This event sponsored by: NYAM and The Drug Policy Alliance
Thanks to all who attended the New Directions for New York conference for making it an incredible success! The Drug Policy Alliance and The New York Academy of Medicine brought together over 300 conference participants representing community advocates, researchers, service providers and legislators from all over the state in order to build a public health and safety approach to drug policy. At the Thursday event, New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver released his very first policy position paper (available here) and made his commitment to reform clear with these words: "This evening, I am proud to tell you on behalf of my Assembly Majority colleagues that this year – 2009 – is the year we finally enact real reform of the Rockefeller Drug Laws. This is the year when we begin to transform drug policy in the state of New York." His sentiments were echoed by the incredible number of elected and appointed officials from New York State and City who participated on Thursday night and Friday as either featured speakers or conference participants.
The Drug Policy Alliance and The New York Academy of Medicine are committed to helping bring about this new direction in New York’s drug policies. In order to continue the work that the conference has begun, please sign up to the Drug Policy Alliance’s New York State email list for further information on follow up meetings and reform efforts. For more information on the conference itself please go here.
Register for January 22nd Evening Plenary Only
If your institution is a confirmed sponsor or partner please list in the field marked institution.
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Illicit drug use and dependence in New York is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality and one of the state’s most intractable public health problems in its own right. Moreover, when considered as a contributing cause of death, or "co-morbidity," illicit drug use becomes an even more pervasive public health issue. For decades, New York State has expended significant resources on drug use prevention, interdiction, and incarceration of drug users with relatively modest effect in stopping substance misuse or reducing the morbidity and mortality associated with it.
The The Drug Policy Alliance and The New York Academy of Medicine have come together to convene a conference that will put forward New Directions for New York. Drawing from disciplines such as public health, drug treatment, harm reduction, medicine, public safety, and criminal justice, the Conference will convene key political leaders, community organizations, leading academics, service providers, advocates, public servants, and people directly impacted by the range of drug policies in New York City and State. Using a public health framework, the conference will challenge participants to develop concrete proposals for improving the health of individuals, families, and communities in New York who are affected by illicit drug use. Ultimately, this Conference will build the mutual understanding and shared courses of action necessary to advance proposals that will more effectively reduce substance misuse and its associated harms.
CONFIRMED SPEAKERS LIST (list in formation)
| First Name | Last Name | Association |
| Eric | Adams | Ranking Minority, Crime Victims, Crime and Correction, New York State Senate |
| Rick | Altice, MD | Professor, Yale University School of Medicine |
| Jeffrion | Aubry | Chair, Corrections Committee, New York State Assembly |
| Joseph | Baker | Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services, New York State |
| Jo Ivey | Boufford, MD | President, The New York Academy of Medicine |
| Eric | Cadora | Director, Justice Mapping Center |
| Karen | Carpenter-Palumbo | Commissioner, Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services |
| Todd | Clear | Professor, John Jay College of Criminal Justice |
| John | Coppola | Director, Association of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Providers |
| Ruth | Finkelstein | Vice President, The New York Academy of Medicine |
| Tom | Friedan, MD | Commissioner, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene |
| Crystal | Fuller | The New York Academy of Medicine |
| Dick | Gottfried | Chair, Health Committee, New York State Assembly |
| Carl | Hart | Columbia University |
| Daliah | Heller | Assistant Commissioner, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene |
| Michael | Jacobsen | Director, Vera Institute of Justice |
| Speaker from | Voices of Community Advocates and Leaders | |
| Howard | Josepher | CEO, Exponents: Leaders in Transforming Lives |
| Alan | Leshner | Former director, of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, American Association for the Advancement of Science |
| Harry | Levine | Professor, Queens College |
| Donald | MacPherson | Drug Policy Coordinator, City of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| Glenn | Martin | Vice President, The Fortune Society |
| Anita | Marton | Vice President, Legal Action Center |
| Peter | Moskos | Professor, John Jay College, former Baltimore police officer |
| Ethan | Nadelmann | Drug Policy Alliance |
| Robert | Newman, MD | Director, Baron Edmond de Rothschild Chemical Dependency Institute of Beth Israel Medical Center |
| Cheri | O'Donoghue | Families Rally for Emancipation and Empowerment |
| Tina | Reynolds | Women on the Rise Telling HerStory |
| Gabriel | Sayegh | Drug Policy Alliance |
| Russell | Simmons | Rush Communications |
| David | Soares | Albany County District Attorney |
| Sharon | Stancliff, MD | Medical Director, Harm Reduction Coalition |
| Anne | Swern | 1st Deputy to Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes |
| David | Vlahov | Vice President, The New York Academy of Medicine |
| Terence | Wansley | 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care, Retired NYPD |
| Marsha | Weissman | Director, Center for Community Alternatives |
| Keith | Wright | Chair, Social Services Committee, New York State Assembly |
| Speaker from | New York City Aids Housing Network | |
| Kash | Heed | Chief Constable, West Vancouver Police Department, West Vancouver, Canada |
The New York Academy of Medicine
1216 Fifth Ave
New York, NY 10029
"NEW DIRECTIONS FOR NEW YORK" Evening Plenary - PUBLIC EVENT
Thursday, January 22, 2009
7:00 – 9:00pm
Hosack Hall
This conference is co-hosted by The Drug Policy Alliance.
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