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 professionals and global health advocates. My presentation introduced the concept and core principles of Full Spectrum Harm Reduction (FSHR), shared key findings from the global survey I helped design and conduct with Youth RISE, and highlighted how participants could apply these insights in their own work. The goal was to help the audience understand the holistic nature of FSHR and how its approach can be integrated into practice when engaging with people who use substances.
About the Event
The Youth Side Program is an international youth engagement initiative organized annually by the German Medical Students’ Association (bvmd) alongside the World Health Summit. Now in its fourth year, the program brings together around 30 participants under the age of 27 from across the world, all actively involved in global health through fields such as medicine, public health, psychology, and social work.
Over the course of two days, we participated in advocacy and leadership training sessions, as well as interactive workshops, before attending the World Health Summit as a unified youth delegation. The sessions covered a broad range of topics, including global health diplomacy, communication strategies, effective youth engagement, and systems thinking. As part of the program, we also had the opportunity to present on issues of personal or professional interest, this is where I presented the FSHR report. Other presentations explored topics such as migration in Greece and alcohol use in Hungary.
My presentation introduced the concept of FSHR, a term that embodies a comprehensive understanding of the diversity of substances, routes of use, and social realities that shape people’s needs. I began by providing a brief background on the history of harm reduction and my own experience working in the field, before introducing FSHR as an approach that extends traditional harm reduction principles to include a wider range of behaviors and contexts.
The presentation summarized the key findings from the survey I carried out with YouthRISE, which highlights examples of best practices from youth-led and community-based organizations implementing harm reduction around the world. Several key themes emerged from the research, including the importance of inclusivity and context-specific approaches, agency and empowerment, advocacy, and acknowledging the role of pleasure in people’s relationships with substance use.
I concluded by discussing the barriers these organizations face and how they envision FSHR being implemented in practice. Common needs identified included decriminalization, less punitive policies, and increased funding for harm reduction services.
This session was particularly meaningful because it introduced a new and inclusive perspective on harm reduction to an audience largely composed of young medical and public health professionals, many of whom were encountering the broader applications of harm reduction beyond drug use for the first time.
“Full Spectrum Harm Reduction is about being inclusive and intersectional, challenging the systems that create harm in the first place. Its not only about preventing harm but about enabling life, dignity and wellbeing.”
The Youth Side Program emphasized the importance of youth empowerment in global health leadership. Through workshops and collaborative discussions, we explored how young advocates can navigate institutional spaces and contribute meaningfully to policy conversations. I was particularly inspired by the sessions focusing on mental health and burnout in advocacy work, which addressed the emotional challenges that often come with activism and leadership. These workshops offered practical tools on how to cope during times of crisis, build resilience, and sustain motivation, reminding us that caring for our own wellbeing is essential to creating lasting change.