The SSDP Report Card for August is out! 

Read on for the latest in chapter news, see where our newest chapters have been founded, check out a growing list of events we’re proud to partner on, and — new this month! — find ways the discount code “SSDP” can get you great savings on conference tickets and products.

Thank you for staying in touch and for staying committed to our shared vision to end the War on Drugs and start making sense!

Action alerts

• Demand MORE and support U.S. federal legislation legalizing marijuana with reparative justice in mind 
• Call on our U.S. leaders to treat the overdose crisis as a public health emergency
• Support higher education opportunities for incarcerated students, and repeal the drug conviction question on the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)

New activists and chapters

• Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (Indiana, United States)
• Leeward Community College (Hawaii, United States)
• Spalding University (Kentucky, United States)
• SSDP London (England, United Kingdom)
• SUNY Fredonia (New York, United States)
• University of Hawaii, West O’ahu (Hawaii, United States)
• University of Hull (England, United Kingdom)
• University of Saint Francis (Indiana, United States)

CAT leaderboard

1. University of Pittsburgh
2. DePaul University
3. University of Texas Austin
4. Kent State University
5. University of Vienna
6. University College Cork
7. United Methodist University
8. SUNY Binghamton
9. SUNY Albany
10. Ohio State University

Stats

• 32 care packages sent to chapters
• 45 chapters achieved high impact status according to the Chapter Activity Tracker
• 9,192 CAT points logged this program year
• 70 communications to elected officials sent
• 2 SSDP interns welcomed to the team
• 21% of annual fundraising goal met

Network highlights

• Monica Pittiglio ‘18 from Ferris State University SSDP is serving on the school’s Opioid Task Force and will be assisting them in reaching the student body through surveys and information pamphlets at tables around campus. 
• SSDP was awarded a generous grant from the Threshold Foundation to support our Just Say Know peer drug education program and psychedelic therapy provider pipeline.
• Several chapters organized events to observe International Overdose Awareness Day.

SSDP in the news

• NAACP, ACLU And Allies Demand Congress Pass Marijuana Bill With Justice Focus – Forbes
• More Than 150 Proposed SXSW Marijuana Panels Are Being Voted On For Next Year’s Festival – Marijuana Moment
• Code for America to Automate Expungement of Cannabis Convictions in Cook County, IL – Filter

From the blog

• The Awful Legacy of the 1937 Marihuana Tax Act – And how you can help end it
• The importance of drug checking
• Inter-chapter collaborative committee working group update
• Introducing the University of Houston SSDP chapter
• July 2019 SSDP Report Card
• Meet our newest chapter, SSDP Uganda
• Announcing the People for Sensible Drug Culture x Be Interactive campaign
• SSDP Israel hosts its first Support Don’t Punish global day of action
• Participate in the SSDP membership survey
• Introducing the Illinois State University SSDP chapter
• Introducing the Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis SSDP chapter

Upcoming events 

• September 14-15, 2019 | Washington, DC, USA | Empyrean: People of Color & Psychedelics Conference with Scott Cecil ‘10, Jag Davies ‘01, Yarelix Estrada ‘17, Ifetayo Harvey ‘13, Oriana Mayorga ‘14, and Rachelle Yeung ‘11
• September 19, 2019| Chicago, IL, USA |DePaul SSDP Back to School Resale Shop
• September 21-22 |Columbus, OH, USA | Ending Stigma Empowering People conference with Alex Akin ‘17, James Gould ‘15, and Nic Joseph ‘17
• September 23, 2019 | Redwood Valley, CA, USA | Cannabis as a Catalyst for Change by Amanda Reiman ‘98
• October 2-4, 2019 | New York, NY, USA | Arcview Investor Forum with Troy Dayton ‘98
• October 3-5, 2019 | New York, NY, USA | INCBA Cannabis Law Institute with Lauren Mendelsohn ‘09
• October 3-5, 2019 | Iowa City, IA, USA | Iowa Harm Reduction Summit
• October 4, 2019 | Chicago, IL, USA | Midwest Harm Reduction Institute’s Harm Reduction in the House conference
• October 10-14, 2019 | New York, NY, USA | Horizons: Perspectives on Psychedelics
• October 14-16, 2019 | Chicago, IL, USA | Illinois Cannabis Summit
• October 16-18, 2019 | Vienna, Austria | United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs: Intersessional meeting, sixty-second session 
• October 24, 2019 | St. Paul, MN, USA | Minnesota Cannabis Summit with Betty Aldworth
• October 24, 2019 | New York, NY, USA | Foundation for Individual Rights in Education 20th Anniversary Gala
• November 6-9, 2019 | St. Louis, MO, USA | International Drug Policy Reform Conference 
• March 27-30, 2020 | Baltimore, MD and Washington, DC, USA | SSDP2020: The Global Students for Sensible Drug Policy Conference and Lobby Day
• Available to stream any time | Everywhere | Cannabis Economy’s Digital Workshop with Amanda Reiman ‘98, Shaleen Title ‘02, and Betty Aldworth

Recommended reading

• Stacia Cosner ‘05: Participate in the SSDP membership survey
• Erica Darragh ‘14: Rick Strassman was right: Study provides evidence that DMT is produced naturally from neurons in the mammalian brain
• Róisín Downes ‘15: Largest ever civil society delegation attends the African Union meeting on Health, Population and Drug Control in Cairo
• James Gould ‘15:  January 2017 Monthly Mosaic – Immigration and the War on Drugs 
• Rob Hofmann ‘16: Drug Research Ignores Stable or Pleasurable Use – And That’s a Problem
• Dr. Vilmarie Narloch, PsyD ‘09: Code for America to automate expungement of cannabis convictions in Cook County, IL
• Lauren Padgett ‘13: Vape Pen Lung Disease: Here’s what you need to know
• Luis Montoya ‘16: Use your CAT points to make it to the Reform Conference this Fall
• Kat Murti ‘09: It’s Not The Number of Pills – It’s The Number of Deaths That Matter

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
• Gift your credit card rewards to SSDP with Charity Charge 
• Find your next employee with H2 Talent or THC Staffing & a portion of your fees will be donated
• Shop to give back with iGive, Giving Assistant, and Amazon Smile