The 7th Conference of the European Society for Prevention Research (EUSPR) attracted participants from across the globe when held in Berlin between 31 October and 2 November 2016. The EUSPR was established to promote ‘the development of prevention science, and its application to practice so as to promote human health and well-being through high quality research, evidence based interventions, policies and practices’1. The cornerstones of its work are a cross-disciplinary network of scientists, policy-makers and practitioners; the development of methodologies; the promotion of higher education and career development in prevention; and the implementation of research.

The conference theme was ‘sustainable prevention in a changing world’ – speakers covered a wide range of topics from evaluations of individual prevention programmes to much broader debates about the value and role of prevention in society today. A recurring theme throughout the conference was how population and behavioural changes across Europe are presenting new challenges to health and well-being. Much discussion focused on how evidence-based sustainable prevention systems and structures can best be developed to meet these changing needs.

Preventing substance use was one of a range of behaviours explored at the conference. The presentations tended to focus on local evaluations of individual programmes. These included programmes unique to the locality and those more broadly recognised, such as the Strengthening Families Programme and the Good Behaviour Game.

Discussions in the sessions identified a number of issues facing those working in drug prevention. These included the challenge of gaining support for evidence-based programmes at a local level; the value of early intervention; the importance of programmes that focus on developing young people’s lifeskills and resilience rather than being drug specific; and, the need to further develop training for prevention professionals.

1      More information on the EUSPR and the conference is available at www.euspr.org