We are a coalition of European cities and regions committed to strengthening and promoting local policies to combat drug-related violence and harm. Join us!
About the Coalition
It is precisely in this area of prevention that local and regional authorities have a key role to play, complementing law enforcement. Europe’s cities and regions are on the front line, faced with violence and trafficking and the impact this has on social cohesion. Many are already developing comprehensive, innovative and effective prevention and response strategies. These initiatives demonstrate the potential of local solutions to tackle the multi-faceted problems posed by drugs and trafficking.
Faced with the scale of the illegal drugs market, it is natural for elected representatives and field practitioners to feel daunted and at times isolated.
>> The aim of this coalition is to find, through collective action, tools to better prevent and counter drug-related violence at the local level.
A proactive and pragmatic coalition of European cities and regions to strengthen, share and promote promising initiatives.
- 17 June, Brussels: conference on Cities & drugs: Towards a local governance balancing security, health & social cohesion organised by Efus jointly with the City of Brussels and with support from the European Union Drugs Agency (EUDA).
>> registration here - 25 June, online, web conference on European port cities and drug trafficking issues (insights from Rotterdam)
>> registration here
More information and useful resources.
Cities’ initiatives
Several prevention programmes are being implemented in the city of Amsterdam (Netherlands) to prevent young people from entering ‘criminal careers’ in drug trafficking. These programmes are based on large partnerships involving a wide range of local stakeholders as well as families.
The cities of Berlin, Essen and Hannover (Germany) are taking part in a privately-funded project to design municipal strategies for dealing with synthetic opioids. The project concerns both drug users and all relevant local stakeholders confronted with the impact of this type of drug.> More info on the German Forum for Urban Security’s (DEFUS) website
The city of Bordeaux (France) organises awareness sessions in local schools to alert young people on the risk of drug consumption, as part of its overall Drug Consumption and Trafficking Prevention Plan.
The Brussels-Capital Region (Belgium) is implementing a wide-ranging strategy to prevent violence related to drug trafficking, through the regional public body in charge of crime prevention, safe.brussels. A meeting was organised in November 2025 with all the stakeholders involved in protecting young people from such violence.
> More here
The Regional Authority of Corsica (France) is implementing a wide-ranging strategy to prevent and counter organised crime, which includes, among other initiatives, education to legality.
> Read our exclusive interview with Lauda Giudicelli, Executive Councillor of the Corsica Regional Authority
The city of Grigny (France) is implementing a strategy aimed at preventing young people aged 11-25 from getting involved in trafficking. It is based on a large local partnership gathering local associations, the national education system, the justice system and the police.
> More information in our practice sheet here [PS_France_Grigny_youth-drugs_since2023_ENG]
The city and urban community of La Rochelle (France) have led for several years a wide-ranging primary prevention programme to prevent young people from consuming drugs or being recruited into trafficking.
The cities of Lille, Loos and Sarcelles (France) have established a partnership among local organisations in the north of France to prevent young locals from being recruited into drug trafficking.
> More information in our practice sheet here [PS_France_Lille_prevention-youngpeople-drugs_since2020]
The city of Rennes (France) has led a communication campaign targeting young people to prevent them from being recruited by drug traffickers, as part of its global prevention strategy.
> More here (in French)
In the port of Rotterdam (Netherlands), one of Europe’s main points of entry for drugs, port personnel are given training on how to avoid being recruited by organised crime into offloading drugs or other criminal activities. The training method is based on virtual reality and sessions take place in a dedicated ‘training container’.
> More in this article
The city of Tilburg (Netherlands) works with families of organised crime members to lead them out of crime.
> More in this article and in our practice sheet here [PS_Tilburg_OrganisedCrime-Families_Ongoing]
Contact us
Do you work in a local or regional authority, a local association, or a non-governmental association? Are you a practitioner, or a researcher, or are involved in other ways in locally preventing drug-related harm and violence? For more information or to join the Coalition, please fill this form or drop us an email at coalitionofthewilling@efus.eu.