The war on drugs isn't working. Here's a better way. | Kathryn Leafe | TEDxChristchurch

Internationally, 13% of people who inject drugs have HIV -- but in New Zealand, it's just 0.2%. So what is New Zealand doing differently? The answer will likely surprise you. In this powerful talk, guaranteed to challenge your assumptions, Kathryn Leafe shares why we need to forget about minimizing drug use -- and focus instead on minimizing drug harm. Kathryn Leafe was the Executive Director at New Zealand Needle Exchange Programme, on the Board of Directors of the International Drug Policy Consortium and member of the Mental Health and Addiction SLA for the South Island DHB Alliance. She is a member of the Society for the Study of Addiction; Institute of Directors and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. Kathryn has over 20 years’ experience working in drug and alcohol services at a national (UK and NZ) as well as at an international level including work with UNODC. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx