Alcohol through the ages has been held in high regard. In our culture, alcohol is associated with celebration, rewards, and a specialness. Not only in our personal lives, where we socialize with friends and family, but in the workplace. Perhaps this year, Corporate America, we can consider the negative impact of corporate gifting that centralizes alcohol and instead gift an inclusive, healthier offering as token of appreciation this holiday season and beyond.

Truth be told, changing a last name is no easy endeavor. According to this service that’s already been so helpful, Newly Named says that the average person going through a name change needs to change their name in 30+ places. Yikes! And if I have to be making calls to various customer service departments to do so, is it worth it?

Ultimately, this event modeled more than a nonalcoholic bar, quietly or subtly existing in alcohol’s domineering presence. It gifted people a corporate networking experience without alcohol, demonstrating the connection is still possible (and more genuine, perhaps?), and giving people – no matter where they’re at in their relationship with alcohol – permission to not drink alcohol at a work function. That’s a buzz we can all support!

Nearly 100% unheard of in our culture, Zero Proof Collective and CōV Edina hosted an evening social event on January 20 where the drinks were all zero proof. The occurrence of this event and the reason for it – to celebrate the launch of a nonalcoholic menu -- is it not to be taken lightly.

In 2023, anyone can embrace Dry January and benefit from increased awareness around their relationship with alcohol, experiment with nonalcoholic alternatives, and potentially experience more clarity and productivity in life and work.

In January 2022, I felt a restlessness that could only be associated with birth. A new idea urgently needed to find its way into the world. The idea, born of a lived experience of sobriety, was to evolve our social spaces to support anyone who chooses not to drink alcohol for whatever reason.

Recently, I had the opportunity to revisit several all-inclusive resorts in Mexico and assess them in a whole new light – from that of a sober person. A week-long trip with my friend, Amanda, travel agent and founder of Live Well Travel, found us in 11 different properties over seven days. We stayed 1-2 nights at five of the resorts*, then did site visits at the other resorts**, all in the Cancun, Riviera Maya, and Playa del Carmen area.

I love the language of celebration. If you scrolled through my social media feed prior to the Five Decades, Now Flight event on June 28, you’d have noticed this language and a theme of emerging. There was lots of chatter about all elements of the event, which was not only a milestone birthday celebration but an alcohol-free experience.

The room was buzzing, but not from anything alcohol induced. To the contrary, our gathering was zero proof in beverages and 100% alive with the conversation around creating alcohol-free spaces. It was the launch of Zero Proof Collective MSP (ZPC MSP). The Collective was created by four women – Jen Gilhoi, Cate Faulkner, Debi McConnell, Norma Wolk -- who envision and want to co-create more non-alcoholic beverage options and healthier social spaces for adults to experience clarity, connections, and community