Public health and law enforcement in partnership: What does the public need to know about illegal cannabis?
Kim Shelford, BC Cannabis Secretariat
Hovan Baghdassarian, BC Cannabis Secretariat
Rachel Huggins, Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau
Since legalization in 2018, the licensed cannabis market has grown steadily, but has not eliminated illegal production in Canada. Unregulated cannabis producers continue to supply thousands of Canadians, but without any of the oversight or protective measures created to regulate and prevent potentially harmful chemical and microbiological exposures. In this webinar, presenters from the National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health, the BC Cannabis Secretariat, and the Ontario Provincial Police will talk about their recent projects looking at illegal cannabis products and the harmful contaminants. We will also discuss the need for broader collaboration between regulators, law enforcement and public health when communicating with Canadians about the potential risks of illegal cannabis use.
Kim Shelford
Director, Data Monitoring and Secretariat Operations, BC Cannabis Secretariat
Kim Shelford was the project lead for the BC Cannabis Secretariat’s testing project. Kim has over 20 years of experience working in the provincial government with a focus on corporate planning, research partnerships, policy, performance management, and business administration.
Hovan Baghdassarian
Executive Director, BC Cannabis Secretariat
The BC Cannabis Secretariat, within the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General, led the development of BC’s non-medical cannabis regulatory framework and is the central coordinating body for non-medical cannabis policy across the provincial government. The Secretariat is responsible for negotiating Section 119 cannabis agreements with individual Indigenous nations and co-chairs a working group with the First Nations Leadership Council which discusses cannabis-related issues of interest to BC First nations, with a primary focus on associated economic opportunities for nations and businesses. The Secretariat also has a public education role, helping partners, stakeholders and the public understand the provincial and federal legal cannabis landscapes.
Rachel Huggins
Deputy Director/Executive Lead, Cannabis Legalization, Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau
Rachel recently joined the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) as the Deputy Director/Executive Lead, Cannabis Legalization, Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau.
Rachel spent the last 16 years at Public Safety Canada leading and managing complex horizontal policy issues related to policing and public safety with a focus on leveraging research to develop and implement cutting edge policies, and bringing together partners with diverging views to collaboratively improve law enforcement responses to community safety and security issues. Prior to joining the OPP, Rachel was the Manager of Drug Policy Development, in the Serious and Organized Crime Division. In this role, she led the complex department and government priority policy files relating to cannabis legalization and regulation, drug impaired driving, the opioids crisis, and contraband tobacco.
Rachel’s current position with the OPP is to provide strategic and expert advice to senior command and to rollout an operational plan for the implementation phases of legalization of cannabis, including acting as a focal point of contact in the law enforcement sector.
Rachel is the co-chair of the Ontario Association Chief of Police, Substance Advisory Committee and a member of the Canadian Association Chiefs of Police, Drug Advisory Committee, leading initiatives which ensure police are coordinated, supported and advancing balanced, innovative, and community focused drug enforcement and harm reduction policies.
Rachel holds Bachelor of Honours, a Masters of Arts in Sociology and is ABD for a Ph.D. in Sociology.
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