NIDA International Program, National Institute on Drug Abuse

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Bethesda, Maryland 20892 USA

Phone: +1-301-443-6480
E-mail: ip@nida.nih.gov

Information and Resources

E-News

Number 19, January 2008

This E-News is issued every other month to inform the international drug abuse research community about:

What’s New

2008 NIDA International Forum Abstract Submission Deadline EXTENDED to February 15, 2008

Register now for the 2008 NIDA International Forum
Globally Improving and Applying Evidence-Based Interventions for Addictions
June 13–14, 2008
San Juan, Puerto Rico

Important Dates
January 15, 2008
NOW February 15, 2008		 Forum Abstract Submission and Travel Award Application Deadline
February 15, 2008
NOW March 17, 2008		 Forum Abstract and Travel Award Notification

WHO/NIDA/CPDD Traveling Fellowship Application Deadline
March 2008 WHO/NIDA/CPDD Traveling Fellowship Application Notification (to be confirmed)
April 10, 2008 Forum Registration and Lodging Deadline

Inhalant Abuse Working Group Formed in East and Southern Africa
Drug abuse professionals working in East and Southern Africa have formed an inhalant abuse working group to raise general awareness, develop education materials, train service providers, educate government officials, and promote scientific research on the topic. Meeting in conjunction with a November 2007 UNODC Regional Consultation in Mombasa, Kenya, 15 participants from 11 countries appointed two coordinators for the East and Southern Africa Inhalant Abuse Working Group: former NIDA Humphrey Fellow Dr. Peter Ndege, Kenyan National Agency for the Campaign Against Drug Abuse Authority, and Mr. Rogers Kasirye, Uganda. The group intends to develop a listserv of interested groups to collect data for further analysis and provide training on inhalant abuse-related research, prevention, and treatment. Participants noted that little is known about inhalant abuse in Sub-Saharan Africa, although anecdotal evidence indicates that inhalant abuse is an issue in most cities among all groups, regardless of socioeconomic status, age, gender, or educational status. Members reported that glue, paint thinner, and gasoline are the most commonly abused substances, and that nongovernmental organizations are working with inhalant abusers despite the fact that they do not document this work. Participants represented Botswana, Kenya, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zanzibar. For more information, contact Dr. Ndege at pkndege@yahoo.com.


Montoya Presented with NIDA Director’s Award for International Efforts
Dr. Ivan Montoya, NIDA Division of Pharmacotherapies and Medical Consequences of Drug Abuse (DPMCDA), was presented with the NIDA Director’s Award January 16, 2008, for his efforts to help implement the Institute's Latin American Initiative. Dr. Montoya has (1) represented NIDA at several international conferences and UNODC working groups, (2) served as a key liaison with the National Hispanic Science Network as it expands into the international arena, (3) taken a leadership role in developing the NIDA International Program Web-based collaboration tools targeting Latin America, and (4) worked closely with the NIDA International Program and major Latin American organizations, such as the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) at the Organization of American States, to help develop and implement key components of the Latin American Initiative. Dr. Montoya was a Hubert H. Humphrey Drug Abuse Research Fellow from his native country of Colombia. He spent 4 years in academia and 7 years as a clinical investigator in the NIDA Intramural Research Program before joining DPMCDA.

NIDA Director Dr. Nora Volkow and DPMCDA Director Dr. Frank Vocci congratulate Dr. Ivan Montoya, center, on his Director's Award of Merit.

NIDA Director Dr. Nora Volkow and DPMCDA Director Dr. Frank Vocci congratulate Dr. Ivan Montoya, center, on his Director's Award of Merit.

NIDA Funds Three International Tobacco Research Awards
Binational research teams in Argentina, Brazil, and Syria have been awarded NIDA R01 research project grants through the Fogarty International Center International Tobacco and Health Research and Capacity Building Program. The program supports transdisciplinary research and capacity-building projects that address the burden of tobacco consumption in low- and/or middle-income nations by funding U.S. researchers partnering with scientists and institutions in low- and/or middle-income nation(s), where tobacco consumption is currently (or anticipated to become) a public health priority. The major portion of the research must be conducted outside of the United States, and more than 60 percent of the direct costs requested must be used in the partner nation for either research and/or capacity strengthening of foreign institutions. The research teams include:

