The City of Vancouver's Drug Policy Program offers a podcast on alternate Thursdays, highlighting issues related to the Four Pillars Drug Strategy. All of the podcasts are less than 10 minutes in length. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/index.htm City of Vancouver http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss en-ca Mon, 6 Apr 2009 10:01:21 -0700 jennifer.gray-grant@vancouver.ca (Jennifer Gray-Grant) Mon, 6 Apr 2009 09:58:16 -0700 Sunday Saturday 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 20 21 22 23 60 webdesignrequests@vancouver.ca (Web Design Requests) FeedForAll v2.0 (2.0.2.9) http://www.feedforall.com Four Pillars Drug Policy Program Podcasts The City of Vancouver's Drug Policy Program offers a podcast on alternate Thursdays, highlighting issues related to the Four Pillars Drug Strategy. All of the podcasts are less than 10 minutes in length. City of Vancouver Jennifer Gray-Grant jennifer.gray-grant@vancouver.ca drug policy, four pillars, drug use, harm reduction, treatment, prevention, enforcement no no http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/graphics/fourpillars_logo.gif http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/index.htm 64 64 Dr. Gabor Maté, who has served as staff physician at the Portland Hotel Society in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, was the closing plenary speaker at the City of Vancouver’s Creating a Culture of Prevention event in late March. In this excerpt from his address, Maté talks about Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, referring to how others refer to it as a “sinkhole for money”. In fact, he says, the neighbourhood is actually a receptacle for the dysfunctions of our society. What shows up there are the problems that have not been solved elsewhere in our society. To hear Dr. Gabor Maté’s full speech, and to read other information about the prevention event and future processes, please visit the Creating a Culture of Prevention page on the drug policy program’s website, vancouver.ca/fourpillars. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/GaborMateExcerpt.mp3 914A9AD4-4CA4-4602-8917-293209F4B927 Mon, 6 Apr 2009 09:58:16 -0700 Dr. Gabor Maté on Prevention Dr. Gabor Maté, who has served as staff physician at the Portland Hotel Society in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, was the closing plenary speaker at the City of Vancouver’s Creating a Culture of Prevention event in late March. In this excerpt from his address, Maté talks about Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, referring to how others refer to it as a “sinkhole for money”. In fact, he says, the neighbourhood is actually a receptacle for the dysfunctions of our society. What shows up there are the problems that have not been solved elsewhere in our society. To hear Dr. Gabor Maté’s full speech, and to read other information about the prevention event and future processes, please visit the Creating a Culture of Prevention page on the drug policy program’s website, vancouver.ca/fourpillars. 7:16 Jennifer Gray-Grant no no Tic Talk is a new play by Vancouver’s Youth Theatre Action Group. The company, which is led by Valerie Methot and Ken Lawson, creates theatre with youth, 14 to 21. The youth create the play, based on their own life experiences, and then present it. The company is supported by Vancouver Coastal Health, Watari, PeerNet BC, the Vancouver School District, Vancouver Foundation and other partners. The goal is to reach a large audience of youth with a prevention message, to reduce their risk of developing health problems such as those associated with addictions and mental health conditions. Jennifer Gray-Grant spoke with director Valerie Methot and writer/actors Emma Good and Andrew Newman-Meredith. The play will be held Thursday, June 4 through Saturday June 6 at the Roundhouse Community Arts and Recreation Centre. Please contact Heather Charlton at 604-714-3484 (press 1 then 2267) or heather.charlton@vch.ca for reservations. