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Category: News

Published: 09 November 2020

ECAD is a long standing member of the European Commission expert and advisory group Civil Society Forum on Drugs (CSFD). The CSFD is a 45 member large advisory body on drugs to the European Commission consisting of members with various viewpoints and experiences with which to combat drugs and addiction.

Within the CSFD - ECAD, in line with our misson, always seeks to bring attention to all aspects of the drugs issue. Rangning from emphasizing prevention of initation of drug use to the full recovery from addiction including aftercare and meaningful re-integration into society of former offenders ECAD strives to promote an ambitious drug policy. Settling for less harmful sustention of drugs use is, in our opinion, not good enough.

During the fall of 2020 a number of papers and processes have been undertaken by the forum in which we have contributed to feeding into the processes of formulating a new EU drugs strategy 2021-2025, recommendations to classification of cannabis under the International Drug Classification system, and a position paper on vulnerable groups and drug demand reduction in the light of COVID.

ECAD has contributed and fed into the process but we are not always in agreement with the general conclusions or point of departure taken by the forum. 

During a digital seminar on October 22th drug policy in Europe was discussed by ECAD and several other European organisation such as IOGT-NTO, KSAN, WFAD and ACTIS

 

 

 

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Category: News

Published: 09 November 2020

As Covid 19 struck ECAD has shifted its activities online. During 2020 a number of lectures on drug prevention and parenting have been given.

- In the Swedish county of Halland the counties of Varberg, Halmstad and Kungsbacka were visted pre-covid in a lecture series during the spring. The lectures were filmed and used for prevention purposes by the county administration.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

https://newsroom.notified.com/lansstyrelsen-i-hallands-lan-press/posts/pressreleases/erik-leijonmarck-gastar-halland

- In Örnsköldsvik online lectures were given in May directed at parents on what they can do to prevent drug use among their adolescence.

https://www.ornskoldsvik.se/omsorgochhjalp/tryggochsaker/brottsforebyggandearbete.4.7f3f5f04137aa8ca74eab5.html

- In June, ECAD in cooperation with NBV (sobriety movement in Sweden), produced a set of three brief movies on parenting that can be used by parents, social workers and educational facilities to facilitate prevention of drugs use in adolescence.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJcKyrMW6WI

 

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Category: News

Published: 01 November 2020

In October ECAD spoke at 2020 OSCE-wide Conference on Combating the Threat of Illicit Drugs and the Diversion of Chemical Precursors: Strengthening Effective Prevention of Drug Use among Youth through Community Policing.

ECAD presented lessons learned from its 26 year long existance as a network of cities cooperating on drug demand reduction.
What follows is a brief summary of the presentation:

Drug use and drug addiction are multifactorial and complex phenomenon that touches upon biological as well as psychosocial aspects of human life.

The high level of complexity should not discourage us from acting to prevent large scale onset of drug use, especially during the formative period of adolescence when the brain matures, and teenagers produce habits and life patterns for their adult life.

Contrary to common perception, many prevention experts argue that attitudes follow behavior, not the other way around. Trying to make young, thrill seeking adolescents listen to a message of non-drug use will therefore likely be tricky.  

Despite the challenges there are many things societies can do to foster an infrastructure of prevention that aims to change the behaviors of cohorts of young people and subsequently also their attitudes.

European Cities Action Network of Drug Free Societies shares lessons learned, best practices and concrete examples in working to minimize the drug problem derived from its 26 year long existence engaging with local communities and cities across Europe.

To achieve population wide, large-scale reductions in drug demand one needs to foster a network around adolescences in which local and national actors each play their role.

Countries should tap into existing literature and resources on successful drug prevention rather than “just do something”. UNODC international standards on drug use prevention are an excellent start. As is the evidence primary prevention model which originated in Iceland.

Parenting skills, community policing, and recovery-oriented treatment systems should form building blocks of primary prevention strategies to bring down demand for drugs.

The presentation can be found here:

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Category: News

Published: 01 July 2020

Better Knowledge for better care.

On the 26th of June which is the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Trafficking (World Drug Day). ECAD together with its partners African Youths Initiative on Crime Prevention and the World Federation Against Drugs held a digital event to discuss tangible steps forward in prevention drugs use in the light of the ongoing COVID epidemic from an African/European perspective.

ECAD gave an overview on the European perspective on drug markets in the ongoing covid pandemic and what steps actors on drug markets takes to accomodate to the new situation. Though most supply routes have remained upon due to shipping still happening as normal local retail drug markets seem to have been offset somewhat in the light of tight restrictions. Active users have been faced with the double burden from not being accomodated by a stressed health care system and also subject to lockdowns. This highlights the need further emmphasize the development of proper infrastructure for prevention of drugs use and to facilitate the full recovery from drugs for active users.