Brown Bag Advocacy 

Community lunch & learn

Brown Bag Advocacy is an educational series that focuses on policies affecting substance use, mental health prevention, treatment, and recovery. The series is held over the lunch hour, so you grab your lunch or a snack and join us to learn about advocacy and related topics.

Click on upcoming event below to register.

Looking for a recorded session? Please click on the session post below view the recording.

This project is funded in part by a grant from the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration.

2025 Brown Bag Advocacy Sessions

March 2025- Updates LIVE from the Capitol!

Date: March 26, 2025

Time: 12pm - 1pm CT

Location: Virtual (register here)

Bring your lunch and join us for an engaging and informative updates on key substance use priorities that impact our communities.

Whether you’re a seasoned advocate or just curious about the process, this event is for everyone who wants to create positive change in substance use policy.

Don’t miss this opportunity to stay informed, get inspired, and take action!

2025 Brown Bag Advocacy Session Dates:

January 15th; March 26th; August 20th; October 15th.

Registration is open!

Recovery Day at the Capitol is February 25th.

Past Events

January 2025- Substance Use Priorities in the 89th Legislative Session

January 2025- Substance Use Priorities in the 89th Legislative Session Date: January 15, 2025 Time: 12pm – 1pm CT Location: Virtual (zoom, registration required) Are you passionate about substance use policy and ready to make a difference in the 89th Legislative Session? Bring your lunch…

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August 2024- Tips and tricks for communicating with Legislators, their staff, and other policymakers.

August 2024 Brown Bag Advocacy presents: Advocacy Speaks! Tips and tricks for communicating with Legislators, their staff, and other policymakers. We had a great session this month. Thank you to our wonderful presenters and participants! Here are the slides (video to come) in case you…

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April 2024: Policy Issue Areas for the 89th Legislative Session

Policy Issue Areas for the 89th Legislative Session Advocacy never takes a break. We are less than nine months away from the next legislative session. Now is the time to develop advocacy priorities and seek support from those who can help achieve those goals! At RecoveryPeople, we…

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January 2024- Funding opportunity for OUD related programs

Join us and our outstanding presenters from the Opioid Abatement Council, Dr. Lori Holleran-Steiker, Dr. Doug Thornton, and Ms. Amanda Lopez, to discuss an upcoming grant utilizing the Opioid settlement dollars. You don’t want to miss out on this amazing funding opportunity!    

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October 2023- Peer workforce Q&A with Texas HHSC’s Peer Support and Recovery

Have questions about substance use and mental health peer certification and supervision? Want to know more about working as an independent peer specialist? We do too! We are bringing in experts from HHSC’s Peer Support and Recovery to answer your questions about certification, scope of…

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July 2023- TxCOPE: Using Data to Drive Community Overdose Response in Texas

TxCOPE: Using Data to Drive Community Overdose Response in Texas Presented by Kasey Claborn, PhD Director, Addiction Research Institute Director & Principal Investigator, TxCOPE Date: July 19, 2023 Time: 12 PM CST Location: Zoom

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June 2023- Updates from the 88th Legislative Session

It has been an interesting 88th Legislative Session and so much has happened regarding substance use prevention, treatment and recovery policy. Please join us on Tuesday, June 13th @ noon CT for a legislative debrief of what transpired over these last 140 days. We will…

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February 2023: Connecting with your Legislators

Date: Wednesday, February 15th Time: 12:00 pm CT Location: Zoom (pre-registration link) Being an informed advocate is key and we are here to help you! Last month we reviewed how to set up a TLO account, navigate the website, and create your own personalized lists…

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January 2023: Navigating the Texas Legislature Online

January 18, 2023 Navigating the Texas Legislature Online Date: Wednesday, January 18th Time: 12:00 pm CT Location: Zoom (pre-registration link)   Want to know if a bill has been filed in your area of interest? Want to know what committees bills have been assigned to…

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November 2022: Preview of Prevention, Treatment and Recovery bills

November 16, 2022: HOT OFF THE PRESS! Preview of Prevention, Treatment and Recovery bills Date: Wednesday, November 16th Time: 12:00 pm CT Location: Zoom (pre-registration link)   Join us on November 16th for a one hour preview of legislation that is being “pre-filed” (early bill…

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Documents from our sessions:

Brown Bag Advocacy

August 20 @ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm CDT

August 2025- TBD Date: August 20, 2025 Time: 12pm-1pm CT Location: Virtual (click here for more details)

Brown Bag Advocacy

March 26 @ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm CDT

March 2025- Updates from the Texas Legislature Stay up to date with news you can use from the Texas Legislature! Date: March 26, 2025 Time: 12pm-1pm CT Location: Virtual (click…

Special thank you to our partners who helped make this possible: