LOGO centenary of Cannabis Prohibition 1925-2025

UNESCO’s Mondiacult to Spotlight Cannabis in Global Cultural Policy for First Time

by 2025Actions & EventsENCOD MEMBERSSPAIN

 

 

Read the new in Business of Cannabis Online : https://businessofcannabis.com/unescos-mondiacult-to-spotlight-cannabis-in-global-cultural-policy-for-first-time/

For the first time in its history, UNESCO’s flagship cultural policy conference will give cannabis a prominent platform, marking the centenary of its international prohibition and reflecting its growing cultural acceptance.

UNESCO’s (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development, Mondiacult, is the world’s largest cultural conference, welcoming delegations from all 194 member states, aimed at setting the cultural agenda across the globe for the coming years.

From September 29 to October 01, during the 25th edition of the event, two contributions from civil-society organisations FAAAT (Forum Drugs Mediterranean) and the Cannabis Embassy, will make the case to position cannabis at the heart of global cultural policy discussions as the UN prepares its post-2030 development framework.

FAAAT and the Cannabis Embassy have submitted two official contributions: a technical paper, Cannabis: A Plant Without Borders. Cultural Diagnosis, One Hundred Years After Its Prohibition, and a consultation report on the role of cannabis-linked communities in preserving intangible cultural heritage, with insights drawn from events in Barcelona and Santiago de Chile.

This inaugural inclusion of cannabis comes on the centenary of cannabis being simultaneously recognised in the international pharmacopoeia and listed as a ‘narcotic’ under treaty law. The initiatives at Mondiacult seek to reframe this legacy by integrating cannabis-linked practices into broader heritage and sustainability agendas.

“Mondiacult is the largest international gathering dedicated to culture, bringing together thousands of participants who will shape the global agenda for years to come,” said Sébastien Béguerie, president of FAAAT.

Kenzi Riboulet-Zemouli, an expert on international drug policy, added that the 2025 edition represents a “decisive moment to enshrine cannabis-related cultures within the United Nations’ next development strategy“.

The move reflects a broader trend from prohibition towards cultural recognition. FAAAT, which has been active in drug policy reform for over two decades, played a key role in the UN’s 2020 rescheduling of cannabis. The Cannabis Embassy, formed in 2024 to unify international advocacy, continues this work by appointing ‘cannabis ambassadors’ and participating in global forums.

Mondiacult gathers thousands of policymakers and cultural practitioners every four years. With the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda nearing its end, the 2025 conference provides a rare opportunity to re-evaluate the place of traditional and contemporary cannabis cultures in global policy-making.

  • https://mondiacult2025.org/
  • https://agoracivica.cat/en/

 

More infos

En français :

  • https://www.newsweed.fr/lunesco-met-pour-la-premiere-fois-le-cannabis-a-lhonneur-dans-la-politique-culturelle-mondiale/?fbclid=IwY2xjawM3a-RleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHifsR8JXRYN4zJuCyDcrZGlqPOKHvahIL2bX3eBu4sQxm_PvAGBVj1EFJzut_aem_LlRt5vca3VRNMt0qjrJ4kQ

Spanish :

Barcelona marca un punto de inflexión histórico para la liberación del cannabis

 

Albania

Legalize Albania

by ENCOD MEMBERSNGO's

Albania is an ex-communist dictatorship country with 2.8 million people living currently. During the dictatorship era, there was a total block on illegal drugs, and the number of people using them was nearly 0.

After nearly 30 years of transition to have a stable democracy, Albania is today the largest producer of illegal cannabis in Europe and an important road for cocaine from South America and heroin from the east.

Following the independent source of information, we have reasonable doubts that the criminal organizations are very close to the parliamentary parties and are a source of their financial incomes.

This has been documented from different international institutions for example the American Embassy in Tirana that from time to time, announce as “non-grata” deputies or other high-ranked public figures.

Also, during the last years, we have been a witness of deputies being arrested for their criminal activity and the last case of the ex-minister of interior affair that was charged for 3 years and 4 months in prison with the accuse of “office power abuse” as he helped a criminal gang to cultivate cannabis in Albania and after to illegally transport it to Greece and Italy.

According to UNODC (United Nations Office for drug and crime), Albania has a large scale of cannabis users, starting from school kids (12/13 years old).

    • We were focused on sharing true information about cannabis and trying to educate the users but also the society about the cannabis plant and the correct way of use.
    • Also, we have made public questionaries to study the situation of the consumption but also to measure the public sensibility about the case.
    • We plan to develop a project involving the parent in which kids make use of cannabis.
    • Also, as a small country for us was very important to collaborate with other organizations or groups, so we have joined the ECAN (European Cannabis Advocacy Networks) and have a close relationship with the Montenegrin group as well as other countries of Western Balkans.

The current legislation in Albania prohibits all the activity related to drugs and treats cannabis the same way as heroin.

In the last month, the Albanian government has started a public consultation about the legalization of medical cannabis.

 

 

 

Lorenci Gjurgjaj, Tirana Albania

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info@legalize.al

www.legalize.al 

 

ReLeaf

ReLeaf Malta

by 2021ENCOD MEMBERSNGO's
ReLeaf Malta is a community-based NGO that seeks the regulation of Cannabis in Malta through safe and sensible policies.
ReLeaf Malta is a community-based pressure group that is demanding a change in national cannabis policy.
After decades of a failed national drug policy and the criminalisation of cannabis users, change needs to come to Malta. From the USA to Uruguay, countries all over the world are turning to more sensible and evidence-based policies to tackle the black market created by a policy of prohibition.
Whereas punishment and condemnation were used against drug users in a failed attempt at law enforcement of misguided laws and control of the black market, ReLeaf Malta proposes that regulation and education can be a much stronger national policy to combat these issues.
The multiple applications of the cannabis plant, from medicinal use to industrial use to personal use, have remained largely untapped as a resource, and Malta is in a prime position to be ahead of this global shift in change and take advantage of the fertile soil while it can.
We believe that regulating and controlling the cannabis plant will be incredibly beneficial to the country. Removing the economic and social power away from organised criminal gangs and placing it in the hands of the people and the government would not only mean a more healthy and prosperous society but a more fair and compassionate one as well.