Pelle Olsson

Lecture in English 2017: Cannabis an introduction

Presentation

Pelle Olsson is an author, story teller and reporter about narcotic drugs. Born 1952 and brought up in a small town in the northern part of Sweden. Today he lives in Stockholm. He is registered nurse since the mid 70s, but has also worked in several other professions; dishwasher, nude model, refuse collector and stock-room worker.

The first book was published in 1992, a documentary about his fathers life as a commercial traveller of fork-lift trucks. At the same time he started his study of the international drug situation, which is still going on. As the editor of “Narkotikafrågan” (a magazine about drug issues) during ten years he got the opportunity the travel around, first in Europe, then in many other countries, to write about drug policy. In the latest years he has visited among others, Moldova, New Zealand, Afghanistan, Russia and Belarus, Jamaica, Canada, USA, Uganda…
Portugal, Netherlands, Denmark …
Altogether he has visited 23 countries to write about drugs.
Although he is critical about some aspects of the Swedish drug model – much more must be done to help the drug addicts and to stop the use of drugs among youngsters – he believes that a restricted drug policy is the best way to tackle the drug problems. That is not the same as a repressive policy! The police, social work, parents, schools etc. shall go together. Therefore he is also a supporter of the UN:s conventions about narcotics drug and the work of INCB and UNODC.

His travels and studies has resulted in a number of report books. (The titles and covers are you can see on this website. Go to “Böcker”.)
His latest book about drugs are Stenad (= Stoned) a report about cannabis, 2002, and
Opium, heroin, Subutex – a global report, 2007. Marijuana och frihet (=Marijuana and freedom) 2010. 8 myter om cannabis (=8 myths about cannabis) 2013.

The latest book is Big Marijuana  Read more about it on the front page.

None of his books are so far translated in English.

Pelle Olsson is twice rewarded for his journalistic works about drugs. 1992 by The Swedish Carnegie Institute and 2000 by the Swedish Medical Association of Addiction Medicine.