Harm reduction is a set of practical strategies that reduce negative consequences of behaviors (e.g., sexual activity, drug use, etc.), incorporating a spectrum of strategies from safer sex, safer use, etc. to abstinence. Harm reduction strategies meet people “where they are,” addressing their conditions and contexts, along with the behaviors themselves. Examples of Harm Reduction

• Seat belt and helmet laws
• Opiate replacement therapy (methadone and buprenorphine)
• Testing ecstasy at raves
• Sex ed classes that include abstinence info, but are not abstinence-only
• Overdose prevention efforts
• Safe injection rooms
• Emergency Contraception distribution
• Domestic Violence counseling services (safety planning)
• Ergonomics

For more resources, visit:

• www.harmreduction.org
• www.eminism.org/readings/harmreduction.html
• www.drugpolicyalliance.org
• www.sexuality.org
• www.siecus.org