Tag: Global Drug Policy
Report on the CND Intersessional Meetings
Written by Orsi Fehér of SSDP Austria The Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) assembled in Vienna the last week of September for a series of intersessional meetings focused on the follow-up to the UNGASS outcome document. Each day was dedicated to debating one of the first few chapters of the document, which was finalized during the 2016 special session. Topics
UN Update: Launch of the World Drug Report
Written by Orsi Fehér, founder and chapter leader of SSDP Österreich (Austria). For the 20th Anniversary of the Commission on Narcotic Drug’s “flagship publication”, a five-volume report on the “world drug problem” was launched at the Vienna headquarters of the United Nations on 22 June. We were there to witness an awkward assembly of participants. The back row seats were
Introducing SSDP Pen Pals!
SSDP is a global network with chapters in 25 countries across all 6 habitable continents. However, due to distance, language, and cultural divides, we are not always as connected with our fellow SSDPers as we would like. As part of our ongoing efforts to connect our network, we are pleased to announce a new program: SSDP Pen Pals! Pen Pals
3rd CND Intersessional – An Update on Global Drug Policy
Written by Orsi Fehér, chapter leader of SSDP Österreich (SSDP Austria). Three of us SSDPers from Austria found ourselves in a less than crowded meeting room at the Vienna International Center on the morning of Tuesday 6 June, where member states convened for the 3rd Intersessional Meeting of the United Nations’ Commission on Narcotic Drugs. For the past week, we’ve been pondering: what
SSDP Members in Austria Campaign for Medical Cannabis
Written by Orsi Fehér, founder of University of Vienna SSDP in Vienna, Austria On May 26, the two founding members of SSDP Austria marched alongside supporters of medical Cannabis to hand over 10,000 signatures to Dr. Harald Dossi, the director of Parliament, in defense of sensible drug policies. The action in Vienna on Friday was led by Hemp Institute spokesman
Participate in the 2017 Support Don’t Punish Global Day of Action
What is Support Don’t Punish? Support. Don’t Punish. is a global advocacy campaign that seeks to raise awareness of the harms being caused by the War on Drugs. The campaign aims to promote drug policies that respect human rights and protect public health, to change laws and policies that impede access to harm reduction interventions and other evidence-based services, and
Stigma, Addiction, & Recovery in Indonesia
SSDP Outreach Coordinator Jake Agliata was in Indonesia from February 14 to February 25 as part of a cultural exchange program sponsored by the American Council for Young Political Leaders. This is the second of several blog posts that will serve as a small window into what drug policy, direct service, and activism is like in Indonesia. The first post can
Getting Sensible in Indonesia
SSDP Outreach Coordinator Jake Agliata is in Indonesia from February 14 to February 25 as part of a cultural exchange program sponsored by the American Council for Young Political Leaders. This is the first of several blog posts that will serve as a small window into what drug policy, direct service, and activism are like in Indonesia. The War on
SSDP Condemns Trump’s Executive Order on Immigrants and Refugees
Last Friday’s decision by President Trump to halt all immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries has been met with fervent opposition by U.S. civil society. Notable were the thousands of people who protested at airports, the hundreds of lawyers volunteering their time to help immigrants being detained, and a 15,000 person march in Washington, DC. As a global organization dedicated to
INTL Youth Convening Day Five: The Bangkok Declaration
Written by Convening participant Eva Cesárova, from Youth Rise and the Czech Psychedelic Society. The last day of the convening started with a guest speaker: Gloria Lai from IDPC’s office in Bangkok. We learned about the remarkable work IDPC has done in the past ten years, going through their various activities to cooperate with drug policy decision makers, organize open dialogues,
INTL Youth Convening Day Four: Coalition Building & Regional Advocacy
Written by Convening participant Florian Scheibein, Deputy Director of Help Not Harm. Jan Stola of Youth Organisations for Drug Action (YODA) kicked off the day with a session on best practice guidelines for conducting risk assessments. We identified, evaluated and categorized risks in our organizational contexts. Concurrently, we developed strategies to reduce their occurrence and severity. Subsequently, we developed
INTL Youth Convening Day Three: How To Be an Effective Advocate
Written by Convening participant Samuel Andrews, Policy and Information Officer at the New Zealand Drug Foundation. The third day of the Youth Drug Strategies Convening was focused on how to be effective advocates for the change we want to see. We were joined in the morning by Dr. Sandro Calvani, who shared his extensive experiences of working with the United
INTL Youth Convening Day Two: Full Spectrum Harm Reduction
Written by Kelly Parra-Alba, a Convening participant and Communications Director for SSDP UK After an enthusiastic start to the week, Day 2 began with a 3 part session on Full Spectrum Harm Reduction and what this could entail for our Global Youth Coalition. The first session included a simple definition of Harm reduction to get us thinking: ‘’Harm Reduction is a
INTL Youth Convening Day One: Fostering a Global Youth Movement
As the first day of the International Youth Drug Strategies Convening kicked off in Bangkok today, young people from around the world discussed the ways in which the global drug war has impacted their communities. The first activity of the day asked each participant to share their beliefs about drug policy. The group discussed the need for gender-sensitive policies, the
International Youth Convening Commences in Bangkok
Bangkok is about to get hit with a heavy dose of sensibility. This week, 26 youth leaders from 21 different countries will be meeting in Bangkok, Thailand for the first ever International Youth Drug Strategies Convening. The goal of the convening is to bring together some of the sharpest young minds in drug policy reform & human rights advocacy from
Studying Abroad? Join SSDP's Ambassadors Program!
Are you studying abroad this year? SSDP wants to know! You can help us build our international student movement by introducing SSDP at your university abroad and sharing how it has impacted your life. Whether you are studying in Europe, Latin America, Australia, Africa or Asia, drug policy is a global issue that affects youth and students all over the
Experiencing the 55th Commission on Narcotic Drugs: A Student Reflects
At the Madrid Airport, the pc that a friend lent me stopped working. It was kind of funny, I mean, travelling was an exciting concept, and maybe that poor machine couldn’t handle that kind of stress. Not only was this my very first trip to Europe, the purpose for travelling was exciting in and of itself: attending the 55th meeting of the United Nations
More of the same or inching towards change?
Last week, SSDP made its grand debut at the Commission on Narcotic Drugs meeting in Vienna, Austria. This wasn’t the first time that SSDP had participated in the proceedings (many NGO representatives remembered Kris Krane’s much-lauded intervention in the “Beyond 2008” discussions), however it was the first time that SSDP arrived bearing Special Consultative Status from the Economic and Social
