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Friday, 13 January 2012 12:41 |
 A fresh issue of ECAD Newsletter is available for download in the menu under Newsletters.
Danish cannabis decriminalisation
Lancet Addiction Series, the first paper estimates how many people use illicit drugs worldwide
First European quality standards to improve drug prevention in the EU
and much more!
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Tuesday, 10 January 2012 16:22 |
 
ECAD member cities, Killarney in Ireland and Staffanstorp in Sweden will co-host XIX Mayors Conference this year. The two cities met through ECAD and we regard this fact as an exellent example of cooperation for the same cause.
ECAD XIX Mayors Conference topic is Cooperation in practice - a broader perspective. Two city Chancellors invite you to the Town of Killarney on May 9 - 12, 2012 where you can find out how international cooperation in practice makes a difference on community level.
Download invitation letter and ECAD annual Mayors Conference announcement below:
First Announcement (PDF)
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Tuesday, 10 January 2012 15:10 |
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The City of Kristiansand, Norway, hosted annual conference for Norwegian network of cities in ECAD on January 5, 2012. ECAD Director Jörgen Svidén was one of the participants.
Representatives of Norwegian cities in ECAD meet once a year in January to focus on actual drug issues and discuss activities in their respective cities, to strengthen established contacts and to create new ones. Besides this, there are lectures on different topics to broaden perspectives and to give inspiration and new knowledge. The participants have various professional skills and roles, from leading politicians to practitioners and scientists.
Among great speakers was Else Kristin Utne Berg from Bergen, who presented a survey on trends of drug use and, based on that, ideas on how to react on these figures. The audience also got an interesting and engaged presentation from Kristiansand’s City medical practitioner, Dagfinn Harr, on success factors in the fight to help people overcome drug problems.
Norwegian initiative for ECAD member cities is most welcome in ECAD and is something that should be a role model for cities in other countries, as an important social factor and a professionally useful meeting. Gatherings like this are very inspiring and help set focus on the issue we all work on: how to create a better environment so that as few as possible get in contact with drugs and as many as possible stop taking them.
“Ut av tåka 2012”, a Norwegian annual seminar on cannabis, will be organized on February 22, and "Erfaringsdag", a seminar for drug coordinators from all over Norway, in connection to "Ut av tåka 2012" event will take place on February 21, 2012. Download seminar programme below.
"ERFARINGSDAG" PROGRAMME (PDF)
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Thursday, 22 December 2011 17:25 |
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Thursday, 15 December 2011 16:37 |
 A new book "Touching the spot" by Doctor Manuel Pinto Coelho, based on his work done in the scope of a doctorate thesis in Educational Sciences and supervised by Professor Amaral Dias is due to be published in English soon.
This book deals with a controversial notion of addiction as a disease, a model that may be misplaced, according to Doctor Manuel Pinto Coelho (picture), ECAD representative in Portugal, medical director of the Permanent Medical Service in Portugal since 2003.
"This book is a proof that drug dependent is not a condemned victim", says Doctor Coelho, who has a degree in Medicine and Surgery. "He or she can free himself by discovering himself and his willpower".
"Touching the spot" is about figuring out a new paradigm to drug dependence, to help everyone who has problems with drugs all over the world, and their families, to live happier lives.
ECAD looks forward to a hard copy of the book to be published in English and Russian in the near future. Contact us if you wish to know more!
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Monday, 12 December 2011 15:37 |
OBS: Updated!
In the middle of December Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) holds a reconvened Session to approve budget and agendas for the next CND (55th Session in March 12-16, 2012) for the two coming years.
In connection to this event Vienna NGO Committee had a meeting on December 14.
Meeting agenda focused on planning for the offensive work representing NGOs at the next CND session in March 2012 and arranging a Civil Society Hearing that is proposed to take place on Tuesday, March 13, 2012.
The CND acts as a governing body that decides on the policies to be followed by the UNODC in the area of drugs and approves its budget for this work.
Vienna NGO Committee on drugs is growing stronger in cooperation with the UNODC and Civil Society Team. The Committee is now Austrian legal entity with a seat in Vienna ("Wiener Drogen Komitee" in German).
Members of the Committee are an important link between civil society and the UN bodies, as well as INCB and CND. This year many VNGOC members made contribution in form of contact networks in the countries that INCB chose for its field Missions (eg. Bolivia, Serbia, Turkey, Bangladesh).
NGO participation at the CND sessions in March is informal but there is a possibility to attract more attention to the vital issues through participation in the side events also next year. The number of side events that could be organised by the NGOs is reduced in 2012, which is unfortunate. However, side events are an actual possibility to influence CND agenda and NGOs will remain active, preparing for the CND. The topics of the round table discussions at the CND have been announced already:
a) Counter-narcotics efforts and the principle of common and shared responsibility: opportunities and challenges;
b) Measures to prevent diversion of substances frequently used in the manufacture of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances from domestic distribution channels, including by strengthening partnerships with the private sector.
