THE SCOURGE of ice and other illicit drugs in rural and regional Victoria will be discussed at a public meeting on Tuesday.
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The Ararat branch of the Australian Family Association will host the forum at the Parish Hall in Barkly Street from 7.30pm.
Shane Varcoe, the director of the Dalgarno Institute, will speak on the topic.
Mr Varcoe said he will take a ‘big picture’ approach to the destructive nature of substance abuse with a heavy focus on prevention and recovery.
“To better understand drugs, we first need to understand how policy is shaping the way we view drugs and engage with drugs,” he said.
“One of the problems we have as a society is that we keep trying to fix the problem without fixing the narrative.”
Mr Varcoe said the 25-year-old approach of harm minimisation to drug related policy has had unintended consequences.
“The narrative needs to focus on prevention, recovery and demand reduction,” he said.
“This is a chance for people to engage with one another on the big picture issues as well as potentially become architects of strategies to prevent substance abuse in their own region.”
Ms Varcoe said prevention needs to start in the home.
“If mums and dads get it right, if there is resilience in the home then drug use is minimal.
“This is not about punitive legislation to punish drug users, it is about how we, as a community, can transition away from drug use.”
Mr Varcoe will be joined at the forum by Warwick Murphy from the International Substance Abuse and Addiction Coalition.