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/TheatreProgram.mp3 8A5FC055-D4B9-4B4A-AF3D-30C6D46CB965 Fri, 20 Mar 2009 14:00:46 -0700 Theatre as a prevention tool Tic Talk is a new play by Vancouver’s Youth Theatre Action Group. The company, which is led by Valerie Methot and Ken Lawson, creates theatre with youth, 14 to 21. The youth create the play, based on their own life experiences, and then present it. The company is supported by Vancouver Coastal Health, Watari, PeerNet BC, the Vancouver School District, Vancouver Foundation and other partners. The goal is to reach a large audience of youth with a prevention message, to reduce their risk of developing health problems such as those associated with addictions and mental health conditions. Jennifer Gray-Grant spoke with director Valerie Methot and writer/actors Emma Good and Andrew Newman-Meredith. The play will be held Thursday, June 4 through Saturday June 6 at the Roundhouse Community Arts and Recreation Centre. Please contact Heather Charlton at 604-714-3484 (press 1 then 2267) or heather.charlton@vch.ca for reservations. 9:56 Jennifer Gray-Grant no no The STAR program – Stop, Think, Assess and Respond – is an innovative program offering Grades 5 and 7 Vancouver students an anti-drug abuse message. The goal is to give kids the skills to be resilient, so that they will be able to make healthier choices for themselves. STAR is offered by Watari, a community social services provider that also offers an array of addiction counselling services. Recently, Sylvia Simmerlein and Craig Canini of Watari have been working with students in Grade 7 at Lord Nelson Elementary. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/SchoolProgram.mp3 34A0AFAE-FBD9-4956-81D6-8F35A6A0CE80 Thu, 5 Mar 2009 14:58:11 -0800 The STAR program teaches resilience skills The STAR program – Stop, Think, Assess and Respond – is an innovative program offering Grades 5 and 7 Vancouver students an anti-drug abuse message. The goal is to give kids the skills to be resilient, so that they will be able to make healthier choices for themselves. STAR is offered by Watari, a community social services provider that also offers an array of addiction counselling services. Recently, Sylvia Simmerlein and Craig Canini of Watari have been working with students in Grade 7 at Lord Nelson Elementary. 9:04 Jennifer Gray-Grant no no At the end of January, City of Vancouver Drug Policy Program Coordinator Donald MacPherson was invited by the New York Academy of Medicine and the Drug Policy Alliance to be a presenter at their conference, “New Directions for New York: A Public Health and Safety Approach to Drug Policy”. MacPherson explained how the state is examining ways of moving from a strong enforcement focus to include more of a public health approach in responding to substance use. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/preventionEvent.mp3 DFC07235-4A8A-4B4C-91A8-396ACEF97BCB Thu, 19 Feb 2009 14:33:25 -0800 Creating a culture of caring At the end of January, City of Vancouver Drug Policy Program Coordinator Donald MacPherson was invited by the New York Academy of Medicine and the Drug Policy Alliance to be a presenter at their conference, “New Directions for New York: A Public Health and Safety Approach to Drug Policy”. MacPherson explained how the state is examining ways of moving from a strong enforcement focus to include more of a public health approach in responding to substance use. 9:42 Jennifer Gray-Grant no no At the end of January, City of Vancouver Drug Policy Program Coordinator Donald MacPherson was invited by the New York Academy of Medicine and the Drug Policy Alliance to be a presenter at their conference, "New Directions for New York: A Public Health and Safety Approach to Drug Policy". MacPherson explained how the state is examining ways of moving from a strong enforcement focus to include more of a public health approach in responding to substance use. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/NewYork.mp3 8B7855C7-BF65-4757-B387-277A42CE269D Mon, 9 Feb 2009 13:53:24 -0800 Vancouver Drug Policy Program Coordinator in New York At the end of January, City of Vancouver Drug Policy Program Coordinator Donald MacPherson was invited by the New York Academy of Medicine and the Drug Policy Alliance to be a presenter at their conference, “New Directions for New York: A Public Health and Safety Approach to Drug Policy”. MacPherson explained how the state is examining ways of moving from a strong enforcement focus to include more of a public health approach in responding to substance use. 9:57 Jennifer-Gray-Grant no no Later this year BC’s first youth-oriented, long-term residential drug and alcohol treatment centre will open in Keremeos, BC. The project started out as a partnership between the Vancouver-based Central City Foundation and From Grief to Action, a support group for families of children and youth struggling with addiction. Jennifer Johnstone, Central City Foundation’s President and CEO, explained the importance of this new 42-bed treatment facility. