Rural Service Resources

Carrying the NA message in a rural or isolated community can be challenging, and represents a significant obstacle to the growth of NA in many parts of the world. This webpage offers a board-approved piece focused on principles and best practices relevant to this area of service, and locally developed resources.

Serving NA in Rural and Isolated Communities

This piece captures experience from NA members in different parts of the world, and offers some ideas for effectively serving NA in rural and isolated communities. 

Locally Developed Resources

The tools below are available for local groups and service bodies to adapt and use locally.

These workshop materials have been developed by NA World Services in partnership with developing regions around the world. They address many of the “basics” of NA groups and have proven helpful in creating a stable foundation for growth. The main locally developed resources page contains a range of other workshop materials that may be of interest.

What is an NA Group – session outlinehandout, and PowerPoint
Group Trusted Servants – Roles and Responsibilities – session outline and PowerPoint
Atmosphere of Recovery – session outline and PowerPoint
Building Strong Homegroups – session outlinehandout, and PowerPoint
Tradition Seven – session outlinehandout, and PowerPoint
Sponsorship – session outlinehandout, and PowerPoint

Locally Developed Service Material – general service resources in addition to those posted above, including many that have been locally developed
Free Recovery Literature – for recovery literature in a range of languages, including The Group Booklet, informational pamphlets, and other NA literature
Service Material – for links to a wide range of NA service material, including service pamphlets that offer guidance to groups on commonly encountered challenges
Service Handbooks – service handbooks, including a section on “Area Committees in Rural Communities” on page 65 of A Guide to Local Services in NA
Find NA Meetings – for meeting information (including phone- and web-based meetings) and local websites and helplines
Service System Project – for drafts of group support forum guidelines and local planning tools

This article from the April 2010 NA Way Magazine is one of many stories of the birth of an NA community and is offered here in the hope it will inspire and encourage you. Some of the personal stories in the “Our Members Share” section of the Basic Text also tell of NA’s beginnings in different parts of the world, while others talk about the challenges members have experienced when identifying themselves as an addict in their community.

The quarterly web meetings hosted by NA World Services between 2016 and 2019 have now been discontinued. The increased availability of virtual recovery and service meetings in 2020, as a result of the pandemic, made the quarterly web meetings less useful, and the reduction in staff resources at NAWS has led us to refocus our efforts elsewhere. We continue to offer other quarterly web meetings on a variety of topics that are open to the entire Fellowship. Details about these can be found here www.na.org/webinar.

Recordings and resources from previous web meetings can be found below: 

Narcotics Anonymous World Services (“NAWS”) provides literature, service materials, bulletins and various other tools for NA members, NA groups, and NA service committees as resources in their NA service delivery efforts. Our production and distribution of these materials is not intended to imply that NAWS is in a position of authority over any of those who use these materials. NAWS does not have any centralized control over any NA members, NA groups, or other NA service committees.

All service materials produced by NAWS are offered as a reference resource, and their application is at the sole discretion of the user. They should not be considered directives or mandates from NAWS, and may be adapted or applied as the user sees fit. Additionally, NAWS takes no responsibility in any issues of liability that may result from the application of these materials.