Article reposted from: canfasd blog, September 28, 2022,  CanFASD Research and Publications

FASD Awareness Month is almost over! Our theme this year was building strengths and abilities. The goal was to recognize and celebrate the strengths and abilities of individuals with FASD and this community. Here is a roundup of what happened for FASD awareness during the month of September!

Canada Rocked Red for FASD Awareness

Many different monuments across Canada lit up red for FASD Awareness Day, including:

• The CN Tower in Ontario;
• Niagara Falls in Ontario;
• Fredericton New Brunswick;
• Confederation Building in Newfoundland and Labrador;
• and many more

People with FASD shared their strengths, abilities, and successes

• Niall Schofield, one of our AFECT team members, shared his favorite accomplishment
• Vinnie Naistus shared on CBC how getting an FASD diagnosis shaped his life 

People from all over the world joined in the Red Shoes Rock and FASD Awareness movement

• In Anchorage, Alaska, a women is spreading awareness about FASD by painting rocks
• Stirling Castle in Scotland lit up red for FASD Awareness
• People in Ottawa went for a walk in our Canada’s capital to raise awareness
• The FASD Around the Globe webinar recording is now available
• Áras in Ireland lit up red for FASD Awareness

Governments got involved

Several Senators, Ministers, Members of Parliament, and Mayors participated in awareness events and made statements for FASD Month.

• MP Brendan Hanley made a statement about FASD Awareness Month in the House of Commons
• Senator Mohamed-Iqbal Ravalia shared about FASD Awareness Month on Twitter
• MP Mike Schreiner and Adrian Salvator joined the FASD walk in Guelph
• Jim Watson, Ottawa’s Mayor, joined in the Ottawa FASD Awareness Walk
• Senator Pat Duncan joined members in Whitehorse to talk about FASD
• Minister of Health and the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions put out a statement on FASD Awareness Month

Several towns and municipalities officially proclaimed September as FASD Awareness Month, including:

• Towns of Gravelbourg and Assiniboia in Saskatchewan
• The Municipality of Victoria in Prince Edward Island
• City of Portage La Prairie in Manitoba
• City of Fredericton in New Brunswick
• Halifax in Nova Scotia
• The City of Brantford in Ontario

CanFASD published new research articles and resources

• Our special issue in the Journal of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder includes 10 articles on FASD
• We hosted Part 3 of our webinar series on sensory processing and FASD
• We published new research on the experiences of grandparents raising their grandchildren with FASD
• We published new research on caregiver’s experiences and perceptions of suicidality in kids with FASD
• Researcher Kelly Harding and collaborators published an article on FASD and suicidality in the Conversation Canada

Thank you to everyone who helped make this FASD Awareness Month a success. This is just a small collection of a few of the amazing things we saw on the go this month. The strengths, abilities, and enthusiasm of this community are incredible. We can’t wait to see what we will accomplish together over the next year.