Program: Global Drug Policy Program

Event June 17, 2021

Sermon Series: 50th Anniversary of the War on Drugs

Faith leaders across the United States will mark the 50th anniversary of America’s failed war on drugs with a series of sermons memorializing the victims and affirming that people who use drugs are deserving of life, dignity, and rights.

Event June 16, 2021

50 Years of the Failed Drug War and its Consequences in Latin America: A Conversation with Former President of Mexico Ernesto Zedillo

The drug war has been disastrous for Latin America, creating waves of violence and human rights violations. Former president of Mexico Ernesto Zedillo talks to Open Society’s Kasia Malinowska calling for a rethink of our global drug policy.

Event April 19, 2021

Drug Use for Grown-Ups: A Conversation with Carl Hart

In his new book, Drug Use for Grown-Ups, Carl Hart challenges popular notions of recreational drugs and argues that the criminalization of drug use has been more harmful for Americans than the drugs themselves.

Event April 15, 2021

Raising Voices: Empowering Female Farmers in Drug Crop Cultivation Areas

Women living in drug crop cultivation areas play an important role in ensuring the sustainability of rural households, but structural barriers and the consequences of illicit drug economies continue to constrain them. Hear their stories.

Event March 9, 2021

Feminist Drug Policy Realities

A panel of experts will explore why drug policy is a feminist issue, and will examine how women, trans, and gender-diverse people impacted by the war on drugs are creating feminist drug policies and practices.

Event January 25, 2021

Decolonizing Drug Policy: Perspectives from the Americas and Asia

Can decriminalization and legalization undo the damages done by racist, imperialist drug wars, and what would a decolonized global drug policy look like?

Event December 4, 2020

UN75—Race, COVID-19, and the War on Drugs

The war on drugs has disproportionately affected people of color. This panel explored how high-level policy changes and tireless activism on the streets can address egregious drug war related abuses of power across the globe.

Event December 3, 2020

UN75—Women Who Grow Coca and Opium: COVID-19 and Gender-Sensitive Drug Policies in Rural Areas

This panel explored the role that women living in rural coca and opium poppy growing regions play in their communities, the consequences of forced eradication campaigns, and the need for sustainable and equitable drug policies.

Event June 25, 2020

How the War on Drugs Continues to Fuel Authoritarianism

A panel of experts will examine the ways governments and their police forces continue to prosecute the war on drugs as the world is gripped by COVID-19 and roiled by protests against police brutality and racism.

Event March 11, 2020

Book Launch and Q&A—Killer High: A History of War in Six Drugs

Peter Andreas discusses his book Killer High, which tells the story of war through the lens of six psychoactive drugs: alcohol, tobacco, caffeine, opium, amphetamines, and cocaine.

Event November 7, 2019

Protecting the Rights of Children in the War on Drugs in Latin America and the Caribbean

A panel of experts discusses a new report exploring the intersection of incarceration, drug policy, and children’s rights.

Event June 26, 2019

Film Screening and Q&A—The Grass is Greener

Directed by Fab 5 Freddy, this film traces the inextricable ties between cannabis criminalization and racial injustice in the United States alongside stories about the influence of cannabis in Black American musical culture.

Event March 14, 2019

The Real Causes of (and Solutions to) Drug Use and Addiction

Johann Hari, best-selling author of Chasing the Scream, speaks with Human Rights Watch’s Jasmine Tyler about the causes of drug use and drug dependency, and what they can tell us about solutions to the drug overdose crisis.

Event January 17, 2019

Women in Prison: The Devastating Impact of Rising Incarceration in the Americas

A panel of experts explores innovative strategies being launched to counter rising incarceration rates among women in the Americas.

Event June 25, 2018

Reimagining Drug Policy Through Artistic Expression: Museums, Marches, and More

A panel of activists and artists will discuss creative ways to push for reform through immersive events and imaginative experiences.

Event May 22, 2018

The Future of Coca Industrialization in Colombia: A Pathway to Development and Peace

A new report looks at the coca leaf as a legal agricultural product and presents challenges, opportunities, and parameters for a legal system to expand coca industrialization.

Event April 9, 2018

The Rise of Fake News and Social Media Manipulation in Latin American Politics

Brexit and the 2016 U.S. elections shed light on the alarming rise of post-truth politics, fueled by fake news, media manipulation, and populist movements. What are the implications for five upcoming Latin American elections?

Event June 21, 2017

Drugs in Documentary Films: A Showcase

The Open Society Foundations and PBS POV present an evening of excerpts from new documentary films exploring a range of harmful effects created by the current drug control regime.

Event April 19, 2016

The Museum of Drug Policy

This pop-up cultural hub featured an immersive art experience and special live programming looking at the impact of current drug policies on populations around the world.

Event March 17, 2016

The Impact of Drug Policies on Women

In honor of the 60th Commission on the Status of Women, the Permanent Mission of Italy to the United Nations and the Open Society Foundations cohosted a special discussion on the impact of drug policies on women.

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