Grant: Planning and Dissemination Grant - Institute Community Support

Decriminalization of unregulated (illicit) drugs is the next "big" drug-related policy change and both Vancouver and Toronto have started processes to request exemptions from federal drug laws so that possession of some controlled drugs within specified amounts, would no longer be illegal. Currently, there is not a clear understanding of what decriminalization would look like, how it would work and for whom. These are hard questions to answer because the effects of decriminalization are part of a complex system. We need a guide to understand this system in order to successfully plan and evaluate decriminalization. The aim of the proposed planning grant is to develop such a map using a community-based system dynamics approach from the perspective of people who use drugs. We will use a facilitated group approach over three meetings so that participants come to a shared understanding of the different relationships, components and boundaries that work together in both positive and negative ways. The systems map will then be used to inform decriminalization-related research questions, expected outcomes, and appropriate measures from the community perspective. Finally, the map will serve as a foundation for future grant applications focused on systems modeling.