Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Health & Society
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Health & Society

Falk College, Council of Europe’s Pompidou Group Partner to Support Public Health-focused Drug Policies

Monday, July 9, 2018, By Michele Barrett
Share
facultyFalk College of Sport and Human Dynamics
two women sharing documents

A four-year collaborative partnership between the Falk College and the Council of Europe’s Cooperation Group to Combat Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking in Drugs will support rigorous curricular development and training for drug policy administrators. Dessa Bergen-Cico, associate professor of public health and coordinator of Falk College’s addiction studies programs, right, is Syracuse University’s partnership lead.

A four-year collaborative partnership between the Falk College and the Council of Europe’s Cooperation Group to Combat Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking in Drugs (the Council of Europe’s Pompidou Group) will support rigorous curricular development and training for drug policy administrators. This collaboration is an outgrowth of Falk College’s on-going partnerships with the Pompidou Group and Syracuse University’s Study Abroad Strasbourg program.

Dessa Bergen-Cico, associate professor of public health and coordinator of Falk College’s addiction studies programs, is Syracuse University’s partnership lead. She has worked with the Pompidou Group since 2010 to support drug policy administrators in developing sustainable, effective drug policies focused on public health and safety. The trainings provide managers from government and non-government institutions with objective, data-driven approaches to developing, implementing and evaluating national drug policies that are evidence based, promote human rights and strengthen international cooperation. Using data as a foundation, this cooperation supports effective policies and academic research.  Faculty and select students with an interest in research in drug policy and drug use trends may contact Bergen-Cico (dkbergen@syr.edu) to learn more about opportunities for involvement in research and the biannual executive education trainings.

Results of these collaborations to date include published research in Substance Use and Misuse,  The Neuropathology of Drug Addictions and Substance Misuse, Journal of Drug Policy Analysis,  International Journal of Psychology and Psychoanalysis, and World Medical and Health Policy as well as international executive-level training and presentations.

Bergen-Cico’s research and scholarship span numerous emerging democracies focused on drug policies and emerging trends in drug use. In 2011, students and faculty from Falk College’s public health program attended the Pompidou Group—Syracuse University Trans-Atlantic Executive Training on Drug Policy:  Effective Governance of Coherent Drug Policies where Bergen-Cico presented on the then-emerging opioid crisis in the United States. In 2015, she was selected as a Fulbright Scholar to conduct research on substance use and drug policy in the country of Georgia and across Eurasia.

Last spring, Bergen-Cico presented training for the Council of Europe on new psychoactive substance use trends and demand reduction responses in the U.S. where she shared her groundbreaking research on new psychoactive substances Kratom and Siberian Ephedra. In September 2017, Thomas Kattau and Elena Hedoux from the Council of Europe’s Pompidou Group visited Syracuse University to promote internship opportunities and study abroad programs. This visit included several presentations on the role of international cooperation in fighting drug use, the migration wave in Europe and resulting challenges for public health systems, and how new psychoactive substances are bringing new challenges to societies.

After learning about Bergen-Cico’s research on the efficacy of mindfulness-based programs for prevention and drug demand reduction in the U.S., Ricardo Sánchez Huesca, Mexico’s deputy general director of youth integration centers for Mexico, invited her to conduct training in Mexico.  In addition to a December 2017 seminar on  mindfulness for prevention of traumatic stress and addictive behaviors, Bergen-Cico gave the keynote presentation titled, “New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) Trends and in the United States” at the 19th International Congress on Addictions: Dual Disorders and Comorbidity Associated with Substance Use in Cancun, Mexico.

This spring, Bergen-Cico conducted the training, “Political or scientific evaluation? Examination of legalized cannabis policy outcomes in the U.S.” with 25 participants from 17 countries representing four different continents as part of the 2018 Pompidou Group’s executive training program in Venice, Italy. This program that examined evaluating the development, implementation and impact of drug policy will take place in Lisbon, Portugal, this fall where Bergen-Cico will participate.

  • Author

Michele Barrett

  • Recent
  • Media Tip Sheet: Consequences of China Lockdown
    Thursday, May 19, 2022, By Vanessa Marquette
  • Dean Rajiv ‘Raj’ Dewan to Step Down as Dean of the School of Information Studies
    Thursday, May 19, 2022, By News Staff
  • 2022 Graduates Reflect on Service as Academic Coaches
    Thursday, May 19, 2022, By Ellen de Graffenreid
  • Funding Expands for Newhouse Professors’ Work on Technology to Combat Fake News
    Wednesday, May 18, 2022, By Wendy S. Loughlin
  • Biology and Earth and Environmental Sciences Departments Come Together on Diversity and Engagement Initiatives
    Tuesday, May 17, 2022, By News Staff

More In Health & Society

Falk Graduate Student Rebecca Garofano Honored by Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics

Rebecca Garofano, a Falk College graduate student in nutrition science, was honored with the Outstanding Dietetics Student Award at the New York State Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Annual Meeting and Expo April 8-9 in Syracuse. Garofano is actively engaged…

Phillandra Smith Finds and Fosters Community at Syracuse University

Phillandra Smith hadn’t considered a Ph.D. until a professor at Barry University asked what she would do after finishing a master’s degree. Smith, who is from the Bahamas, had planned to return to the classroom. “This professor was honestly really…

Couple, Family Counseling Services Available at the Falk College

Sometimes we need extra support to manage the more difficult challenges in life, including challenges in our family relationships. A trained couple and family therapist can make an enormous difference in keeping these important connections healthy and strong for life….

Design Professor Co-Authors Book on Design Thinking for a Regenerative Future

A new book about the importance of design thinking for a regenerative future grew from a conversation at Syracuse University between two like-minded visionaries. In September 2018, world-renowned futurist and thinker David Houle ’69, a graduate of the College of…

From Orange to Black and Gold: Athletic Advising Certificate Helps Ella Simkins ’20, G’21 Land at Army Lax

Ella Simkins ’20, G’21 had big plans for the 2020 women’s lacrosse season. A standout defender, in her junior year she had started all 21 games, recorded career highs in caused turnovers and draw controls, and ranked third on the…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2022 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.