Category: PressRelease

Record Montana overdoses highlight need for Fentanyl prevention

  • Montana Meth Project, Attorney General and State Superintendent call for teen Fentanyl education.
  • Red Ribbon Week student and teacher contests incentivize engagement with Fentanyl prevention resources available at MontanaMeth.org.

October 21, 2025, Missoula, Mont. — It’s National Red Ribbon Week, a time when leaders and partners come together to raise awareness about the importance of drug prevention. The Montana Meth Project, Attorney General Austin Knudsen and Superintendent of Public Instruction Susie Hedalen are urging teachers, parents and community members to take action. They’re calling on Montanans to educate teens about the deadly risk of Fentanyl poisoning, as the state’s overdose rates from the opioid are higher than ever.

“Opioid overdoses in Montana are trending toward record highs in 2025, largely due to illicit Fentanyl. The dangerous drug is being laced into drugs of all kinds, including Meth and counterfeit pills that look like common prescription drugs, causing users to unknowingly consume a fatal dose,” said Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen. “Younger generations must learn to never take a pill not prescribed by their own doctor and that experimentation with drugs of any kind has never been more life-threatening. As Attorney General, I will continue to do everything I can to get this poison off our streets and hold drug traffickers accountable.”

In response to the dire need for Fentanyl prevention, last year the Meth Project launched their new Fentanyl Prevention Lesson for middle school and high school students. The free 10-minute video lesson and accompanying resources at MontanaMeth.org/Fentanyl-Lesson share the facts about Fentanyl teens must know — where it’s found, what an overdose looks like and how to respond, including tips to always carry naloxone (commonly known as Narcan). The lesson has recently been endorsed by the Red Ribbon Campaign. The national prevention organization has also endorsed the Meth Project’s Meth Prevention Lesson at MontanaMeth.org/Lesson-Video.

“Young Montanans are increasingly at risk of accidental overdose as these deadly, synthetic opioids become more common in our communities, often disguised as other drugs. I urge teachers, parents and students to take advantage of these life-saving educational resources,” said State Superintendent Susie Hedalen, head of the Office of Public Instruction. “Drug prevention and community safety is everyone’s responsibility, and we must ensure that every Montana teenager has the tools and information they need to make safe decisions for themselves and their peers.”

From now through October 31, 2025, the Meth Project is holding two contests to encourage both students and teachers to engage in Fentanyl education. Montana teens who take the #NotEvenOnce #OnePillCanKill Pact at MontanaMeth.org — pledging never to take a pill not prescribed to them — will be entered to win a genuine LABUBU©, the collectible plush toy popular among teens. Multiple genuine LABUBUs wearing #OnePillCanKill t-shirts are available to entrants.

Additionally, Stockman Bank is joining the Meth Project to thank teachers who are actively engaging in Fentanyl prevention. Montana educators who use the Fentanyl Prevention Lesson at MontanaMeth.org/Fentanyl-Lesson in their classes can enter to win a $500 Visa gift card. Teachers simply enter by emailing the Meth Project a photo of their class engaging in the lesson by Friday, November 7, 2025.

“We’re grateful for all of our partners who share our urgency in getting the facts about illegal Fentanyl in front of teens,” said Amy Rue, executive director of the Meth Project. “When teens understand the real dangers of experimenting with drugs, they can make informed choices, and lives can be saved.”

About the Montana Meth Project
The Montana Meth Project is a large-scale prevention program aimed at reducing teen Meth and Fentanyl use through public service messaging and community outreach. The nonprofit was founded in 2005 by businessman and philanthropist Tom Siebel as a private-sector response to Montana’s critical public health issue. Named the 3rd most effective philanthropy in the world by Barron’s in its global ranking, the organization has been credited with significant declines in teen Meth use. Both its Meth and Fentanyl prevention curriculum have been endorsed by the national Red Ribbon Campaign. MontanaMeth.org

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Media contact:
Lori Warden
lwarden@upwardpr.com
406.360.2825

Montana Meth Project Launches Search for Talented Montana Filmmaker with Life or Meth Video Contest

Missoula, MT) — The Montana Meth Project is calling all treasure state filmmakers as the organization gathers submissions for a national 30-second commercial competition featuring a grand prize of $20,000 and nationwide air time for the declared winner.

“This contest is an outstanding opportunity for Montanans to show the rest of the country why we have been the standard bearer for Meth prevention, how creative we can be and that as a state we are dedicated to fighting Meth use,” said Amy Rue, Executive Director of Montana Meth Project.

Aspiring and established filmmakers from around the United States are encouraged to create an impactful commercial centered on the theme of “Life or Meth.” The submissions will then be evaluative by four of the countries Meth Project Executive Directors. The 10 best submissions will be invited to participate in an exclusive panel to be held at Series Fest in Denver, Colorado June 22-26, 2016.

The 10 panelists will then be filtered down to the top three via an online-voting competition held July 2016 with the final winner to be determined by a celebrity panel of judges and announced September 1, 2016.

Additional prizes of $2,500 and travel for two to Series Fest in Denver will also be awarded to the top production in each of these Meth Project partner states: Colorado, Montana, Idaho and Georgia.

“We have all had our experiences with Meth in our towns and our state. This contest provides a great venue for Montanans to raise their voice, tell their story and share it with the world,” said Rue.

Past Meth Project directors have gone on to accomplish great things in the film industry. The list of winners includes Academy Award-winning directors Darren Aronofsky, Wally Pfister, and Alejandro González Iñárritu.

Previous Meth Project commercials have influenced viewers through graphic, hard-hitting campaigns that followed young adults from first-time users to full-blown addicts as a means of educating people about the dangers of using methamphetamine, a highly addictive drug that severely alters a person’s brain activity.

With this competition the goal remains very much the same. Create authentic, impactful messages that will influence the next generation of teens to keep their distance from the drug and reinforce Montana Meth Project’s message of “Not Even Once”.

“Montana has been leading the fight against Meth abuse for over 10 years now,” said Rue, “so it would be fitting to see someone from our state take home the top honors, forge their path in the industry and join the impressive list of Montana Meth Project Directors.”

All entries will be screened and approved by the Montana Meth Project and will be judged on the following criteria: cinematography, screenwriting, sound, acting, editing, originality, and the thematic integration of “Life or Meth.” Once submitted, each applicant will be competing nationally in an online contest.

Entries will be accepted February 15 through May 31, 2016 at lifeormethcontest.com. Contestants will also find a link to the submission platform on the Montana Meth Project Facebook page.

About the Montana Meth Project

The Montana Meth Project is a Montana non-profit organization headquartered in Missoula, Montana and implements large-scale, research-based campaigns and community action programs to reduce Meth use in the state. The Program has demonstrated significant results in changing attitudes and behaviors toward Meth.

Through their Meth Prevention Lesson, a classroom program geared toward middle and high school students that utilizes MethProject.org, the Montana Meth Project has reached an additional 14,523 teens, with 266 new classes taught during 2014.

The Montana Meth Project is funded by generous contributions from foundations, corporations and private individuals. For more information, visit www.montanameth.org.

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Media Contacts:

Amy Rue
Montana Meth Project
406-721-2538
arue@montanameth.org