News
Youth RISE At The CCPCJ 35th Session in Vienna, 1 – 5 June 2026
For the second time, Youth RISE participated in the 35th session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) that took place in Vienna, from 1st to 5th June. There, we participated in key informal dialogues with the heads of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the CCPCJ, while also…
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From the Citizens’ Assembly to the Committee Room: representing Youth RISE in Ireland’s drug policy reform
Written by Ruby Rose Lawlor, Executive Director, Youth RISE Wednesday, 25 June 2026 (Dublin, Ireland) Yesterday, Ireland’s Joint Committee on Drugs Use published its Final Report, recommending that the State fully decriminalise the possession of drugs for personal use and move decisively towards a health-led approach. Twice, first in 2024, and again in March 2026,…
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Youth Voices at CND69: Challenging the Gap Between Rhetoric and Reality
Friday, March 14, 2026 (Vienna, Austria) – Between March 9th-13th, Youth RISE participated in the 69th session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), the most important drug policy making body of the United Nations. CND remains a space dominated by older generations who often determine policies on behalf of young people, a group that…
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Presentation of Full Spectrum Harm Reduction Report at Youth Side Program 2025
Written by Elena Keller, International Working Group Member at Youth RISE Berlin, Germany – Friday, October 10th, 2025. As part of the Youth Side Program held in Berlin ahead of the World Health Summit, I had the opportunity to present the Best Full Spectrum Harm Reduction (FSHR) Practices Report to a group of young health…
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Youth RISE delivers a statement at the Reconvened Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs 2025
Statement by Youth RISE at the CND Thematic Meeting Session on High Rates of HIV and Hepatitis C Transmission Associated with Drug Use Vienna, October 1st, morning session Good morning. I am speaking on behalf of Youth RISE, an international network of young advocates, including young people who use drugs and youth affected by punitive…
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Youth RISE membership speak during the VNGOC’s side event at the United Nations High-Level Political Forum
This statement was written and delivered by Teresa Castro (International Working Group member) during the side event “Strengthening Civil Society Voices in Drug Policy for Sustainable Development” organized by the Vienna NGO Committee on Drugs on July 17th at 10am EST. The side event took place in a hybrid format on the occasion of the…
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Putting Community First: Reflections from the “Community in Scope” workshop
This blog was written by Teresa Castro (International Working Group member) June 30 – July 2, 2025 – Berlin, Germany As a member of Youth RISE’s International Working Group, I was one of the civil society members selected for “Community in Scope: A Workshop on HIV Combination Prevention”, part of the SCOPE project from the…
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Sowing Change, Harvesting Justice: Youth RISE Reflections from HR25 in Bogotá
Returning from the Harm Reduction International Conference 2025 (HR25) in Bogotá, our Youth RISE team is filled with gratitude, energy, and renewed determination. HR25 was more than just a conference—it was a global gathering where young advocates, researchers, and people with lived experience came together to discuss and shape the future of harm reduction and…
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