Scientific Exchange

NIDA International Program Director Steven W. Gust, Ph.D., participated in an April 10 workshop at Johns Hopkins University for a delegation of government officials from Burma (Myanmar). The Burmese delegation, which was lead by the Minister of Health, Dr. Pe Thet Khin, included representatives from the Office of the President; Ministries of Health, Education, Justice, and Science and Technology; and the nongovernmental organization Mingalar Myanmar. In addition to meeting with Dr.

The Anti Narcotic-Coordinating Center of the Thai National Council on Social Welfare has translated articles from NIDA Notes to make the material more accessible to researchers and policymakers in the region.

Harrie Jonkman, Dr.S., Verwey-Jonker Institute, The Netherlands, has received a NIDA Distinguished International Scientist Collaboration Award (DISCA) to extend his collaboration with J. David Hawkins, Ph.D., University of Washington in Seattle. With previous support from the NIDA International Program and the Dutch Organisation for Health Research and Development (ZonMw) through the U.S.–Netherlands Binational Agreement, the two have collaborated on implementing and assessing the outcomes of the Communities That Care prevention intervention in 10 Dutch and 12 U.S. cities.

Researchers from Russia and South Africa were selected as the 2011 WHO/NIDA/CPDD International Traveling Fellows. NIDA partners with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD) to provide support for a 1-week research visit with a NIDA grantee and participation in the NIDA International Forum and the CPDD Annual Scientific Meeting.

The 2011 International Traveling Fellows are:

Abstracts will soon be accepted for the 5th Annual NIDA International Poster Session at the Society for Prevention Research (SPR) 20th Annual Meeting in Washington, DC, May 29–June 1, 2012.

NIDA’s International Program and Division of Epidemiology, Services and Prevention Research will host the poster session to highlight international drug abuse-related prevention research, including HIV/AIDS prevention research in drug-using populations. Abstract submissions will undergo the same peer review process as other poster submissions for SPR.

Locating potential research partners just got easier. A new Collaborative Matching Service (CMS) allows drug abuse and addiction scientists, policymakers, and providers to identify people, projects, and organizations with common research interests.

In a keynote address at the Partnering for Global Health Forum this past June, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., emphasized the importance of collaborative global health research to NIH and the United States.

Answering the question of why NIH should support global research, Dr. Collins noted, “What we learn in carrying out research in global health benefits our own citizens as well.” Quoting Julio Frenk, M.D., Ph.D., Dean, Harvard School of Public Health, Dr. Collins emphasized “Global is not the opposite of domestic.”

“Find good partners, start small, and take advantage of every research training and funding opportunity available.” That was the theme of presenters at the 16th Annual NIDA International Forum, which featured reports on U.S. initiatives to improve evidence-based drug treatment, research training, and policy implementation around the world.

The 42nd American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) annual meeting, held this past April, gathered addiction researchers, providers, and professionals to exchange ideas and information and explore new and innovative science-based addiction treatment models. NIDA International Program director Steven W. Gust, Ph.D., joined his colleagues to participate in two symposiums. The first addressed innovative models of addiction treatment from the international context.

The Society for Prevention Research (SPR) recently welcomed scientists and experts from around the world to explore prevention science from a global health perspective with the intent of fostering worldwide rapid development of evidence-based policies, strategies, and programs.