DRCNet is to be one of three featured organizations in the On The Move section of the next issue of the Drug Policy Letter, the quarterly news- letter of the Drug Policy Foundation. Indeed, things are on the move here. In the last month, DRCNet has received funding of more than $1400 from the Foundation for Drug Policy and Human Rights, in Amsterdam, for a computer system upgrade; and has been awarded close to $6000 in the first round of the Drug Policy Foundation's grants program, for a membership drive.
In preparation for this campaign, we are recruiting an advisory board for the organization. (Because DRCNet is not formally incorporated, there is currently no board of directors.) The board is still in formation, but the following individuals have already accepted our invitation: Rick Doblin, President of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies; Attorney Richard Evans, a member of the new NORML board; Mike Gray, a prominent author and screenwriter (his credits include The China Syndrome); Jon Holmes, Chairman of the Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts Drug Policy Task Force; Mario Lap, Director of the Foundation for Drug Policy and Human Rights (author of the cannabis legalization legislation currently before the Dutch parliament); Cliff Schaffer, co-author of the "Hoover Resolution"; Eric Sterling, President of the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation; and Don Topping, Director of the Social Science Research Institute of the University of Hawaii at Manoa.
The DRCNet e-mail team has swelled to nearly 500 members. To encourage e- mail participants to contribute financially, we are offering the following new membership category: virtual. Virtual members receive DRCNet publications by e-mail only. Virtual membership is $10/year, which approximates the $25/year for full membership, less the cost of printing and postage. E-mail publications are already distributed without charge, so virtual members' contributions are purely philanthropic.
One final piece of news: we have arranged the possibility for significant discounts on long-distance telephone calling for our members and supporters. Affinity long-distance offers a guaranteed 10 percent or more off of any long-distance plan you are currently using. (Our discount has worked out to be almost 50 percent!) In addition, 5 percent of your charges will be paid as royalties to DRCNet, and your monthly statement will contain a DRCNet announcement. We have spoken with people at other non-profit organizations participating in this program, and they all said that Affinity is delivering what it promises, to the non-profits and the long-distance customers. To enroll, contact Affinity at (800) 670-0008; give them DRCNet's assigned code: 611124000. DRCNet membership is not a requirement to enroll in this program, so spread the word!
