Fellowship in Public Policy Website.
Ann spent a year researching for her report which investigates the growing problem of alcohol abuse among women, the different ways women respond to alcohol and the harms associated with alcohol addiction.
The series helps to further the understanding of addiction as a treatable disease while tackling stigmatized subjects such as alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Ann provides rare testimony from subjects describing their descent into alcoholism and societal factors like alcohol marketing that play a role in the popularity of its consumption.
Along with first-hand testimonials, the report includes information from top researchers in the field of addiction. They dive into key issues such as the science behind addiction, the connection between mental illness and addiction, as well as commonly accepted myths about alcoholism. The series also identifies key problems within Canadian society and suggested solutions to these alcohol-related public health issues. Ann’s work brings light to the struggles, the stigmas and the people that are shaped by the prominence of alcohol consumption within North American culture.
Ms. Dowsett Johnston is also writing a book based on her research that will be published by Harper Collins next year.
