NADRA 2016

Nordic Alcohol and Drug Researchers’ Assembly (NADRA) 2016
Registration to NADRA 2016 is now open! The deadline for registration and submission of abstracts is April 24, 2016.

The aim of the assembly is to gather primarily Nordic researchers working with alcohol and drug related issues to discuss research on trends and developments in consumption, prevention and treatment.

Thematic focus and keynote speakers

1. Keynote speaker: Associate Professor Johan Edman (Centre for Social Research on Alcohol and Drugs SoRAD, Stockholm University, Sweden)
   “From best practice to national prestige? Welfare research and the knowledge-base of Swedish alcohol policy 1911–2015″Substance use and abuse, along with a number of other life-style related issues, are frequently collected under the umbrella of public health. Linking substance use research to the general field of public health, however, raises some questions: what can research offer to a time and context defined perception of public health that builds on knowledge, but also political interests and social attitudes? How will a public health framing influence Nordic alcohol and drug research, political interest, and social attitudes?
2. Keynote speaker: Professor Alex Stevens (University of Kent, UK)
   “Friends or foes? The roles of ‘harm reduction’ and ‘recovery’ in the treatment of drug dependence”Treatment ideologies in the Nordic countries span from entirely medically focused and long-term substitution regimes to strictly drug-free alternatives aiming at sobriety. In addition to ideological differences, financial constraints also influence the available treatment options. How do the different treatment approaches reflect different understanding of rehabilitation? What elements are involved in rehabilitation and are rehabilitation goals reflected in available treatment?
3. Keynote speaker: Professor Robin Room (Centre for Alcohol Policy Research, La Trobe University, Australia), Professor Pekka Sulkunen (University of Helsinki, Finland), Senior Researcher Pia Mäkelä (National Institute for Health and Welfare, Finland)Alcohol Control Policies in a Public Health Perspective – The Purple Book

   In 1975, the Finnish Foundation for Alcohol Studies published a monograph ”Alcohol Control Policies in Public Health Perspective” by Kettil Bruun and others. The book made an effort at shifting the focus from the individual to the population – and policy. Forty-one years later, has the main theses endured the test of time? Is contemporary research still behind the claim that the average amount of alcohol consumption in a society directly affects the amount of problems experienced by the society? Do we still believe that the most effective way to reduce alcohol problems is through policies aimed at reducing total consumption?

For further information:

Project manager Nina Karlsson
Tel. +358 45 872 0270
Mail: nina.karlsson[at]nordicwelfare.org