  • Dr. Eliseo Perez-Stable, University of California San Francisco, will collaborate with Raul Mejia, Universidad de Buenos Aires, and Ethel Alderete, Universidad Nacional De Jujuy, to develop an intervention to prevent tobacco use among diverse youth in Northwest Argentina; to implement and evaluate a system-based smoking cessation intervention using a randomized trial design among physicians to promote smoking abstinence and quit attempts in their patients who smoke; and to develop policy interventions to promote smoke-free indoor space and regulation of tobacco products’ advertising by continuing to analyze the tobacco industry documents on Argentina.
  • Dr. Isabel Scarinci, University of Alabama at Birmingham, will collaborate with Brazilian scientists at the Pontificia Universidade Catolica do Parana to develop a Network for Tobacco Control among Women in Parana, Brazil, in order to establish community and institutional capacity to promote gender-relevant tobacco control efforts among Brazilian women through community-based participatory research and training. The goals of the network are to reduce tobacco use and exposure to environmental tobacco smoke among Brazilian women, and to develop a cadre of well-trained researchers in tobacco control.
  • Dr. Wasim Maziak, University of Memphis and the Syrian Center for Tobacco Studies, will study adolescent tobacco use patterns and determinants: a school-based longitudinal study will examine trends in tobacco use in 4,000 Syrian youth; a laboratory study of 240 waterpipe users will investigate waterpipe toxicant exposure, dependence, and risk; and a randomized clinical trial will test a smoking cessation intervention in 250 smokers.

International Mentor Prevention Awards Applications Due March 31, 2008
The International Mentor Prevention Awards 2008 will recognize and celebrate promise and achievement in drug abuse prevention globally. Awards are open to all organizations working in the field of drug abuse prevention. The award categories are:

  • The Achievement Award (€20,000): Recognizes a drug prevention project that has been operating for at least 3 years, is based on sound principles of prevention, and has demonstrated success through evaluation.
  • The Innovation Award (€20,000): Recognizes a project that integrates innovative approaches based on sound principles of prevention that shows promise for achieving successful prevention outcomes.
  • The "Big Idea" Youth Initiative Award (€10,000): For a youth or group of young people that proposes a new and innovative prevention initiative that could be undertaken and evaluated. (The €10,000 will be awarded to implement the initiative.)

Applications are due March 31, 2008. For more information, see the award guidelines, contact awards@mentorfoundation.org, or call +44 1509 221622 and ask for Mentor Prevention Awards. The awards will be presented at the St. Tropez Polo Club, France, on June 28, 2008, by the president of Mentor, Her Majesty the Queen of Sweden.

Funding Opportunities

International Research Collaboration on Drug Addiction
The NIDA International Program solicits collaborative research proposals on drug abuse and addiction that take advantage of unusual talent, resources, populations, or environmental conditions in other countries; speed scientific discovery; and meet NIDA research priorities. The Program Announcements expire January 3, 2009. Funds are available for research using three grant mechanisms: R01: PA-07-275, R03: PA-07-311, or R21: PA-07-310.

Ongoing NIDA International Program Research and Training Opportunities

Existing NIDA-Supported Funding Opportunities

Other Funding Opportunities

NEW! Upcoming Program Announcement Receipt Dates from Fogarty

Research Training and Exchange Updates

For current information on NIDA and NIH training and exchange programs, please visit the following Web pages:

Ongoing NIDA International Program Research and Training Exchange Programs

Highlighting NIDA International Program Fellows

International Neuroscience Fellowship
One to two years of research training in the United States for junior or mid-career level foreign neuroscientists; cosponsored by the NIDA Division of Basic Neuroscience and Behavioral Research and three other NIH Institutes: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), and the National Institute on Aging (NIA).

Fogarty International Center
The Fogarty International Center, the international component of the NIH, addresses global health challenges through innovative and collaborative research and training programs and supports and advances the NIH mission through international partnerships.

Meetings

Calendar of Major Scientific Meetings in Drug Abuse Research

Calendar of Major Scientific Meetings in Drug Abuse Research

Press Releases

Other Items of Interest

NIDA Methadone Research Web Guide

National Library of Medicine (NLM)

NIH Library Research Tools

NOTE: The following information is being provided for informational purposes only. Reference to any Website listed below does not constitute endorsement or recommendation by NIDA/NIH/HHS.

The Research Assistant
NIDA-funded online research tool for behavioral scientists.

Publishing Addiction Research Internationally: www.PARINT.org

SciDev.Net

The International Society of Addiction Medicine offers an International Certification in Addiction Medicine for physicians.

Access to Free or Low Cost Online Publications for Researchers

Reading Corner

Look here for research articles or other publications that may be of interest to the international drug abuse research community.

NOTE: The following information is being provided for informational purposes only. Reference to any Website listed below does not constitute endorsement or recommendation by NIDA/NIH/HHS.