Global Health Colloquium: Drug Policy and the Future of Global Health Advocacy

Drawing on more than three decades of work at the intersection of drug policy, HIV, public health, and human rights, Dr Kasia Malinowska-Sempruch of the Open Society Foundation will explore why drug policy should be understood as a central global health issue. The talk will examine the connections between drug policy, infectious disease, overdose, criminalization, and organized crime, while reflecting on lessons from her career advancing drug policy reform around the world. It will also consider the distinctive role that philanthropic and civil society organizations such as Open Society play within the broader global health architecture, particularly in supporting advocacy, community-led responses, and policy change. Against the backdrop of major reductions in U.S. foreign assistance and a changing global health landscape, the talk will conclude by considering what these shifts mean for the future of global health advocacy, financing, and drug policy reform.