Overview

How can research help inform better drug policies? The Drugs, Security and Democracy (DSD) Program has sought to answer this question since its inception. Based on a firm belief that the development of alternatives to present-day drug policies should be deeply rooted in evidence, the DSD Program has so far supported around eighty research projects throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. Helping produce the research, however, is just one piece of the puzzle. In order to shape policy discussions, research findings must reach the right audiences. To that end, the research papers presented here, selected and recommended by experts in the field, offer important analytical and evidence-based perspectives on topics of particular relevance for current drug policy discussions in Latin America and the Caribbean. The initial focus of this project is medical cannabis.

These papers have been translated into Spanish and reproduced by permission of their publishers, as applicable. Unless otherwise expressly stated, the original publishers retain copyright.

1. Medicinal Use of Cannabis in the United States: Historical Perspectives, Current Trends, and Future Directions [Request Access]
2. Uso medicinal de cannabis en los Estados Unidos: Perspectivas históricas, tendencias actuals, y direcciones futuras [PDF – Español]
   By Sunil K. Aggarwal, Gregory T. Carter, Mark D. Sullivan, Craig ZumBrunnen, Richard Morrill, and Jonathan D. Mayer
3. Medical Marijuana: Clearing Away the Smoke [PDF – English]
4. Marihuana Medicinal: Disipando el humo [PDF – Español]
   By Igor Grant, J. Hampton Atkinson, Ben Gouaux, and Barth Wilsey
5. What Has Research over the Past Two Decades Revealed about the Adverse Health Effects of Recreational Cannabis Use? [Request Access]
6. ¿Qué han revelado las investigaciones de las dos últimas décadas con respecto a los efectos adversos para la salud del uso recreativo del cannabis? [PDF – Español]
   By Wayne Hall
7. Policy Designs for Cannabis Legalization: Starting with the Eight Ps [Request Access]
8. Diseño de políticas para la legalización del cannabis: Las ocho “P” como punto de partida [PDF – Español]
   By Beau Kilmer
9. Effects of State Medical Marijuana Laws on Adolescent Marijuana Use [PDF – English]
10. Efectos de la leyes estatales de cannabis medicinal sobre el consumo de cannabis en adolescentes [PDF – Español]
    By Sarah D. Lynne-Landsman, Melvin D. Livingston, and Alexander C. Wagenaar
11. Reassessing the Marijuana Gateway Effect [Request Access]
12. Reevaluando el efecto de puerta de entrada de la marihuana [PDF – Español]
    By Andrew R. Morral, Daniel F. McCaffrey, and Susan M. Paddock
13. The Effect of Medical Marijuana Laws on Crime: Evidence from State Panel Data, 1990–2006 [PDF – English]
14. Efecto de las leyes sobre marihuana medicinal en el delito: Evidencias de datos de panel estatales, 1990–2006 [PDF – Español]
    By Robert G. Morris, Michael TenEyck, J. C. Barnes, and Tomislav V. Kovandzic
15. Developing Public Health Regulations for Marijuana: Lessons from Alcohol and Tobacco [PDF – English]
16. Formulación de reglamentaciones de salud pública para la marihuana: Lecciones aprendidas del alcohol y tabaco [PDF – Español]
    By Rosalie Liccardo Pacula, Beau Kilmer, Alexander C. Wagenaar, Frank J. Chaloupka, and Jonathan P. Caulkins