When we designated 2025 as our "Year of Action," we didn't just set a theme—we made a promise. Looking back at the last twelve months, we can say with full conviction: we delivered.

All this week, we'll be looking back at what we've been able to accomplish together this year, starting with our Campus Surge initiative.

Bringing Mobilize Recovery to College Campuses Nationwide

This year Campus Surge 2025 took recovery conversations directly into academic spaces across the country, empowering students and young leaders to build recovery-ready environments in their own communities. Across 16 events in 15 states, more than 6,500 participants came together to learn, collaborate, and take action. From community colleges to major universities, from rural Alaska to the heart of the South—the diversity of participating institutions proved a powerful truth: recovery belongs everywhere.

From top left to bottom right: Campus Surge events at the University of Charleston in WV; The Ohio State University in Columbus, OH; University of Nevada, Las Vegas; University of Central Arkansas in Conway, AR; Georgetown University in Washington, DC; University of Nevada, Reno.

Each stop on the tour served as a hub for connection and skill-building. Students, faculty, and community partners gathered for workshops on overdose prevention and response, mental health, leadership development, and strategies for building or strengthening collegiate recovery programs. The enthusiasm was unmistakable — young people are not just ready to lead, they are already shaping the future of the movement.

Campus Surge was elevated even further by an extraordinary trio of national co-chairs: Jelly Roll, Melissa Etheridge, and Darren Waller. Their lived experience and visibility helped bring recovery to the forefront of campus culture, breaking stigma and inspiring students to see advocacy as both possible and personal.

Our 2025 Campus Surge Co-Chairs: Jelly Roll, Melissa Etheridge, and Darren Waller

Whether in a lecture hall, student center, or outdoor quad, Campus Surge 2025 made an unmistakable impact. It demonstrated that when student leaders are given the tools and platform to rise, they meet the moment and change what’s possible.

Campus Surge was a spark that ignited a new generation of recovery advocates across the country, and just the first chapter of our Year of Action.

This article is part 1 of a 3-part series looking back at our 2025 Year of Action. Check out our full report below.

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