ID: 454

Type of submission: Workshop

Conference track: Advocacy

Topics: Drug Policy Reform and Advocacy; Harm Reduction Advocacy and Activism

Presenting author: Jamie Bridge

Presenting author biography:

Jamie is Senior Policy and Operations Manager at the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC). Prior to joining IDPC in 2012, Jamie worked for the Global Fund and Harm Reduction International. Jamie began his career as a drugs worker in the UK, and is Chair of the National Needle Exchange Forum.

Support. Don't Punish: A Guide to Organising Local Advocacy Events

Jamie Bridge, Marie Nougier

Introduction:

The Support Don't Punish campaign (www.supportdontpunish.org) was launched in 2013, and includes a Global Day of Action on 26th June (the UN International Day Against Drugs). On this day, activists and advocates in more than 100 cities around the world have organised various local events under a common message – it is time to stop criminalising and demonising people who use drugs. Together, these actions create a global show of force in support of both harm reduction and drug policy reform.

Workshop Proposal:

As the conference takes place six weeks before the 2017 Day of Action, it is an ideal time to deliver a 90-minute participatory workshop that:

- Introduces the campaign.

- Demonstrates how participants can engage, and the resources available.

- Discusses some of the best local actions to date – using actual case studies to explore what made these so impactful and the lessons learned in terms of promoting the inclusion of affected communities and other civil society voices in drug policy debates, opening dialogues with policy makers, reaching out to the media and sensitising the general public on the need for reform.

- Builds capacity about policy advocacy more broadly, using activities from the IDPC/EHRN Drug Policy Advocacy Toolkit (http://idpc.net/publications/2013/06/training-toolkit-on-drug-policy-advocacy).

The workshop will be facilitated by Jamie Bridge and Marie Nougier from IDPC, using a combination of tried and tested presentations and activities. Selected partners from around the world who have delivered successful campaign actions in the past will also be invited to discuss their case studies and contribute to the learning.

Follow-Up:

As in previous years, a small amount of funding will be available from IDPC to support local actions in 2017 – some of which will be reserved for workshop participants to deliver actions for the first time in their home cities.