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/TheCrossing.mp3 25B89B3B-F5A5-49B7-84C5-A4F993EF2207 Thu, 22 Jan 2009 14:46:37 -0800 Long-term youth residential treatment comes to BC Later this year BC’s first youth-oriented, long-term residential drug and alcohol treatment centre will open in Keremeos, BC. The project started out as a partnership between the Vancouver-based Central City Foundation and From Grief to Action, a support group for families of children and youth struggling with addiction. Jennifer Johnstone, Central City Foundation’s President and CEO, explained the importance of this new 42-bed treatment facility. 9:29 Jennifer Gray-Grant no no Liz Moss is the manager of Onsite, a detox and transitional housing facility in Vancouver. It’s located upstairs from Insite, Vancouver’s Supervised Injection site. Moss spoke with Jennifer Gray-Grant about the facility, which opened in September of 2007, and how it’s reaching some of the most street-entrenched drug users in the city. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/Onsite.mp3 1CF86A83-145E-4B91-9462-34CAD51BE8B4 Thu, 8 Jan 2009 12:11:15 -0800 Onsite offers treatment to Insite clients Liz Moss is the manager of Onsite, a detox and transitional housing facility in Vancouver. It’s located upstairs from Insite, Vancouver’s Supervised Injection site. Moss spoke with Jennifer Gray-Grant about the facility, which opened in September of 2007, and how it’s reaching some of the most street-entrenched drug users in the city. 9:48 Jennifer Gray-Grant no no Riley is a 15-year-old student who is part of the School-Aged Children and Youth (SACY) substance abuse prevention program at Tupper Secondary School in Vancouver. She spoke about her involvement in the program, what’s included in SACY, and how she thinks it’s helping youth. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/SACY-Riley.mp3 6BA83016-088E-457B-B078-9C685B57D075 Thu, 18 Dec 2008 12:25:03 -0800 A Youth View of SACY Riley is a 15-year-old student who is part of the School-Aged Children and Youth (SACY) substance abuse prevention program at Tupper Secondary School in Vancouver. She spoke about her involvement in the program, what’s included in SACY, and how she thinks it’s helping youth. 9:00 Jennifer Gray Grant no no This years marks the 10th anniversary of the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users (VANDU). Jennifer Gray-Grant spoke with VANDU Executive Director Ann Livingston, who reflected on the group's goals and accomplishments.. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/VANDU2.mp3 BF938388-173E-4DEB-A176-8F9778F4EC86 Thu, 4 Dec 2008 10:58:37 -0800 VANDU marks first decade This years marks the 10th anniversary of the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users (VANDU). Jennifer Gray-Grant spoke with VANDU Executive Director Ann Livingston, who reflected on the group's goals and accomplishments. 9:55 Jennifer-Gray-Grant no no As he neared the end of his three-year term as Mayor of Vancouver, Mayor Sam Sullivan spoke with Jennifer Gray-Grant and outlined how he views Vancouver’s drug problems, reflected on areas where he felt he made a difference and offered some advice for Vancouver’s next mayor. This podcast is slightly longer than the usual offering, reflecting the mayor’s depth of interest and experience an area he focused on during his 12 years as a councillor and three years as mayor. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/Sullivan.mp3 DECBA612-CCD6-4B15-9FBD-DEBDA2780FC2 Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:20:46 -0800 Mayor Sam Sullivan’s Reflections As he neared the end of his three-year term as Mayor of Vancouver, Mayor Sam Sullivan spoke with Jennifer Gray-Grant and outlined how he views Vancouver’s drug problems, reflected on areas where he felt he made a difference and offered some advice for Vancouver’s next mayor. This podcast is slightly longer than the usual offering, reflecting the mayor’s depth of interest and experience an area he focused on during his 12 years as a councillor and three years as mayor. 