North America

US President Nixon launched the "war on drugs" in the 1970s. Today, incarceration, social marginalisation and drug-related deaths have led North America to rethink this strategy. However, although positive developments are happening locally in the fields of harm reduction, alternatives to incarceration, new drug law enforcement approaches and cannabis regulation, the US and Canadian federal governments remain resistant to drug policy reform.

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Association of punitive and reporting state policies related to substance use in pregnancy with rates of neonatal abstinence syndrome

The report found that states with punitive policies were associated with greater odds of neonatal abstinence syndrome immediately and in the longer term, but there was no association between neonatal abstinence syndrome and states with reporting policies.

Publications 4 days, 18 hours ago

The Role of Civil Society in Supporting UN System-wide coordination: research, data collection, and analysis in drug policy

12 November 2019

United Nations Headquarters

The interactive panel discussion will explore the important role played by CSOs in supporting effective data collection, research, and analysis with respect to drugs and drug-related matters.

Events 7 November 2019

Cannabis legalisation in Canada: Year one observations

The Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse provides a preliminary synthesis of the country’s experience with cannabis legalisation in the first year of retail sales.

News Alerts November 7, 2019

Guards say they want supervised injection sites in Canadian federal prisons

The Correctional Service considers the initiative to be an important element in the effort to limit transmission of hepatitis C and HIV in institutions.

News Alerts November 7, 2019

Bernie Sanders released a plan to legalize marijuana (at 4:20 pm)

Although multiple US states have legalised marijuana, the substance is still illegal on a federal level which, inevitably, has consequences on the states in which it is legal.

News Alerts November 1, 2019

Canada's 2019 election shows that nobody in any position of power cares how many drug users die

The major Canadian parties have only spent very few words on the issue of overdoses, despite an ongoing health crisis.

News Alerts October 25, 2019

Ending the US Overdose Crisis: Lessons from other times and places

22 October 2019 06:30-20:00

London, UK

Some of the world's leading experts discuss the policy issues surrounding the US overdose crisis.

Events 25 October 2019

International consensus statement on the role of nurses in supervised consumption sites

The document provides a foundation to guide practice, policy, research, and operational decisions in safer consumption sites.

News Alerts October 15, 2019

Canada’s cannabis colonialism

In Barichara, Colombia, where a Canadian company bought a 17 hectare plot to grow cannabis, locals are concerned about water use and say they have been left out of all decision making.

News Alerts October 9, 2019

Huge court win for Philadelphia safe consumption site⁠ — but fight isn’t over

While federal authorities could appeal the decision, the ruling is a step in the right direction towards implementing these evidence-based and compassionate services in the US.

News Alerts October 4, 2019

Worlds Away in a 7x7: Perspectives on reaching diverse groups of people who use drugs to prevent fentanyl-related overdose in San Francisco

The Harm Reduction Coalition has interviewed people who use drugs to provide suggestions to the San Francisco Department of Public Health as they are about to launch a public messaging campaign.

Publications October 4, 2019

Does the UN’s Universal Health Coverage declaration fail the most vulnerable people?

Frontline AIDS' Seb Rowlands tells us why the UHC political declaration didn’t go far enough for the people most affected by HIV.

News Alerts October 2, 2019

Policing space in the overdose crisis: A rapid ethnographic study of the impact of law enforcement practices on the effectiveness of overdose prevention sites

Research on overdose prevention sites highlights law enforcement practices can limit access to needed services.

Publications September 24, 2019

Canadian teens prefer harm reduction messaging on substance abuse

A new study from researchers at the University of British Columbia found that a harm reduction message resonated the most with teens, instead of the typical “don’t do drugs” talk.

News Alerts September 24, 2019

66th Regular Session of CICAD

19 - 21 November 2019

Miami, FL, United States

The sixty-sixth regular session of CICAD will be held in Miami, Florida, November 19-21, 2019.

Events 24 September 2019

Development dimensions of drug policy: Innovative approaches

This discussion paper presents innovative steps taken by UN Member States in implementing commitments undertaken at the 2016 UNGASS, and with respect to the 2030 Agenda.

Publications September 23, 2019

Colorado reviews new social equity marijuana business licenses

As Colorado defines new cannabis licenses to facilitate industry access for people living in deprived areas, some fear it's 'too little, too late'.

News Alerts September 17, 2019

Women incarcerated in the Americas demand sweeping changes

24 September 2019 18:00-20:30

Washington DC, United States

What are the most recent trends regarding women’s incarceration in the Americas? Who are the women behind bars? Experts from the IACHR and from Brazil, Mexico, and the United States will investigate these questions and more in what promises to be an eye-opening conversation.

Events 17 September 2019

Cannabis in the Americas: It’s time to talk about marijuana policy

There is a unique opportunity, before the USA legalises medical cannabis at the federal level, to build a regulatory framework that prevents this market from being concentrated amongst large for-profit conglomerates.

News Alerts September 17, 2019

What is a 'safe supply' of drugs and how would it work in British Columbia?

Advocates argue that a legal and regulated system of access would minimise the risks of a heavily contaminated drug supply.

News Alerts September 17, 2019

International Drug Policy Consortium

North America

Association of punitive and reporting state policies related to substance use in pregnancy with rates of neonatal abstinence syndrome

The Role of Civil Society in Supporting UN System-wide coordination: research, data collection, and analysis in drug policy

Cannabis legalisation in Canada: Year one observations

Guards say they want supervised injection sites in Canadian federal prisons

Bernie Sanders released a plan to legalize marijuana (at 4:20 pm)

Canada's 2019 election shows that nobody in any position of power cares how many drug users die

Ending the US Overdose Crisis: Lessons from other times and places

International consensus statement on the role of nurses in supervised consumption sites

Canada’s cannabis colonialism

Huge court win for Philadelphia safe consumption site⁠ — but fight isn’t over

Worlds Away in a 7x7: Perspectives on reaching diverse groups of people who use drugs to prevent fentanyl-related overdose in San Francisco

Does the UN’s Universal Health Coverage declaration fail the most vulnerable people?

Policing space in the overdose crisis: A rapid ethnographic study of the impact of law enforcement practices on the effectiveness of overdose prevention sites

Canadian teens prefer harm reduction messaging on substance abuse

66th Regular Session of CICAD

Development dimensions of drug policy: Innovative approaches

Colorado reviews new social equity marijuana business licenses

Women incarcerated in the Americas demand sweeping changes

Cannabis in the Americas: It’s time to talk about marijuana policy

What is a 'safe supply' of drugs and how would it work in British Columbia?

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