For generations, a Friday night drink has been an Australian ritual. Whether it was after-work beers at the local pub, a bottle of wine over dinner or a few drinks with friends, alcohol has long been part of the country's social life.
Young people are increasingly drinking less alcohol but at a higher risk with rates of binge drinking remaining high.
20-year-old Charli Seymour decided to stop consuming alcohol after moving to Canberra for university.
"I just can't afford to drink and pay my rent and buy food. It was the thing that was going to go," Ms Seymour said.
She said her student accommodation has a strong drinking culture with students partaking in high-risk behaviours that have deterred her from drinking.
She said that her peers are not themselves when drinking: she has witnessed them punching walls and shoving people into walls in the hallway.
She decided she wanted to socialise without being peer-pressured to consume alcohol.
For 23-year-old Australian National University student Keira Yu, not drinking has become a personal choice shaped by her culture and coming from a traditional Chinese family.
In a new city with unfamiliar streets and culture, being far away from home means she does not feel comfortable or safe drinking, particularly at night.
"It's different because, in China I'm in a city and I'm familiar with it, and I have a lot of friends there, so I can make sure I'm safe," Ms Yu said.
She engages with Australian culture in other ways, but for her a night out at the pub drinking alcohol is not one of them.
Sarah Chapman, a bar manager at Badger & Co, has noticed that young people are drinking less and they "typically order one drink or none at all."
She said this may be because of cost-of-living pressures.
Their busiest time is during happy hour and the cheapest drink is beer, which recently she has seen more women purchasing.
Though Ms Chapman has noticed there are occasional outbreaks of binge drinking.
"People prefer not to drink regularly and then have one big night where they have a lot," she said.
Generation Z is shifting to wellbeing-focused lifestyles and prioritising essential spending amidst cost-of living pressures.
A report by The Society for the Study of Addiction found that drinking patterns still follow familiar life-stage patterns. Consumption peaked in early adulthood before declining with age.
However, Gen Z recorded the lowest weekly consumption of alcohol, compared to other generations.
In fact, Gen Z were 18 to 20 times more likely to abstain entirely from alcohol than older generations.
The study pointed to a range of factors that could be driving Gen Z drinking habits, including greater awareness of health risks, cost-of-living pressures, and the rise of non-alcoholic drinks.
Katherine Berney director at The Foundation for Alcohol and Education (FARE), said legislation on the licensing of alcohol was "brought in for a reason, and what we saw was a reduction in violence in public areas."
Ms Berney said she welcomes younger people choosing healthier lifestyles, and reducing their alcohol intake, although is concerned that young people are drinking at more high-risk levels.
Almost seven in 10 23-year-olds reported binge drinking in the past year.
She said the increase in binge drinking poses a risk of increasing rates of violence, in public settings and inside the home, with alcohol being more readily accessible through delivery services.
Alcohol is involved in up to 47 per cent of police-reported family violence incidents.
Ms Berney said, "Alcohol doesn't cause violence, but it does create environments where that violence can be accelerated and also the severity."
Forty per cent of Australians have been exposed to adverse childhood experiences, whether that be domestic violence in the home, or other forms of violence.
She hoped for the elimination of alcohol-related violence, and not to have public environments where violence is normalised.
In September, FARE is anticipating that the ACT government will be introducing their reviewed liquor act.
