Blog
SSDP Executive Director Kat Murti Gives Keynote at New Approaches Summit 2026
Kat Murti, Executive Director, Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) gave the keynote address at the 5th Annual New Approaches Summit on Friday, September 25, 2026 at the Harvard Club of New York City. Murti's talk titled, "Depolarizing Harm Reduction: Human Autonomy vs. Prohibitionist Ideology" discussed what happens when public ...
Global Commission Calls for Youth-Focused Drug Policy Reform – Juta Medical Brief
South African medical news publication Juta Medical Brief released a report on the Global Commission on Drug Policy on September 16th, 2026. The Global Commission on Drug Policy helps to end the War on Drugs by urging countries to replace it with healthcare-focused policy solutions and published a brief titled ...
Scientists Launch Legal Challenge to DEA’s Proposed Psychedelic Scheduling, Which Would Criminalize Research Compounds and Jeopardize FDA Breakthrough Therapy for Postpartum Depression
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Kat Murti Executive Director Students for Sensible Drug Policy [email protected] Scientists Launch Legal Challenge to DEA's Proposed Psychedelic Scheduling, Which Would Criminalize Research Compounds and Jeopardize FDA Breakthrough Therapy for Postpartum Depression Early career scientists from Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) — the largest youth-led ...
Good Samaritan Laws Webinar: Know Before You Call
SSDP and the Network for Public Health Law's Harm Reduction Legal Project teamed up to host this webinar on Good Samaritan Laws and how they can protect those who call 911. The Harm Reduction Legal Project's attorneys, Ashleigh Dennis and Amy Lieberman, provided an overview of Good Samaritan Laws and ...
Why SSDP Chose RiVive: Better Naloxone, More HOPE, More Lives Saved
Not all naloxone is the same. And when we're putting lifesaving tools into people's hands, the details matter. At Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP), we know that the overdose crisis didn't happen in a vacuum. Decades of prohibitionist drug policies have fueled an increasingly unpredictable and dangerous unregulated drug ...
SSDP Urges DEA to Protect Psychedelic Research in Federal Register Public Comment
From promising postpartum depression treatments to groundbreaking neuroscience research, here's what's at stake — and why SSDP is pushing back. SSDP has submitted a formal public comment urging the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to withdraw its proposal to place five tryptamines into Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. Tryptamines ...
SSDP Challenges DEA’s Attempt to Restrict Psychedelic Research
Five psychedelic compounds. A growing body of scientific research. And another attempt by the DEA to put prohibition ahead of science. On October 23, Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) joined Mindstate Design Labs and researchers Dr. Benjamin Cummings and Dr. Janelle Lanham in formally requesting a hearing to challenge ...
BREAKING NEWS – HISTORIC SAFE SUPPLY WIN FOR CANADA!
by Julia Hilbert, MSW, Chair of the Board of Directors, SSDP SSDP joins the Drug User Liberation Front (DULF) in celebrating a historic win for drug policy reform in Canada. On Tuesday, September 29, 2026 the British Columbia Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Drug User Liberation Front’s founders, ...
5 TRYPTAMINES CALL TO ACTION: SSDP wants to know about your research!
Are you a scientist currently studying or have plans to study one of these 5 tryptamine psychedelics? 4-Hydroxy-N,N-Diisopropyltryptamine (4-OH-DiPT) 5-Methoxy-alpha-Methyltryptamine (5-MeO-AMT) 5-Methoxy-N-Methyl-N-Isopropyltryptamine (5-MeO-MiPT) 5-Methoxy-N,N-Diethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DET) N,N-Diisopropyltryptamine (DiPT) If so, let us know what you’re working on and how these substances being put in Schedule I might impact your work by ...
What Will Sara Carter of Fox News Bring as “Drug Czar”? – Filter Magazine
On April 1st, 2025 Alexander Lekhtman published an article in Filter on the appointment of the new director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), or "drug czar", former Fox News contributor Sara Carter. Lekhtman quotes former SSDP board member Eric Sterling, who shares his thoughts on her ...
A Decade After UNGASS: Overdose Prevention, Harm Reduction, and the Future of Global Drug Policy – UNGA Guide 2026
On September 22nd, SSDP appeared at the United Nations General Assembly 10 years after the special session on the World Drug Problem in 2016. Executive Director Kat Murti and Ambassador Anna Meyer spoke on a panel titled "From UNGASS to What Comes Next?" SSDP was given mention in the United ...
FDA Held Public Hearing on Psychedelic Therapeutics – Wisevoter
Wisevoter staff published their coverage of the FDA hearing on psychedelics on September 29th, and included mention of SSDP's efforts to influence the direction of future psychedelic policy: "The FDA hearing utilized both in-person and virtual formats to accommodate diverse stakeholder testimony. Simultaneously, advocates from Students for Sensible Drug Policy ...
DEA Would Ban Drug that Helps with Post Partum Depression – The Leaf Online
Executive Director Kat Murti wrote an article for The Leaf Online on October 1st about the recent scheduling decision by the DEA over five tryptamines used in scientific research. One of the tryptamines in particular, 4-OH-DiPT, was granted breakthrough status for its use for treating postpartum depression for women. Kat ...
Public Comment Submitted on Behalf of Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) Regarding the FDA Request for Comments on Considerations for Potential Future Therapeutic Use of Psychedelic Drugs (Docket No. FDA-2026-N-7542)
Students for Sensible Drug Policy Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) is the largest youth-led grassroots network dedicated to replacing the War on Drugs with policies rooted in evidence, compassion, and human rights — policies that make sense. Introduction and Guiding Principles As the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ...
SSDP Organizes to Influence FDA Psychedelic Drug Comments – HeadyNJ
HeadNJ staff wrote an article on October 1st about SSDP's gathering in Washington D.C. for the FDA hearing on psychedelic drugs. Executive director Kat Murti was quoted by staff, “Speaker after speaker came to the FDA ready to talk seriously about how we move psychedelic therapies forward safely and responsibly,” ...
WATCH: From UNGASS to What Comes Next? | The Future of Harm Reduction & Global Drug Policy
Ten years after the 2016 United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on the World Drug Problem, the War on Drugs is far from over. But the movement fighting it has changed. And so has the world. During the 2026 UN General Assembly High-Level Week (UN Week) in New York ...
You Can Bust A Cocaine Ring. You Can’t Bust A Black Market – SSDP Ambassador Layal writes in The Daily Wire
SSDP Ambassador Layal Bou Harfouch published a report in The Daily Wire on October 5th about an alleged cocaine trafficking ring that was shutdown at Penn State this year. Layal notes that removing one supplier for cocaine just leaves another to take their place, doing nothing to erase demand for ...
SSDP Celebrates 28 Years – Cannabis Law Report
This October 1st, SSDP celebrated its 28th year birthday! Cannabis Law Report gave readers a brief history of SSDP's founding and history, along with a sign-up link to become an SSDP Ambassador. Cannabis Law Report says, "On October 1, 1998, a group of students at the Rochester Institute of Technology ...
FreedomFest 2027 in Las Vegas (July 21–24)
July 21–24, 2027 · Las VegasSSDP plans to attend FreedomFest again in 2027. SSDP participation details are still being planned.Use the button below to register directly with FreedomFest for conference admission.Register Here ...
International Harm Reduction Conference 2027 (May 9–12)
May 9–12, 2027 · Belfast, Northern IrelandInterested in connecting with SSDP at the conference? Contact SSDP about participation.For the conference’s current program and attendance information, use the organizer’s event page.Ask About SSDP ParticipationView Event Details ...
We do this work because the war on drugs is a war on us.
