Friday June 26th is the Global Day of Action for Drug Policy Reform

June 26th, 2015, is the Global Day of Action for Drug Policy Reform. According to the Support! Don't Punish campaign:

"26th June 2015 will be the third Day of Action organised so far. On 26th June 2013, 41 cities from around the world took part in the first ever Global Day of Action. On 26th June 2014, 100 cities around the world held a huge variety of different actions. This year will be even bigger with 140 cities now confirmed!"

For more information or to get involved, go to SupportDontPunish.org.

Friday June 26th is also the UN's World Drug Day 2015. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon issued a statement to commemorate the day. He underscored the need for a balanced approach in drug control policies, stating that:

"Our shared response to this challenge is founded on the international drug control conventions. In full compliance with human rights standards and norms, the United Nations advocates a careful re-balancing of the international policy on controlled drugs. We must consider alternatives to criminalization and incarceration of people who use drugs and focus criminal justice efforts on those involved in supply. We should increase the focus on public health, prevention, treatment and care, as well as on economic, social and cultural strategies."

For more information on the UN's World Drug Day, check out the UN Office on Drugs and Crime website.

To find out more about the UN General Assembly Special Session on the world drug problem coming up in April 2016, check out the International Drug Policy Consortium's resource page.