 | | Future Proofing Harm Reduction in Montreal | At the 25th International Harm Reduction Conference, Mainline organised a packed side event called ‘Future Proofing Harm Reduction’, together with AFEW, AidsFonds, INPUD and others. The rationale behind the side event was the need we see to promote harm reduction as a broad approach- not just as a set of HIV-related interventions.
Most harm reduction programmes are funded by HIV prevention programmes. However, harm reduction is much more than the prevention of blood-borne diseases like HIV and Hep C. Instead, care for vulnerable people, including women and minors, but also overdose prevention, interventions for non-injectors and access to other forms of care are extremely important. These needs are not addressed by most harm reduction programmes. At the same time, globally, funding for HIV has been decreasing. These and other challenges – such as repressive governments and decreasing space for civil society – threaten the sustainability of harm reduction.
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 | | ‘Nothing about us, without us!’ | The first annual Bridging the Gaps Learning Academy took place in Nairobi, Kenya where 27 partner representatives from 12 countries linked and learned about community empowerment and the meaningful involvement of key populations: Nothing about us, without us!
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|  | | Training of Trainers (ToT) | In April 2017, 11 people from 5 countries came to Cape Town, South Africa. The time had finally come to start the highly anticipated training of trainers (ToT) programme. The two year programme kicked-off with a workshop to learn the basics of being a trainer.
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 | | Putting meth on the agenda in Montreal | Mainline attended the International Harm Reduction Conference in Montreal in full force. Our mission: putting crystal meth on the harm reduction agenda once and for all.
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 | | The Montreal Declaration | The Bridging the Gaps 2 alliance has published an official statement - The Montreal Declaration - following the 25th Harm Reduction conference in Montreal. The goal of this statement is to publish a uniform message concerning the rights and health of key populations. The statement addresses the harm being done to people who use drugs in the form of stigmatization, discrimination and the war on drugs.
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| New director at Mainline | Machteld Busz is, as of 1 June 2017, the new director at Mainline. After two fruitful years of Mainline self-managing, the organisation would like to present a stronger profile.
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 | | International Mainline Harm reduction around the world | | This edition of Mainline Magazine takes you on a journey. The Mainline team collected stories from their international work and share their experiences from the Netherlands. And – as always – we let people who use drugs (PWUD) speak for themselves. | |
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 | | Programmatic mapping among people who inject drugs | An article on programme mapping used for planning HIV prevention and harm reduction interventions for people who inject drugs (PWID) has been published in the Harm Reduction Journal.
This paper shows the importance of obtaining information from people who use drugs (PWUD) from the beginning of the project. It also shows that programmatic mapping led by PWID peers can be used to identify and reach PWID and build relationships where access to HIV prevention commodities is limited (Scheibe et al. Harm Reduction Journal 2017).
The Step Up Project is implemented by TB HIV Care Association and OUT Wellbeing, with Mainline support.
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