13:06 Jennifer-Gray-Grant no no The City of Vancouver’s Four Pillars Supported Employment Program, which is organized by the Drug Policy Program and funded by the Vancouver Agreement, offers short-term City employment to people who are in recovery from substance use. This fall, when two jobs vacancies arose in the City of Vancouver Engineering Department’s Streets section, two of the men who had worked in Streets through the Supported Employment Program were hired. Jennifer Gray-Grant spoke with one of the men, Larry Colbourne, while he was on a break from his work on the Carroll Street Greenway. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/SupportedWorkProgram.mp3 09437715-9561-4E25-AD29-7BB9F897EAF3 Thu, 30 Oct 2008 16:34:00 -0700 Supported Work Program The City of Vancouver’s Four Pillars Supported Employment Program, which is organized by the Drug Policy Program and funded by the Vancouver Agreement, offers short-term City employment to people who are in recovery from substance use. This fall, when two jobs vacancies arose in the City of Vancouver Engineering Department’s Streets section, two of the men who had worked in Streets through the Supported Employment Program were hired. Jennifer Gray-Grant spoke with one of the men, Larry Colbourne, while he was on a break from his work on the Carroll Street Greenway. 9:53:00 Jennifer-Gray-Grant no no Collaboration for Change update Earlier this year, the City of Vancouver initiated an innovative collaboration among a broad range of Vancouver’s institutional and community stakeholders. Participants in this process, called the Collaboration for change, are committed to addressing the urgent situation facing some of Vancouver’s most vulnerable citizens: those with mental health and addictions problems who are also homeless or living in substandard conditions. At the recent Mayor’s Four Pillars Coalition meeting, Civil City Commissioner Geoff Plant offered an update on the Collaboration for Change. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/CollaborationChange.mp3 19DA5D16-07D8-4A21-A64C-A1A565640A23 Tue, 21 Oct 2008 11:45:13 -0700 Collaboration for Change Collaboration for Change update Earlier this year, the City of Vancouver initiated an innovative collaboration among a broad range of Vancouver’s institutional and community stakeholders. Participants in this process, called the Collaboration for change, are committed to addressing the urgent situation facing some of Vancouver’s most vulnerable citizens: those with mental health and addictions problems who are also homeless or living in substandard conditions. At the recent Mayor’s Four Pillars Coalition meeting, Civil City Commissioner Geoff Plant offered an update on the Collaboration for Change. 9:25:00 Jennifer-Gray-Grant no no The City of Vancouver was the first municipality in Canada to adopt a four-pillar approach to drug policy. Now, other municipalities are following Vancouver’s lead and implementing four-pillar approaches to drug policy, tailored to each city’s particular needs. As Toronto Drug Strategy Manager Susan Shepherd explains, Toronto adopted its four-pillar drug strategy in 2005, after two years of research and discussion. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/TorontoDrugStrategy.mp3 A2484CD4-4C67-4468-98E7-3C8354CCFEDE Thu, 2 Oct 2008 14:53:14 -0700 The Toronto Drug Strategy The City of Vancouver was the first municipality in Canada to adopt a four-pillar approach to drug policy. Now, other municipalities are following Vancouver’s lead and implementing four-pillar approaches to drug policy, tailored to each city’s particular needs. As Toronto Drug Strategy Manager Susan Shepherd explains, Toronto adopted its four-pillar drug strategy in 2005, after two years of research and discussion. 9:26:00 Jennifer-Gray-Grant no no The first person who usually notices a drug user is overdosing is the person with whom they’re using. Toronto Public Health, along with Toronto’s Harm Reduction Task Force and other agencies, decided to go directly to users, to offer them training in dealing with overdoses. Last summer, the City of Vancouver’s Jennifer Gray-Grant met with the training program’s organizer, Ruth Yeoman. She’s a counselor at Toronto Public Health’s The Works, a downtown facility offering needle exchange, safer crack-use kits, a methadone program, Hepatitis A and B vaccines and sexually transmitted disease testing. