Future-Ready Drug Policy: Rights, Youth, and the Rule of Law

Global drug policy is at a crossroads. Across regions, approaches are increasingly diverging – from efforts to advance decriminalization and health-centered responses to the continued reliance on punitive enforcement measures. These developments reflect broader geopolitical tensions and shifting dynamics within the international order.

At the same time, the scale of drug use and related harms remains significant. An estimated 316 million people use drugs globally, while access to treatment and harm reduction services continues to fall far short of need. In many contexts, punitive approaches persist, contributing to mass incarceration, public health challenges, human rights concerns, and widening inequalities.

These dynamics have profound implications for the rule of law. Drug policies continue to test the balance between public health, security, and human rights obligations in different national and regional contexts.
Children and young people are particularly affected – both directly through criminalization and enforcement practices, and indirectly through the broader social and economic impacts on families, communities, and access to essential services. Yet their specific needs and rights remain insufficiently reflected in policy responses.

Held at the University of Geneva during the Global Commission on Drug Policy’s 2026 plenary meeting, this event will bring together perspectives from law, human rights, academia, and drug policy.
Open to students, academia, and the wider public, the discussion will explore how evolving global dynamics are shaping drug policy approaches, and consider pathways toward more coherent, evidence-based, and human rights-aligned responses – particularly for children and youth.