Washington, D.C. – More than 3,000 substance abuse prevention and treatment specialists from throughout the country will convene in Washington, D.C. for Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America's (CADCA) 18th annual National Leadership Forum, to be held February 11-14, 2008 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.

CADCA's National Leadership Forum is the nation's largest training conference for community alcohol and drug prevention advocates and substance abuse professionals, featuring more than 100 workshops on some of today's most pressing issues — ranging from strategies to tackle the growing prescription drug abuse trend to the latest science on drug addiction and treatment.

This year's event will feature keynote presentations by Dr. Drew Pinsky, an addiction medicine specialist and host of the national radio show "Loveline" and "Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew" on VH-1; and Rear Admiral Steven K. Galson, M.D., M.P.H., Acting Surgeon General. Dr. Pinsky, who has more than 20 years of experience treating addiction and working with teens, will discuss the factors that can lead teens to abuse alcohol and other drugs and the importance of prevention, treatment and recovery support to break the cycle of addiction. Rear Admiral Galson will discuss the Surgeon General's Call to Action on Underage Drinking.

"We're excited about our National Leadership Forum, because not only will it offer prevention leaders an opportunity to learn effective strategies to solve their community's substance abuse problems, but it will allow them to hear from the country's leading experts on drug prevention and treatment," said General Arthur T. Dean, CADCA's Chairman and CEO.

One of the key topics of CADCA's Forum is alcohol abuse and underage drinking. Other topics include:

• Co-occurring disorders
• Prescription and over-the-counter medicine abuse
• Addiction treatment and recovery
• Social norms and media campaigns
• Addiction as a brain disease
• Coalition sustainability and evaluation
• Prevention strategies for rural communities
• Issues facing returning veterans
• Methamphetamine abuse prevention
• Faith-based prevention
• Prevention strategies for culturally-diverse communities

Other featured speakers will include John P. Walters, Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy; and Rob Portman, former member of Congress who was instrumental in the development and funding of the Drug-Free Communities Program. Mr. Portman will be presented with CADCA's National Leadership Award during an Award's Luncheon on Thursday, Feb. 14.

Highlights of the leadership forum include:

• The kick off of CADCA's Forum on Feb. 11 with SAMHSA's Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP)'s Community Prevention Day, as well as with a series of in-depth pre-conference workshops featuring some of CADCA's best trainers.
  
  
• On Feb. 12, advocates will hear from several of the nation's leading champions for substance abuse prevention during the Capitol Hill Day Plenary Session, followed by an exciting Capitol Hill Day rally at the Upper Senate Park on Capitol Hill.
  
  
• On Feb. 13th and 14th, CADCA will welcome a number of federal leaders for two Federal Partner Town Hall meetings. The Forum will also include CADCA's Youth Summit and National Youth Leadership Initiative, which will bring together youth from across the country to learn how to become anti-drug advocates and powerful community leaders.

For a complete schedule of events and more Forum information, visit www.cadca.org.

Members of the media interested in credentials for the National Leadership Forum should contact Natalia Martinez Duncan at (703) 706-0560 ext. 256 or via e-mail at nmartinez@cadca.org.