The 2022 World Drug Report is out. And it’s not great news.

Yes, I know, there are so many areas of life that need urgent attention. The area on which I am the most expert is drug trafficking and addiction. Each June, I look for the World Drug Report published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. This report is one of the better actions of the UN. Their 2022 report includes this information in its introduction: 

Cocaine production is at a record high, and seizures of amphetamine and methamphetamine have skyrocketed. Markets for these drugs are expanding to new and more vulnerable regions. 

Harmful patterns of drug use likely increased during the pandemic. More young people are using drugs compared with previous generations. People in need of treatment cannot get it, women most of all. Women account for over 40 percent of people using pharmaceutical drugs for non-medical purposes, and nearly one in two people using amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS), but only one in five in treatment for ATS is a woman.

UNODC research has shown that perceptions of cannabis harms have decreased in areas where the drug has been legalized. At the same time, the proportion of people with psychiatric disorders and suicides associated with regular cannabis use has increased, together with the number of hospitalizations. Some 40 per cent of countries reported cannabis as the drug related to the greatest number of drug use disorders [their term for addiction].

This situation, as you can see, is worsening instead of getting better. The more people who are involved in improving it, even on a small scale, the better. A million people making small efforts to reduce drug use and addiction are generally more valuable than just a few people making big gestures. This organization offers simple methods of helping yourself, your family and your community: https://www.drugfreeworld.org

You can visit the website to request free materials to hand out in your community. And then you can know that you have helped make the world a slightly better place. It all adds up. Please help.