Discover what
Mainline
stands for

Mainline is a harm reduction organisation based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. We focus on reducing harm from drug use. Quitting is never a prerequisite for support.

MAINLINE STANDS FOR HARM REDUCTION

Our vision

People who use drugs have the same universal rights as any other human being. However, the consequence of international prohibition on certain substances is that people who use drugs are marginalised, discriminated against and in many countries also criminalised. Mainline stands up for the rights and health of people who use drugs.

Our mission

Our mission is to contribute to the health and well-being of people who use drugs and the fulfilment of their human rights. We do this without a primary focus on the reduction of drug use and with respect for the individual’s freedom of choice. In our view, harm reduction offers people the chance to control their use of drugs and take back their own lives within realistic boundaries.

Mainline is firmly connected with the diverse Dutch communities of people who use drugs, while working with partner organisations across four continents. Created in 1990, Mainline’s goal was to protect people who inject drugs from the HIV epidemic that was raging through the community. From the start, we have done so by providing factual, no-nonsense and non-judgemental information and by distributing sterile syringes and needles.

Our work

CAPACITY STRENGTHENING

Our capacity strengthening approach acknowledges the importance of sustainable learning in order to make positive changes in the service delivery of the learning participants, and an impact on the lives of their target groups. We aim to share knowledge across countries and have built an online Harm Reduction School offering a variety of courses. All e-courses can be integrated in a blended learning trajectory, combined with face-to-face learning. Through such blended learning, Mainline offers cost-effective capacity strengthening, supporting trainees through in-person and/or online meetings, if needed over a longer period.

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

Mainline also has extensive experience in providing technical assistance to grassroots organisations across the world. Our expertise includes all issues linked to harm reduction, as well as advocacy (strategizing, planning), community mobilisation and organisational development (capacity assessment, leadership development, financial management, governance & strategy, and community ownership & accountability).

Mainline has three
primary objectives

Advocating for the health and social status of people who use(d) drugs

Improving the availability and quality of support services for people who use drugs, with a focus on harm reduction

Promoting harm reduction as a humane and science-based approach

Our
focal points

Harm reduction is the reduction of (health) damage caused by drug use. Primarily for the people who use, but also for their environment and society as a whole. Mainline is committed to interventions such as drug testing services, information, needle exchange, drug consumption rooms, opiate provision, HIV care, testing and treatment of infectious diseases such as hepatitis B and C and STIs, housing first projects, and overdose prevention. Such harm reduction interventions allow people to take back control over their use and their lives within frameworks that are feasible for them.

Mainline’s guiding principle is that every individual is entitled to care, support and compassion, regardless of their lifestyle and choices. While respecting the autonomy of people who use drugs, we provide tools and information to improve health and quality of life. This approach creates an inclusive, empathetic environment where people feel heard, understood and respected.

The perceptions, motivations and lifestyles of people who use drugs are the starting point of Mainline’s operations. This principle of meaningful involvement is crucial in harm reduction and includes people who use drugs in an accessible way in a collective effort to reduce harm from drug use.

Mainline stresses the importance of a safe political and social environment. The World Health Organisation (WHO) calls this an “enabling environment”. In the context of people who use drugs, this refers to creating policies and conditions that promote the health and well-being of people who use drugs without stigmatising or criminalising them, while at the same time reducing the harmful effects of drug use. Mainline fights for the legal status of people who use drugs.

Mainline's core values

Scientifically based – rational

People-oriented – with compassion

Authentic – creative and self-willed