In this episode of CCDP Spotlight, Jennifer Thornquest speaks with Dr. Khalid Tinasti about the global governance of drug policy and why it has become a critical site of geopolitical contestation. The conversation unpacks how international drug control, one of the most ratified global regimes, shapes national policy, security priorities, and multilateral cooperation. Drawing on Tinasti’s research, the episode explores how shifting power dynamics, public health crises, and pressure on multilateral institutions are reshaping the future of global drug governance.
International drug policy sits at the intersection of health, security, and global governance, yet it is often misunderstood as a narrow law-enforcement issue.In this episode, Jennifer Thornquest is joined by Dr. Khalid Tinasti to examine how the international drug control regime is structured, why it remains so resilient, and where it is under strain. The discussion moves from the role of International Geneva and multilateral mandates, to the challenges countries face when global legal frameworks collide with local realities.
The conversation also explores how drug policy increasingly shapes foreign and security policy, from the fentanyl crisis to maritime enforcement and regional tensions, and what these dynamics reveal about the future of multilateralism. The episode concludes with reflections on where global drug governance may be heading and what debates will matter most in the years ahead.
About the People
Guest: Khalid Tinasti
Khalid Tinasti serves as a Visiting Lecturer at the Geneva Graduate Institute, where he teaches international drug policy and supervises Master students’ theses on drug control policies, and a Research Associate at its Centre on Conflict, Development and Peacebuilding. He is also a Visiting Fellow at the International Center on Drug Policy Studies at Shanghai University. He is the former Head of Secretariat of the Climate Overshoot Commission, and the former Director of the Global Commission on Drug Policy. Earlier, he worked as a consultant for UNAIDS, WHO, OHCHR, and others. Prior to that, Khalid worked as a Press and Communications Officer in the office of the Minister of Urban Cohesion (cabinet du ministre de la Ville) in France, and as an Executive Officer in Gabon. Khalid holds a PhD in political science from the Institut Catholique de Paris, and held research and teaching fellowships at the Global Health Programme at the Geneva Graduate Institute (2015-16), at the Global Studies Institute at the University of Geneva (2018-2021) and an honorary fellowship at Swansea University (2016-20).
His drug policy related books include: Historical Dictionary of International Drug Policy (Bloomsbury, 2027 – forthcoming); Contemporary History of Drug Policy (Ed. with Zhang Y, Routledge, 2026 – forthcoming); Drug Policy: A Multidisciplinary Approach (Ed., Edward Elgar, 2026 – forthcoming); International Drug Control Law, Trends and Reform Challenges (Anthem Press, 2025); Research Handbook on International Drug Policy (Ed. with Bewley-Taylor DR, Edward Elgar, 2020); Drug Policies and Development: Conflict and Coexistence (Ed. with Buxton J and Chinery-Hesse M, Graduate Institute/Brill | Nijhoff, 2020).
Host and Producer: Jennifer Thornquest, Research Associate, CCDP
Jennifer (Gigi) Thornquest is a social science researcher whose current research focuses on participatory arts and peacebuilding at the intersection of migration and education. With a background in communication, she explores the role of language and storytelling in shaping public discourse. She is a research associate at the CCDP and producer of the Spotlight Podcast.
The CCDP Spotlight Podcast is a production of the Geneva Graduate Institute’s Centre on Conflict, Development, and Peacebuilding (CCDP).
Production Credits
The CCDP Spotlight Podcast is produced by the Geneva Graduate Institute’s Centre on Conflict, Development and Peacebuilding (CCDP).
🔗 Learn more about CCDP: https://www.graduateinstitute.ch/ccdp
The views and opinions expressed in the interviews featured on this podcast belong solely to the respective guests and interviewees. They should not be construed as representative of or endorsed by the Geneva Graduate Institute or the Centre on Conflict, Development and Peacekeeping (CCDP).