This panel debate brings together scholars working on the political economy of drugs, conflict and rural issues in Asia, Africa and Latin America to debate the need of drug policy to incorporate the lessons and insights of an emerging body of research on the political economy of drugs and the role that illicit economies play in broader processes of state formation and agrarian change.

Julia Buxton (Central European University)

Dave Mansfield (SOAS, University of London)

Francisco Thoumi (Universidad de los Andes and International Narcotics Board)

Chair: Jonathan Goodhand (SOAS, University of London)

Click here for more information about the event and to register.

Keep up-to-date with drug policy developments by subscribing to the IDPC Monthly Alert.

Rethinking counter-narcotic policies in drug-producing countries

Three years after the first conference in Marseille (France) the 2nd European Harm Reduction Conference will offer professionals the opportunity to reflect on the future of harm reduction in May 2014 in Basel (Switzerland). This conference will be organised by the European Harm Reduction Network (EuroHRN) and the Swiss government.

The 2nd European Harm Reduction Conference aims at promoting, at a professional level, the further development of the concept of harm reduction in the different European countries. Most recent research results, the current developments and challenges will be presented and widely discussed. The congress offers an ideal platform for dialogues so that the participants get to know models of best practice from various countries and receive ideas and inputs for their work. Furthermore, experiences can be shared, reflected upon, and compared in an international context.

Simultaneous translations will be assured in English, German and French.

The provisional programme is already available.

Registration for the conference is open. The early bird offer is available until February 2, 2014.

Visitors to the conference will be able to visit various harm reduction facilities of Basel-City.

Read here more information about the conference.

Keep up-to-date with drug policy developments by subscribing to the IDPC Monthly Alert.

2nd European Harm Reduction Conference

On 7th May, President Otto Pérez Molina will be presenting the new LSE Report on Economics of Drug Policy. The Report represents the most thorough independent economic analysis of the current international drug control strategy ever conducted. President Pérez Molina, who as a ruling President brought the drug policy debate to a State-level discussion, will be receiving the report on behalf of Guatemala and will be bringing it to official platforms, such as the UN General Assembly, and the Organization of American States (OAS).

This event will be webcast live on the LSE website on LSE Live.

 for more information on the venue and the event.

Expert Group on the Economics of Drug Policy launches new report

On May 7th, International Harm Reduction Day will be an opportunity to promote evidence-based drug policies based on public health and human rights. Get involved!

 to get more information about the event.

1st International Harm Reduction Day

This is Canada's first national trauma conference, which will take place in Alliston in Ontorio from 7th to 8th May 2014. On 6th May there will be a pre-conference session.

 for more details about the conference and the venue.

Grounding Trauma

Last December, Uruguay’s Senate gave final approval to legislation creating the world’s first national framework to legally regulate the cultivation, distribution, and use of cannabis for medical, industrial, and recreational purposes. The detailed rules governing Uruguay’s recreational cannabis market are scheduled to be released this month, with guidelines for the medical system expected later this year.

Uruguay’s leaders have emphasized that their initiative is designed to address their country’s particular circumstances, and is not intended to serve as a model for other countries. At the same time, however, the architects of Uruguay’s new law are conscious of their pioneering role—together with the U.S. states of Colorado and Washington—in moving forward with regulatory approaches amidst a prohibitionist global drug control system.

Please join us for this timely discussion of Uruguay’s historic new law and the implications for the regional and global drug policy debate.

Please click here for more details on the event and the venue.

Launching Uruguay’s new law to regulate cannabis

The Criminal Justice Centre, School of Law, QMUL and DrugScience are delighted to invite you to Regulating New Psychoactive Substances: Science, Law and Policy, the first in a series of conferences exploring The Future of Pharmacological Regulation.

The appropriate regulation of New Psychoactive Substances (NPSs) is a topic of pressing public and political concern in the United Kingdom and around the world, but how should this be achieved?

Last year, New Zealand enacted the Psychoactive Substances Act 2013, which is widely perceived as marking a major shift away from the paradigm of prohibition under the criminal law. However, there are alternative schemes.

The aim of this major one-day conference is:

to provide a critical and objective analysis of the science and law relating to NPSs,

to identify facts and myths surrounding the distribution and use of NPSs,

to explore the values and public health ethics that should guide policy-makers in this arena, and

to consider and discuss viable options for regulating (if at all) activities in connection with NPSs.

Speakers will include Professor David Nutt (DrugScience), Dr John Ramsey (Tic Tac), Dr Leslie King, Professor Fiona Measham, Professor Rudi Fortson QC (QMUL), Professor Richard Ashcroft (QMUL), and Amber Marks (QMUL).

Location: Barts Pathology Museum, 3rd Floor Robin Brook Centre, West Smithfield, London.

Regulating new psychoactive substances: Science, law and policy

The 55th Regular Session of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) will take place from April 29, 2014 to May 1, 2014 in Washington, D.C.

Please find attached the information bulletin as well as the draft agenda of the event.

55th CICAD Regular Session – Information Bulletin

55th CICAD Regular Session – Draft Agenda

This regular session contemplates a space, on March 28, 2014, for the intervention of civil society organizations registered with the OAS in accordance with Resolution CP/RES. 759 (1217/99) “Guidelines for the Participation of Civil Society Organization in OAS Activities.”