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/OverdoseTrainingProject.mp3 E564E386-DA00-498C-ACF3-B40B4A9D5A96 Thu, 18 Sep 2008 15:54:36 -0700 Overdose Prevention Project The first person who usually notices a drug user is overdosing is the person with whom they’re using. Toronto Public Health, along with Toronto’s Harm Reduction Task Force and other agencies, decided to go directly to users, to offer them training in dealing with overdoses. Last summer, the City of Vancouver’s Jennifer Gray-Grant met with the training program’s organizer, Ruth Yeoman. She’s a counselor at Toronto Public Health’s The Works, a downtown facility offering needle exchange, safer crack-use kits, a methadone program, Hepatitis A and B vaccines and sexually transmitted disease testing. 6:52 Jennifer-Gray-Grant no no Wet shelters provide residential care for formerly street-entrenched alcoholics who would otherwise cycle through jails or hospitals numerous times throughout the year. They provide residents with food, clothing, shelter, medical care and managed alcohol (usually wine). Art Manuel, program director of the Seaton House Annex Wet Shelter in Toronto, recently spoke with Vancouver Drug Policy Program’s Jennifer Gray-Grant about the shelter. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/WetShelter.mp3 7AC66B31-86DE-424C-BA33-BBF2742A63F8 Fri, 5 Sep 2008 11:30:07 -0700 Wet Shelters Wet shelters provide residential care for formerly street-entrenched alcoholics who would otherwise cycle through jails or hospitals numerous times throughout the year. They provide residents with food, clothing, shelter, medical care and managed alcohol (usually wine). Art Manuel, program director of the Seaton House Annex Wet Shelter in Toronto, recently spoke with Vancouver Drug Policy Program’s Jennifer Gray-Grant about the shelter. 9:52 Jennifer-Gray-Grant no no Strengthening Families for the Future is an Ontario-based prevention program reaching out to families with children aged 7-11. Meeting once a week for 14 weeks, families work with a facilitator to learn new skills and improve children’s resiliency against future substance abuse. Now, the Centre for Addictions and Mental Health is offering the program materials at http://www.camh.net/Publications/Resources_for_Professionals/Strengthening_Families/sff_program_intro.html http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/PADProgram.mp3 8A454486-3DF1-46B6-A49A-DE03231F3952 Thu, 21 Aug 2008 14:04:17 -0700 PAD Program Strengthening Families for the Future is an Ontario-based prevention program reaching out to families with children aged 7-11. Meeting once a week for 14 weeks, families work with a facilitator to learn new skills and improve children’s resiliency against future substance abuse. Now, the Centre for Addictions and Mental Health is offering the program materials. 9:39 Jennifer-Gray-Grant no no When Toronto Public Health started distributing crack kits about two years ago, it discovered that while the kits certainly offered clients the benefits harm reduction, the process also engaged a whole new population in healthcare and other services. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/TorontoCrackKits.mp3 F69993A8-2875-4571-9202-705C451F8148 Mon, 11 Aug 2008 10:09:06 -0700 Toronto crack kits When Toronto Public Health started distributing crack kits about two years ago, it discovered that while the kits certainly offered clients the benefits harm reduction, the process also engaged a whole new population in health care and other services. 9:15:00 Jennifer-Gray-Grant no no Could regulation provide a better approach to drug control? Mark Haden, Clinical Supervisor of Addiction Services at Pacific Spirit Community Health Centre in Vancouver thinks that regulation may be the most effective way of controlling drugs. For more information about Haden’s views, visit his website at www.markhaden.com. Haden also offers weekly, free public education sessions on issues associated with substance addiction. For more information call 604-267-3970. