Benidorm will host the Generalitat's training course on environmental prevention and dual pathology

The city of Benidorm will host the official headquarters for the continuing education offered by the Valencian Regional Government, through the Directorate General of Mental Health and Addictions, in the areas of environmental prevention and dual diagnosis. This was announced on Friday by the city's mayor, Toni Pérez, and the director general, Bartolomé Pérez Gálvez, after a working meeting to finalise this and other matters. Also participating in the meeting were the Councillor for Social Welfare, Ángela Zaragozí, and the municipal technician from the Community Prevention Unit for Addictive Behaviours (UPCCA). Pérez Gálvez pointed out that the selection of Benidorm as the headquarters is "a recognition of the work" the city has been carrying out for more than 30 years in this field, being "a pioneer in assuming responsibilities such as the implementation of the first UCA in 1993," which, in his opinion, offers "the assurance that it is a reliable partner with extensive experience in this field."

This alliance will allow Benidorm to host national and international congresses, courses, and events on the two aforementioned prevention models: environmental prevention and dual diagnosis, in which a mental health problem and an addiction coexist. The Director General explained that Benidorm is a “benchmark in environmental prevention”; in other words, “in managing situations involving large events or large gatherings of people without negatively impacting” the environment or, by extension, public health. The city also boasts other strengths in its environmental prevention and care efforts, such as good air quality, waste management, climate change adaptation, environmental education, the protection of natural spaces, and environmental risk assessment.

Bartolomé Pérez Gálvez noted that, within the actions carried out by the Directorate General in the field of environmental prevention, “we had received various requests from entities and governments that had already set their sights on Benidorm and how this city manages certain situations.” Regarding the area of ​​dual diagnosis, the regional official also stated that Benidorm is a "benchmark," as it is "a field in which it has been working for over 30 years – he himself was one of those in charge of the first Addictive Behaviors Unit established by the City Council in the 1990s –" and indicated that it is one of the municipalities that, proportionally, has assumed the most responsibilities for the prevention of addictive behaviors and support for the mental health of the population, especially among young people.

While the schedule of events is still being finalised, Bartolomé Pérez Gálvez announced that there will be both in-person and online training sessions and that the idea is to begin in November.

For his part, Mayor Toni Pérez reiterated the municipal commitment to continue promoting community prevention initiatives "as we have been doing for over three decades," both through the UPCCA (Unit for the Prevention and Treatment of Addictions) and through plans, prevention campaigns, and fieldwork. The mayor recalled that the latest approved plan, “the Municipal Plan for the Prevention of Addictive Behaviors 2026-2029, was approved in plenary session last February and is a guide to achieve and overcome the challenges we face in relation to the problem of drug addiction and other addictive disorders in our municipality” with the objective of “reducing or preventing the use and abuse of drugs and other addictive behaviors, as well as promoting healthy lifestyle habits among the community.”
 

Municipal actions

He also recalled the slogan of one of the city's pioneering campaigns in this area, "If you miss it, you'll miss out," and indicated that since then, "many actions have been carried out"; some direct, like those of 'Coneixement' (Knowledge), and others "offering cultural, sporting, and leisure activities and proposals, as well as physical spaces for healthy leisure and sports, to spark the interest of the younger population and allow them to interact and develop."

Among these, he cited the Skyline Film Festival, the Les Ones dance festival, Benidorm Fest, the Cyclocross World Championships, Game Parties, running events like the Benidorm Half, summer camps, Espai Jove (Youth Space), green areas for sports and healthy leisure activities such as El Moralet and Séquia Mare parks, the construction of the José Antonio Añón Ramón hostel and campsite, and the installation of calisthenics areas on beaches and in municipal parks and gardens. Or, in the medium term, the Benidorm Open Arena, whose axis called ‘Youth Arena’ includes a youth centre, conceived as an accessible and multicultural, integrative, inclusive and dynamic space for training, leisure and active participation of the youth population, with classrooms and multifunctional spaces.