Civil society organizations registered with the OAS that would like to attend the 55th Regular Session of CICAD should send a letter addressed to the Secretary General of the OAS, Jose Miguel Insulza, expressing their interest to attend, and the names of the representatives of the organization (maximum of 2) to the Department of International Affairs of the OAS (civilsociety@oas.com) 

no later than Friday, April 11, 2014 at 5:30pm

. Please take into account that civil society representatives will be responsible for covering their own expenses related to their stay in Washington, D.C., including accommodation, transportation, meals and other incidentals.

For more information about the 55th Regular Session of CICAD, please visit the OAS Civil Society Website or the CICAD Website.

This event will be broadcast live on the Media Center of the OAS Website.

55th Regular Session of CICAD 

Last year it was revealed that of 85 prisoners detained in Jurby Prison, 34 were in custody for drug-related offences and two for known alcohol associated crimes. However, there are a large number of prisoners in custody for assaults and other violence, whose offences are probably drug or alcohol related.

The average annual cost per prisoner to the Manx taxpayer is about £59,000! It's perhaps time we reviewed the drugs and alcohol policy, particularly as the Isle of Man is developing a new Criminal Justice Strategy.

We are indeed fortunate to have Professor David Nutt from Imperial College, London, visit the Island to stimulate debate about a problem that society cannot afford to ignore. His views are respected worldwide and his book "Drugs Without the Hot Air" has been widely acclaimed.

David Nutt was the Chair of the UK government's Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, famously sacked for writing a paper comparing the harms of ecstasy with those of horse riding, and for publicly criticising the government for ignoring scientific advice by reclassifying Cannabis from Group C to Group B, indicating increased harmfulness.

Professor Nutt is 'Edmond J Safra Professor of Neuropsychopharmacolgy' at Imperial College London, and President of the British Neuroscience Association. He is also Chair of the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs (ISCD). A number of his lectures and talks can be viewed on Youtube.

Some of the questions he will address will be:

How harmful are alcohol and tobacco compared to illegal drugs?

Does the “War on Drugs” cause more harm than good?

How does it affect legitimate scientific research into potentially valuable therapies?

What should you tell your children about drugs, and at what age?

Does prison or a criminal record do more harm to young people than smoking cannabis?

After the presentation there will be Q & A session so come along and join in!

The truth about drugs: A basis for a fair and rational policy? 

Christian Aid, Health Poverty Action and Transform Drug Policy Foundation invite you to a special briefing and discussion on the UN processes leading up to the UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on Drugs in 2016.

Come and join us, to explore how and why the Development sector needs to engage, and discuss current plans.

Jamie Bridge, Senior Policy and Operations Manager, International Drug Policy Consortium

 on the background to the process how it will work and opportunities to engage.

Eric Gutierrez, Senior Advisor on Accountable Governance, Christian Aid

Martin Drewry, Director, Health Poverty Action

While these issues are comparatively new to many of us in the sector, UNGASS 2016 presents a unique moment – a once in a generation opportunity – to review this key policy area that is so pivotally important to so many developing countries.

This meeting is an opportunity to learn more about it.

For further details please see attached invitation.

If you are unable to attend, but would like to be kept informed, please let us know.

"It is time to admit the obvious. The 'war on drugs' has failed, at least in the way it has been waged so far… The 'unintended' consequences have been disastrous. Thousands of people have lost their lives in drug-associated violence. Drug lords have taken over entire communities. Misery has spread. Corruption is undermining fragile democracies." 

Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Former President of Brazil

The last UNGASS on drugs took place in 1998. The current session has been brought forward (from 2019) as a result of pressure from Latin American leaders, recognising how severely the war on drugs is impacting on development.

UNGASS 2016: Why is it a key moment for development NGOs?

The use of enhancement drugs is by no means a new phenomenon. However, in recent years, needle and syringe programmes across the United Kingdom have experienced a significant increase in clients reporting the use of these drugs.

For many of these services, the majority of their clients are no longer opiates or stimulant users but injectors of anabolic
steroids, growth hormones and other peptide hormones such as melanotan II. The levels of harm caused by enhancement drugs, in particular relating to those new and emerging drugs, remains largely unknown.

However, case reports and crosssectional studies indicate a range of chronic adverse conditions associated with this form of drug use. These include liver damage, cardiovascular pathologies, genitourinary disorders, and additionally, the presence of blood borne viruses including HIV, all of which contribute to this public health concern.

With leading international and UK speakers, this conference will explore the nature of this drug use together with the public health implications and the opportunities for effective harm reduction interventions.

Please, find below information about the conference and its programme.

Public health and enhancement drugs

From 8-10 April representatives of eight countries will get together in Amsterdam to present their achievements within the “People who Use Drugs Project” as part of the Bridging the Gaps – Health and Rights of Key Populations programme.

Exchanging best practices; sharing lessons learned; and strategizing on different themes

The following themes will be discussed during the meeting in Amsterdam:

Access to and quality of healthcare services for people who use drugs;

Integration of services into national health systems; and

The protection of human rights of people who use drugs

Partners involved in the project will share with each other the progress that is made in the different countries in these areas. The meeting is expected to become a good platform for all partner organisations not only for linking and learning but also for discussing and developing the strategic plan for the rest of their work within the Bridging the Gaps programme. Participants will have ample opportunities to learn from each other, to go into more depth on specific themes related to programming for people who use drugs and to consider revision of their project or adding valuable solutions initiated in countries. Finally, the participants will share thoughts on the global efforts to advocate for human rights of people who use drugs. In April, some experts will come to Amsterdam to exchange best practices and share lessons learned related to their work with and for people who use drugs as part of the international programme Bridging the Gaps.

Please, click here for more details about the conference and the venue.

Past Events