VANDU - Genesis, Evolun, Org Struct, Activities - 2001.pdf

A Case Study of Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users (VANDU)
Executive Summary
The Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, Canada has long been the centre of the
city’s illicit drug using community. The neighbourhood is among the most
impoverished in Canada, and overdose deaths and other health complications of drug
use have been observed in this neighbourhood since the 1970s. 1,2 Despite the presence
of a needle exchange program that provided access to sterile syringes through several
means of exchange, an explosive HIV epidemic, that remains among the highest ever
observed in the developed world, was documented among the neighbourhood’s
injection drug users in 1997. 3 In addition, hepatitis C has spread rapidly, and more than
90 percent of persons who inject drugs in Vancouver are believed to be infected. 4 Since
the early 1990s the Vancouver region has also experienced an alarming rate of illicit
drug-related overdose fatalities, averaging more than 300 per year since 1996. 5
In 1997, in response to the emerging health crisis among people who use drugs
and to government inaction, a group of individuals gathered in Vancouver to form a
user-run organization. Collectively, the group felt that too little had been done in
response to the well-documented health emergency among people who use drugs and
that the voice of "users” had not been heard by those responsible for coordinating a
response. This group eventually became the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users
(VANDU), and with more than 1,000 members VANDU is believed to have the
potential to become one of the most organized drug users’ associations in the world. 6
With support from government and local health authorities, VANDU has grown
considerably in both membership and activities. The organization now maintains a 25-
member board of directors consisting exclusively of drug users, and an office staff of
three. The mission statement of VANDU is:
The Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users (VANDU) is a group of
users and former users who work to improve the lives of people who use illicit
drugs through user-based peer support and education.
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