Bringing together researchers, community organisations and policymakers from across the Global North and South, the Transnational Research Centre on Emerging Drug Markets will focus on the rapid shift away from punitive drug policies towards decriminalisation and legal regulation, with particular attention to emerging cannabis markets.
Its aim is to influence regulation at a time when countries around the world are redesigning drug laws as part of a move away from the long-running ‘war in drugs’.
While these reforms are often welcomed, researchers warn that without strong safeguards, new legal markets risk being dominated by well-resourced corporate actors, leaving small-scale farmers, workers and historically marginalised communities excluded.
Based at Loughborough, the centre will act as an international hub for research and knowledge exchange, connecting academics with grassroots organisations and advocates in countries including Ghana, South Africa, Colombia, Brazil and the UK.
Professor Kojo Koram of Loughborough Law School, one of the centre’s co-founders, said: “As countries redesign drug policy, the decisions being made now will shape markets for decades.
“This centre exists to ensure those decisions are informed by evidence, lived experience and a commitment to social justice, rather than narrow commercial interests.”
During its first three years, the centre will host international workshops, develop publicly accessible research tools and create an archive of oral histories capturing the experiences of people living through the transition from illegal to legal drug markets.
It will be co-directed with Dr Paulo Pereira of Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo, Dr Rob Chlala of UCLA and Chevoln Holmes of University of California Davis.
This work is designed to support policymakers, journalists and civil society organisations with independent, research-led evidence.
The Research Centre on Emerging Drug Markets will operate through a hub-and-spoke model, with Loughborough providing the institutional base and partners leading work on the ground in key regions worldwide.
Professor Koram's new book on the changing world of drugs is now available for pre-order: https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-next-fix/kojo-koram/9781399807715
ENDS