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Welcome to the New Year’s issue of the newsletter for the 18th International Conference for the Reduction of Drug Related Harm 1. The Executive Programme Committee (EPC) met in Warsaw for the Programme Marathon in early December to construct the programme, which comprises presentations from invited speakers and sessions combining presentations selected from the over 1,000 abstracts submitted from around the world, as well as a selection of posters and ‘living room’ sessions. The quality of the abstracts received was generally very high and we would like to thank all of those who submitted, as well as all those members of the International Programme Advisory Group (IPAG) who took the time to peer review the material and make recommendations to the EPC. The Draft Programme for the 18th International Conference on the Reduction of Drug Related Harm is now posted on the conference website. Go to www.harmreduction2007.org <http://www.harmreduction2007.org/> and use the PROGRAMME button on the left-hand side menu for further details Invitations to present at the conference have now been sent out and alerts and updates about the programme as it develops will be posted on the website between now and the conference. 2. The ‘early-bird’ registration fee offers you a discount of €100 on each registration where payment is made before 15th January 2007. To register click on www.harmreduction2007.org/conftool/ . If you require a visa to enter Poland, please contact the Conference Secretariat <mailto:[log in to unmask]> [log in to unmask] and we will supply you with a letter of invitation to assist with the application process. With over 1000 individuals provisionally registered for the conference, we anticipate demand for places to be very high. One further advantage of early registration is the choice to reserve accommodation in the hotel on the conference site, or those adjacent to it. Visit www.harmreduction2007.org <http://www.harmreduction2007.org/> and use the ACCOMMODATION button on the website menu for more details. 3. "The Drugs and Harm Reduction" Film Festival now in its fourth year appears to have become a valuable fixture of this conference. The Warsaw IHRC 2007 Film Festival will uphold this proud tradition by seeking to provide unique perspectives on the significant issues of harm reduction, drug use, minorities, poverty, organised crime and human rights as seen through the film-makers’ lens. For the fourth year in a row, Simon Baldwin, Gary Reid and Peter Higgs of Australia’s Burnet Institute will bring the film festival to life through their call for films and their extraordinary film selection. The film festival will be integrated into the conference programme as a parallel track. For information on the previous three film festivals, please visit <http://www.chr.asn.au/resources/filmfest> http://www.chr.asn.au/resources/filmfest . A Call for Films and Film Submission Form has now been issued and is available for download at <http://www.harmreduction2007.org/downloads/Film_Submission2007_Form.pdf> http://www.harmreduction2007.org/downloads/Film_Submission2007_Form.pdf . Please note that the deadline for film festival submissions is the 15th of January 2007. 4. There are still opportunities for sponsorship and to exhibit at the conference. For more details of these please contact Sue Kucuk at Weave Consulting ([log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]> ) or visit the website www.weaveconsulting.com <http://www.weaveconsulting.com/> where you will find brochures containing information about the opportunities available. IHRA and the Conference Consortium would like to thank the following organisations and individuals for their support to date: Polish Prison Service, Polish Ministry of Health, Polish Central Bureau for Drug Prevention and WHO-Europe, as well as sponsors and supporting organizations: Aids Foundation East-West, Asian Harm Reduction Network, ASP Healthcare, Biolytical, Blackwell Publishing, Breakline, Burnet Institute: Centre for Harm Reduction, Cadbury Wedel, Central and Eastern Europe Harm Reduction Network, Compware, Deutsche Gesellshaft für Suchtmedzin (vorm. DGDS) e. V. (in German), Discover Poland / Polish Travel Quo Vadis, Drugscope, Exchange Supplies, Frontier Group, HIV/AIDS Alliance, Ukraine, Informa, LOT Polish Airlines, the MONAR Association, Mosaic Training & Consultancy, National Alliance of Methadone Advocates, Urban Anthropology and Warsaw Destination Alliance. Further details can be found on the conference website www.harmreduction2007.org <http://www.harmreduction2007.org/> Kind Regards, Artur Krol IHRC 2007 Conference Officer, Conference Office & Secretariat Wisniowa 50, IIIrd floor 02-520 Warsaw Poland Phone (UK): +44 208 123 99 81 Phone (PL):+48 22 640 82 71 Fax: +48 22 640 82 71 E-mail: <mailto:[log in to unmask]> [log in to unmask]