As Students for Sensible Drug Policy is dedicated to making sure that young people from across the world are at the center of drug policy reform, over the last month we have rolled out some exciting new program changes.

Alongside opening our International Office in Vienna in September, on October 1st, Róisín Downes ‘15 and Orsi Feher ‘16 signed the founding documents of our new daughter organization SSDP International. This historic move will allow us to access new funding streams outside of the US and better support regional initiatives and allow for greater decision-making opportunities for our international members. SSDP’s International Network is growing fast with chapter’s opening in Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, and London in September. If you would like to support the efforts of our Global Network, please donate to the International Activities Fund.

In September, we announced our United States Policy Council. The U.S. Policy Council is comprised of SSDP alumni, staff, board and youth members who have committed to advance SSDP’s policy agenda through providing analysis, resources, and mentorship to SSDP chapter members. The U.S. Policy Council will become SSDP’s member-driven policy arm on U.S. policy issues, which supports members in advocacy from the campus to the federal level. Policy Council members will lead the work on our issue groups, which will create, update, and maintain our campaign resources, including our public toolkits.

Following the many months of turmoil and breaches of human rights in Belarus, we stand in support of the people of Belarus, if you would like to know how to take action or get informed please read our statement. SSDP’s International Organizing Committee has released a series of member highlights, which you will find posted weekly on our social media, alongside a series of country highlights, the first of which was written by Jacob Chagnon ‘18 on Lebanon. This committee is dedicated to strengthening our international network and supporting our members from across the world, if you’re interested in joining, email ruby@interns.ssdp.org. 

Action Alerts 

• U.S. members: Support Measure 109, Oregon’s psilocybin therapy campaign, remotely using this volunteer link.
• U.S. members: Support Measure 110, Oregon’s drug decriminalization campaign, remotely using this volunteer link.

New Activists and Chapters

• Kalamazoo College (US)
• Los Angeles Community College (US)
• Oregon State University Cascades (US)
• SSDP Rwanda 
• SSDP King’s College London
• SSDP Burundi
• SSDP Kenya
• Texas State University (US)
• University of Central Florida (US)
• Vermont Law School (US)
• Western Washington University (US)

Stats

• 152 active chapters
• 254 members of the Sensible Society – Join them today! 
• 1 new international office established

Network highlights

• SSDP Israel is running a series of lectures sensitizing social workers on the needs and experiences of People Who Use Drugs
• SSDP Israel working with the Israeli Ministry of Education developing a drug education program for 15-18 year olds
• Missoula SSDP’s Good Samaritan Policy Student Government resolution has six sponsors, including the director of University of Montana Housing.

SSDP in the news

• Combatting Overdose: The Road to Evidence Based Drug Policy – TalkingDrugs
• Climate change student activists bring movement to Kent State – Kent Wired
• SGA President resigns in letter to DePaul community, reflects on experience in SGA – The Depaulia
• Gov. Pritzker Announces Over Two Dozen Appointments to Illinois Boards – RiverBender.com
• Young People in Drug Policy Advocacy Part 1: Stop “Protecting” Young People From Drugs and Start Listening to Them
• Young People in Drug Policy Advocacy – Part 2: Global Issues, Local Dynamics

From the blog

• Introducing Two More Interns on the SSDP Global Team
• Fill Out Our Membership Survey
• SSDP Country Highlight: Lebanon
• SSDP Statement on Breonna Taylor
• SSDP Opens International Office
• Introducing SSDP’s United States Policy Council
• Today Marks the 50th Anniversary of the Controlled Substances Act
• Register to Vote on National Voter Registration Day
• Bringing Young People to the Forefront of the AIDS Response
• SSDP Statement on MORE Act Vote Postponement
• Statement on Solidarity with the People of Belarus
• Announcing Our Interim Executive Directors

Upcoming events and days of action

These events include those which are hosted by SSDP global, or by SSDP chapters, or in which we are partners or co-hosts, or feature an SSDP member as a speaker. If your chapter is hosting an event that you’d like listed, please let your SSDP staff member know. Check the “Member discounts & givebacks” section for event discount codes!

• Ongoing | Online | HIV2020
• October 8-11 |New York City, NY, USA and Online | Horizons 2020
• October 8-16 | Vienna, Austria & Online | 63rd Commission on Narcotic Drugs, 2nd Thematic Intersessional (discussion topics: Cannabis Rescheduling & Health)
• October 14-19 | Online | Psychedelic Psychotherapy Forum 2020 
• November 1 |World Wide | International Drug Users Day of Remembrance
• November 25 |World Wide |International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
• December 1 |World Wide | World AIDS Day
• December 1 | Online | Asamblea Internacional Cannabica with Luis Montoya ‘16, Vilmarie Fraguada Narloch ‘09, PsyD, and Jason Ortiz ‘09 
• December 10 | World Wide | International Human Rights Day
• February 20th, 2021 | Online | Thank You Plant Medicine
• April 17, 2021 | Washington, DC, USA | National Cannabis Festival

Recommended reading and resources

• Luis Montoya ‘16: The Revolution Will Not Be Funded: Beyond the Non-Profit Industrial Complex
• Vilmarie Fraguada Narloch, PsyD ‘09: The Systemic Culture Problems of the Psychedelics Industry
• Rob Hofmann ‘16: Defunding the Police Will Actually Make Us Safer
• Rachel Wissner ‘11: The Art of Asking
• Róisín Downes ‘15: Young People in Drug Policy Advocacy – Part 2: Global Issues, Local Dynamics

Member discounts & givebacks

• Dip Devices’ Dipper – Get 15% off and give 15% to us with code “SSDP”
• Dip Devices’ EVRI – 1% of all sales go to SSDP & MPP 
• Psychedelic Psychotherapy Forum 2020 – Get 20% off registration with discount code “SSDP20”
• Asamblea Internacional Cannabica – Use the discount code “SSDP10” to bring registration down to $10
• Gift your credit card rewards to SSDP with Charity Charge 
• Find your next employee with H2 Talent & a portion of your fees will be donated
• Get books from our Recommended Reading list and give back at the same time
• Shop to give back with iGive, Giving Assistant, and Amazon Smile

Jobs and opportunities

• Executive Director, Students for Sensible Drug Policy
• Director of Communications and Marketing, Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies
• Development Director, Sage Institute