Read more about the criteria for NGO selection to participate in the CND side events at www.unodc.org
ECAD has been an engaged member of the Vienna NGO Committee Board since 2009.
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Tuesday, 22 November 2011 16:09 |
Extensive network of ECAD cities is growing with every month and this week we have an honour to receive a group of 11 professionals coming from West Siberian region in Russia.
Social workers, law enforcement officers, young volunteers, specialists promoting social development and healthy life attitudes are visiting Swedish NGOs (received at X-CONS in the picture) and s tate bodies this week to get a picture of Swedish drug policy development.
ECAD welcomes the initiative of 4 cities in Russian Siberia - Surgut, Nizhnevartovsk, Nyagan´ and Khanti-Mansiysk - to learn from the successful experience in prevention.
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Monday, 14 November 2011 15:44 |
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 For some time ago ECAD introduced cooperation with NGO representatives in a couple of Ukrainian cities. Focus on working with governments and improving relationships between local city administrations and NGOs are on the agenda of ECAD as well as it is a priority for the UN.
Willingness to work with ECAD was openly expressed by several NGOs and Ukrainian partners considered to capitalize on that through getting in touch with their local governments.
Last week, November 10, ECAD ambassadors in Sevastopol, Lugansk, Lviv and Pavlograd met ECAD Head office staff in Kiev to plan common actions together for 2012. As discussed, we are looking forward to a common platform of work in the Ukraine, a new country in ECAD.
"Significant and exciting at the same time", said ECAD Associate Director Åke Setréus, "especially bearing in mind European Football Championship in Kiev, 2012".
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Thursday, 03 November 2011 15:01 |
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October 26-28, ECAD Director Jörgen Svidén was invited to the Khanti Mansiysk region in Siberia, Russia, and the city of Nizhnevartovsk. The visit emanated from the political will of Khanti Mansiysk regio n to have closer connections to other European cities, to learn about successful prevention practices and to exchange well-proven experience with counterparts in other countries.
When looking for a platform to do this, ECAD was chosen as a bridge to administrative contacts and best practice base for Khanti Mansiysk region. ECAD appreciates this well-thought initiative very much.
The visit contained an informative lecture on ECAD activities, with mayors, practitioners and high officials from different cities of the region present, as well as fruitful and long discussions. During this short visit there was also time for several study visits and an agreement signing between a Mayor of Nizhnevartovsk and the city`s pharmacies, in order to make them aware of the importance of restrictive approach when selling products containing narcotic substances.
ECAD is happy to announce that a group of experts and policy makers from Khanti-Mansiysk region will visit Stockholm on November 21-25 for a series of study visits.
ECAD warmly welcomes initiatives like this and looks forward to see representatives of cities of Nizhnevartovsk, Khanti-Mansiysk and others as members of our extensive network soon.
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Tuesday, 01 November 2011 16:35 |
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Prevention means a great deal. To young people, their families, the police, practitioners, policy makers, economists, governments and societies prevention is all about consequences and responsibilities each and everyone has for their lives.
To mark the significance of prevention for drug policy strategies, ECAD joins the biggest rehabilitation community in the world, San Patrignano, to celebrate conscious life choices, for a life free from drugs. In this spirit SanPatrignano community annually draws attention to prevention using unconventional ways. Dance, knowledge and shows are used to convey the message of awareness and responsibility, involving schoolchildren and theatrical performances, alltogether at WeFree day.
To match with it, ECAD adds up with its own practical seminars, this October with a lecture on Swedish prevention practices and an investigation on Italian drug policy (download PDF-files below). 60 participants from 16 cities in 10 countries came to Riccione to be at ECAD seminar and WeFree day on October 15-16 this year.
WeFree Forum speakers focused on the issue of medicalization of suffering, treating eating disorders, depression and psychological pain with new kinds of pills and drugs. This approach, identifying a vast part of society as “sick”, was openly criticized by Allen Frances, American Psychiatrist and Chair of the task force that created DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) in 1994.
Beside that, experiences of WeFree Day included exploring a real cocaine laboratory, reconstructed in San Patrignano with a guidance of Columbian “Shared Responsibility” team, and a great deal of international projects to promote integration of young people. Lots of dance projects being a part of WeFree Hero (e.g.. Breakdance Uganda Project, rappers from Sociedad Real in Columbia, Transformers from Portugal, Skateistan from Afghanistan, training over 300 children in skating and literacy) were amazingly professional and meaningful.
Those of you who couldn´t come to SanPatrignano can download seminar materials from here, you are also most welcome to join the event next time!
"Perspectives on prevention. International outlooks" (PDF)
Anders Eriksson, Development Unit, Social Services Administration, City of Stockholm, Sweden
"Italian drug policy: a deep investigation" (PDF)
Fabio Bernabei, Journalist, Associazione Osservatorio Droga, Italy
Here are some pictures:
 
 
ECAD thanks WeFree organizers and all seminar participants for coming to Rimini and sharing the experiences of these days that provide us with inspiration until we meet next year.
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