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/MarkHadenRegulation.mp3 26D02FB8-85E6-4C78-8409-E6CA6AE7DC13 Thu, 24 Jul 2008 09:43:37 -0700 Mark Haden Regulation Could regulation provide a better approach to drug control? Mark Haden, Clinical Supervisor of Addiction Services at Pacific Spirit Community Health Centre in Vancouver thinks that regulation may be the most effective way of controlling drugs. For more information about Haden’s views, visit his website at www.markhaden.com. Haden also offers weekly, free public education sessions on issues associated with substance addiction. For more information call 604-267-3970. 8:38 Jennifer-Gray-Grant no no When City of Vancouver Drug Policy Program Coordinator Donald MacPherson returned from the annual International Harm Reduction Conference last May, he reflected on the shift in discussions of drug policy, to the inclusion of human rights. http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/DonaldHumanRights.mp3 E83E9044-C0C6-4155-A8C6-0374B07F96E9 Thu, 10 Jul 2008 09:50:28 -0700 Donald MacPherson regarding Human rights When City of Vancouver Drug Policy Program Coordinator Donald MacPherson returned from the annual International Harm Reduction Conference last May, he reflected on the shift in discussions of drug policy, to the inclusion of human rights. 8:33 Jennifer-Gray-Grant no no At the Mayor’s Four Pillars Coalition Meeting last March, Julie Norton of the BC Council for Families spoke about the dearth of new parenting programs - which are a strong protective factor against later substance abuse - particularly for 7 to 12-year-olds. (Running time 4:58 minutes) http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/JulieNortonpodcast.mp3 D77EB8DB-DD74-498C-8254-C76F487E785F Thu, 26 Jun 2008 15:04:00 -0700 Parenting as prevention At the Mayor’s Four Pillars Coalition Meeting last March, Julie Norton of the BC Council for Families spoke about the dearth of new parenting programs –-which are a strong protective factor against later substance abuse—particularly for 7 to 12-year-olds. 4:58 Jennifer Gray-Grant no no What's in a crack kit? Syd Malchy, co-investigator on the SCORE (Safer Crack Use, Outreach, Research and Education) project, describes to the Drug Policy Program's Jennifer Gray-Grant the contents of the crack kit SCORE handed out in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. (Running time: 8:33 minutes) http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/CrackKit.mp3 DC78C672-BB92-4A40-8C47-E825FD507FA8 Thu, 12 Jun 2008 14:33:24 -0700 Crack Kits What's in a crack kit? Syd Malchy, co-investigator on the SCORE (Safer Crack Use, Outreach, Research and Education) project, describes to the Drug Policy Program's Jennifer Gray-Grant the contents of the crack kit SCORE handed out in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. 8:33 Jennifer Gray-Grant no no Mark Haden, Clinical Supervisor of Addiction Services at Pacific Spirit Community Health Centre in Vancouver, sees the current legalization versus criminalization debate around drugs as too limited. He outlines a spectrum of eight different options. For more information, visit his website at www.markhaden.com. Haden also offers weekly, free public education sessions on issues associated with substance addiction. For more information call 604-267-3970. (Running time: 6:04 minutes) http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/MarkHadenEight.mp3 53B0C1C4-A897-4C7A-8FD5-92337E10D882 Thu, 29 May 2008 11:42:25 -0700 Broadening the debate Mark Haden, Clinical Supervisor of Addiction Services at Pacific Spirit Community Health Centre in Vancouver, sees the current legalization versus criminalization debate around drugs as too limited. He outlines a spectrum of eight different options. For more information, visit his website at www.markhaden.com. Haden also offers weekly, free public education sessions on issues associated with substance addiction. For more information call 604-267-3970. 6:04 Jennifer Gray-Grant no no Vancouver Superintendent of Schools Chris Kelly gave the final address at the Mayor's Four Pillars Coalition Meeting last March. He spoke about his vision for a culture of prevention in Vancouver. (Running time: 5:06 minutes) http://vancouver.ca/fourpillars/podcasts/media/FourPillars-ChrisKelly.mp3 E4F80195-44D2-4694-AE9F-C6A8BFD3D454 Thu, 15 May 2008 11:33:42 -0700 Prevention beyond the classroom Vancouver Superintendent of Schools Chris Kelly gave the final address at the Mayor's Four Pillars Coalition Meeting last March. He spoke about his vision for a culture of prevention in Vancouver. 5:06 Jennifer Gray-Grant no no