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What is Cracks in the Ice?

Cracks in the Ice is an online toolkit providing trusted, evidence-based, and up-to-date information and resources about crystal methamphetamine ('ice') for the Australian community. It was developed in response to the Final Report of the National Ice Taskforce which was established in 2015 by the Australian Government to provide advice on the impacts of ice in Australia. The report stated that “The first priority must be supporting families, workers and communities to better respond to people affected by ice.” (Commonwealth of Australia, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Final Report of the National Ice Taskforce, 2015)., opens in a new window

Who is behind Cracks in the Ice?

Cracks in the Ice is supported by funding from the Australian Government Department of Health and was developed by the Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use at the University of Sydney (formerly known as the NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Mental Health and Substance Use at the University of New South Wales).

 Australian Government Department of Health Logo     Matilda Centre logo

Cracks in the Ice was informed by input from over 500 members of the Australian community and was developed in collaboration with researchers from:

We would like to acknowledge the many community members and health professionals from around the country who provided their input and feedback during the development of Cracks in the Ice and thank those who so generously shared their personal experiences with us and allowed us to use their stories on the website.

Find out more about the development of Cracks in the Ice.

We would also like to thank our external collaborators for their input into the development of Cracks in the Ice.

After playing basketball at a high level and being an incredibly fit and healthy young man; addiction took over Jack's life, taking his health, integrity and spirit out from underneath him, robbing his parents of a son and his brother of a role model. From these experiences, Jack is extremely passionate about using the destruction of his past as his greatest asset to give hope of freedom to people suffering with addiction, educating the community with the sometimes confronting but shattering reality of addiction.

Jenny is a journalist and author who has a keen interest in alcohol and other drug treatment and information dissemination. Jenny has a graduate certificate in Alcohol and Other Drugs from Turning Point/Monash University and recently published Woman of Substances, a book which investigates the female experience of drug use and draws on her own lived experience of alcohol and other drugs.

Netfront is a digital agency based in Sydney's inner west, offering custom web design, web development, graphic design and online services. With extensive experience working with non-profit organisations, Netfront is proud to support and be part of research and development work in health and education.

Gilimbaa is an Indigenous creative agency, born out of a passion to work with Indigenous art and story-telling and the elements it can bring to contemporary design and communication.

What is the Cracks in the Ice Mobile App?

The Cracks in the Ice mobile app is a condensed version of the Cracks in the Ice online toolkit designed for mobile and tablet devices. The app allows access to the online toolkit’s key information, resources and functionalities even when users are offline*.

Find out more about the app and where it's available for free to download.

We would like to acknowledge the many community members from around Australia who provided their feedback during the development of the Cracks in the Ice mobile app.

Find out more about the development of the Cracks in the Ice mobile app.

*Please note that while the app allows access to key content and functions when offline, some features and external web-links will still require internet access to function.

Awards

In 2017, Cracks in the Ice was recognised by the Australian Rotary Health Knowledge Dissemination Award (now called the Australian Rotary Health Mental Health Impact Award) at the annual Society for Mental Health Research Conference. The award was for excellence in bridging the gap between knowledge gained through research and the dissemination of that knowledge to clinicians, consumers and carers, and its implementation into policy and practice.

In 2019, Cracks in the Ice was shortlisted for the 2019 National Alcohol and Other Drugs Excellence and Innovation Awards

In 2021, Cracks in the Ice was awarded the Mental Health Promotion/Mental Illness Prevention Service Award 2020 by The Mental Health Services Learning Network of Australia and New Zealand. These awards celebrate best practice and recognise excellence and innovation in mental health service delivery across Australia and New Zealand, and were established in 1992.

Page last reviewed: Tuesday, 9 February 2021