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Hacks for Vehicular Outreach

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Running harm reduction services from a vehicle adds mobility and reach—but also comes with its own set of logistical challenges. From packing and maintenance to mapping routes and finding parking, thoughtful planning helps keep things smooth and sustainable.

  • Make sure the bags and/or vehicles are packed leaving enough time for transiting to your locations.
  • Create vehicle maintenance schedules and make sure they have a point person.
  • Create and maintain internal area maps of participant locations.
  • If you are maintaining a large vehicle like an RV or bread truck, find a secure parking space and treat it like gold. Be sure to ask your larger community for leads on this. Harm reduction leaders report that this is one of the most difficult aspects of actually owning a vehicle, one that they may have wanted for many years.
  • Pack out your vehicles every night unless it is inside a garage.
  • Try to set up an area where there will be fewer objections from neighbors, away from residential or retail commercial areas.

Featured Hacks

These featured hacks highlight creative, practical solutions from harm reduction leaders on the ground. From DIY tools to clever workarounds, each one reflects the ingenuity, care, and real-world experience that keeps this movement alive. 

Hacks for Service and Supply Management

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Many of the harm reduction leaders that were interviewed for Space Hacks talked about how critical it is to effectively manage services, supplies, and inventory in order to maintain community tranquility. It may not feel intuitive, but OGs report that ineffective management of supplies is the number one potential flashpoint for escalated situations during harm reduction services.
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Edie Springer’s Worker Stances for Clients Who Use Drugs & Harm Reduction Worker: Best Practices

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Harm reduction immediately resonated for Edie, who was herself a former drug user and methadone patient. Faced with the devastation of HIV’s impact on drug-using communities, Edie fully embraced harm reduction and trained hundreds of harm reduction workers who have carried her legacy with them. She developed these worker stances in 1996 and they have been shared among many of us in the harm reduction community for generations.
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