-
Cannabis and Climate
The carbon footprint and energy use of indoor cultivation
Cannabis Policy Brief Nr. 2
October 2022Environmental impacts are rarely taken into account in the cannabis regulation debate. The assumption is that legal regulation would automatically reduce the negative environmental consequences of the unregulated illegal market, because authorities would compel the industry to comply with basic environmental standards. Practices in North America and the direction of the emerging regulation debate in Germany and other European countries, however, reveal a disturbing trend towards indoor cannabis cultivation. The high carbon footprint of indoor grow facilities could jeopardize policy aims to reduce energy use and to meet climate goals.
READ MORE...
Download the brief (PDF) -
The Challenges of Medicinal Cannabis in Colombia
A look at small - and medium - scale growers
Nicolás Martínez RiveraDrug Policy Briefing Nr. 52
September 2019In July 2016, the Colombian government enacted Law 1787, which regulates the use of medicinal cannabis and its trade in the country. With this decision and a series of subsequent resolutions, Colombia joined the more than a dozen countries that have put into practice different types of regulation to explore the advantages of this plant as an alternative pharmaceutical. Even though the law stipulates that 10 per cent of production should come from small- and medium- scale growers, the reality is that most of the business has been dominated by large local and foreign investors.
READ MORE...Download the briefing (PDF)
-
Cannabis in the City
Bottom-up policy reform for cannabis regulation
Tom Blickman & Katie SandwellDrug Policy Briefing Nr. 51
March 2019Lately, there have been clear signs of a shift in governments’ approaches to recreational cannabis. Uruguay in 2013 and Canada in 2018 – as well as a number of US states since 2012 – have moved to control cannabis through regulated markets from seed to sale rather than prohibition. More recently, the newly elected president of Mexico and the new coalition governments of Luxembourg and Malta also announced their intentions to regulate the recreational cannabis market. This is increasingly seen as a more promising way to protect people’s health and safety, and has changed the drug policy landscape and the terms of the debate.
READ MORE...Download the briefing (PDF) -
Methamphetamine use in Myanmar, Thailand, and Southern China: assessing practices, reducing harms
Renaud Cachia & Thura Myint LwinDrug Policy Briefing Nr. 50
February 2019Over the past decade, methamphetamine use has grown more popular in Myanmar, Thailand and Southern China. Based on in-depth interviews conducted with individuals who use methamphetamine, this briefing sheds light on the importance of promoting an environment that reinforces, rather than undermines, the ability of people who use methamphetamine to regulate their drug use, preserve their health and adopt safer practices.
Download the briefing (PDF)
READ MORE... -
Morocco and Cannabis
Reduction, containment or acceptance
Tom BlickmanDrug Policy Briefing Nr. 49
March 2017This policy briefing discusses whether or not the aim of reducing cannabis cultivation is realistic or beneficial for Morocco, what it would actually mean for the major production area the Rif – one of the poorest, most densely populated and environmentally fragile regions in the country – and what that could imply for meaningful sustainable development. The briefing will give some historical background, discuss developments in the cannabis market, and highlight environmental and social consequences as well as the recent debate about regulation in Morocco and about European policies.
Download the briefing (PDF) | Version en français (PDF)
READ MORE... -
Cannabis in Latin America and the Caribbean
From punishment to regulation
Alejandro Corda and Mariano FuseroDrug Policy Briefing Nr. 48
September 2016Cannabis (or marihuana) is one of the most widely consumed psychoactive substances in the world. According to the United Nations World Drug Report, 183 million people, or 3.8% of the world’s population, used cannabis in 2014. Its cultivation was also reported by 129 countries. Cannabis is subject to the United Nations System for International Control of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (hereafter “drugs”) and is the most widely consumed of all the drugs. According to that control system, cannabis is among the substances with the strictest legal status; they are the most prohibited, supposedly because of the harm they cause and their lack of medical usefulness.
READ MORE...Download the briefing (PDF) -
'Found in the Dark'
The Impact of Drug Law Enforcement Practices in Myanmar
Ernestien Jensema & Nang Pann Ei KhamDrug Policy Briefing Nr. 47
September 2016To address its serious drug use problems, Myanmar should change its drug policy towards a harm reduction approach. Instead of a repressive approach, voluntary and evidence-based treatment and public health services, including harm reduction, should be made available and become generally accepted by enforcement officials and by the community at large. Myanmar has very strict drug laws and policies, and its legal framework emphasises harsh sentences and the criminalisation of drug users rather than providing access to health and harm reduction services. This report highlights the impact of current drug law enforcement practices in Myanmar and illustrates why a change in drug legislation and policy is necessary.
READ MORE...Download the report (PDF) | In Burmese -
Paraguay: The cannabis breadbasket of the Southern Cone
A focus on the largest cannabis producer in South America
Guillermo GaratDrug Policy Briefing Nr. 46
July 2016Paraguay is the principal producer of cannabis in South America, though nobody knows for certain how many hectares are planted with this crop, probably on account of its concealment and a prevalent climate of corruption. National authorities and international control agencies estimate an area between 6,000 and 7,000 hectares, with an annual production of 16,500 tonnes. At present, according to estimates of the Paraguayan National Anti-Drug Secretariat (Secretaría Nacional Anti Drogas - SENAD), some 20,000 farmers are involved in cannabis cultivation, boosting the microeconomy of the north-eastern region of the country.
READ MORE...Download the briefing (PDF) -
UNGASS 2016: A Broken or B-r-o-a-d Consensus?
UN summit cannot hide a growing divergence in the global drug policy landscape
Dave Bewley-Taylor Martin JelsmaDrug Policy Briefing Nr 45
July 2016A special session of the General Assembly took place in April revealing a growing divergence in the global drug policy landscape. Difficult negotiations resulted in a disappointing outcome document, perpetuating a siloed approach to drugs at the UN level. There is a clear need to realign international drug policies with the overarching 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals, embedding the drugs issue comprehensively within the UN’s three pillars: development, human rights, and peace and security. The UNGASS process has helped to set the stage for more substantial changes in the near future, towards the next UN review in 2019.
READ MORE...Download the briefing (PDF) -
Cannabis in Indonesia
Patterns in consumption, production, and policies
Dania Putri & Tom BlickmanDrug Policy Briefing Nr. 44
January 2016Cannabis use has never posed major problems in Indonesia, yet prohibitionist policies prevail. Despite the high prevalence of cannabis use, local or national discussions on cannabis policies are nearly non-existent, exacerbated by strong anti-drug views and public institutions' failure to design and implement comprehensive policies based on evidence. Because of the current anti-narcotics law – discussed in detail in this briefing – there have been many obstacles to research on cannabis, both in terms of medical and anthropological research.
READ MORE...Download the briefing (PDF) | Bahasa Indonesia
Page 1 of 4
