Robin Pollard robin@youthrise.org Operations Coordinator Youth RISE

1. Robin Pollard robin@youthrise.org Operations Coordinator Youth RISE

2. Who are Youth RISE? • “Youth RISE is a youth led network promoting evidence based drug policies and harm reduction strategies with the involvement of young people who use drugs and are affected by drug policies.” • International Working Group • Global, diverse membership

3. Our work • Promote evidence based harm reduction interventions for young people who use drugs. • Capacity building. • Peer education training. • Advocacy on the ineffectiveness of current drug policies on young people. • Mobilise, engage, and facilitate youth involvement in the drug policy reform and harm reduction advocacy. • Increase evidence to support advocacy and inform an effective response .

5. The need for youth harm reduction • More likely to engage in high risk drug-using behaviour • Earlier, riskier sexual behaviour , unprotected sex, STD’s multiple partners • Lack of knowledge of HIV, HEP C • Lack knowledge of harm reduction, safer injecting practices • Poly-drug use • Socio-economic exclusion (unemployment/lack of education) • Early initiation can lead to developmental problems • Stigma and alienation from services

6. Barriers to services • Age restrictions. • Confidentiality/parental consent. • Lack of youth friendly services: Harm reduction services do not cater to young people’s specific needs and situations.   • Untrained services providers. • Unclear laws also result in hesitation among service providers to provide young people with harm reduction services and support. • Punitive drug laws.

7. Our approach to supporting the development of youth friendly harm reduction • Context ! Youth RISE engages young people from around the world to advocate in their own country. • Capacity! Support other youth org’s through grant writing, organisation development, capacity, funding for projects. • Research! Understand the local drug scene and keep up with the changes that take place.

8. Effective youth harm reduction services • Young people are not a homogenized group. • Culturally sensitive, and always adapted to the group of young people they are serving as well as to the community. • Address multiple health and behavioural problems. • Health advice, showers, sexual health info, basic counseling, HIV, HEP C STI’s. • Ensure youth are involved in the service design, implementation and evaluation. • Include programs such as skills training, vocational training or simply fun activities.

9. Drug policy reform = HIV prevention • Criminalizing people who inject forces them underground and into dangerous practices to avoid the criminal justice system. • Mass incarceration worsens the HIV epidemic • Alienating young people from services. • Where comprehensive harm reduction measures have been adopted, HIV rate sharply decreases.

10. What we want • Remove the barriers to services • A comprehensive range of harm reduction services • Engaging youth both in service design and implementation • Policy makers, donors, service providers who concentrate on HIV prevention to place much greater focus on young people who use drugs. • End criminalising young people who use drugs.