Introducing the Students for Sensible Drug Policy North Carolina Harm Reduction Program Coordinator

Category: Blog | February 17, 2023 By Jason Ortiz No comments yet

Share This!

Hood Incubator co-founder Lanese Martin answers policy-related questions in Oakland, Calif. on Friday, May 25, 2018. The incubator helps minority cultivators become legitimate businesses.

Students for Sensible Drug Policy is proud to announce that Lanese Martin will be joining our team as the North Carolina Harm Reduction Program Coordinator. Lanese Martin is a community organizer with a background in electoral campaigns, policy, and advocacy on issues impacting Black people and the areas they work, live & play. As co-founder of The Hood Incubator, a national grassroots organization, she guides the organization’s mission to end the drug war by 2040. In less than 5 years she has grown the organization to be the leading voice in its space. Lanese is also the former Chair of Oakland’s Cannabis Regulatory Commission. Under Lanese’s leadership, the city of Oakland has the most comprehensive equity program to date in the country. “We are beyond excited to work with one of the drug policy movement’s most well-respected and experienced community organizers to address youth overdose in Black, Indigenous, and Latinx communities across North Carolina,” says Luis Montoya, SSDP Operations Director. As the North Carolina Harm Reduction Coordinator, Lanese will lead the North Carolina Youth Overdose Prevention Fellowship pilot. This fellowship will provide an avenue to young people with strong ties to Indigenous, Black, and Latinx communities to learn about overdose prevention in the context of public health, learn to navigate advocacy with local government to impact change through opioid settlement funding, and will craft their own culturally relevant overdose prevention messaging to reach their community. Racial justice and health equity are cornerstones of this Fellowship, which focuses on training students from communities experiencing the highest rates of overdose that have been historically marginalized. If chosen for the pilot, Fellows will receive stipends to compensate them for their time and efforts. The program is accepting applications through March 1st. “I am super excited to support the leadership of student and youth harm reduction advocates in North Carolina. I would be nowhere if not for the mentorship that has been poured into me at the start of my career.” – Lanese Martin