The Harm Reduction Futures Fund (HRFF) is one of the many programs that AIDS United provides to community-based organizations. By facilitating funding and support such as community education, mobilization, and advocacy, AIDS United facilitates desperately needed resources to provide life-saving services to community-based syringe service programs, including funding, education, and advocacy support. The Bad River Harm Reduction Program shares the following story of how AIDS United’s program impacts their ability to transform hundreds of lives every year:
“Since 2018, the Bad River Harm Reduction Program, a full-service initiative under the Bad River Tribal Government, has received critical support from AIDS United's Harm Reduction Futures Fund. This funding has been instrumental in achieving our core mission: employing and empowering individuals with lived and living experiences of drug use by developing their leadership skills and further engaging them in the well-being of the greater community.
Through HRFF's grant in 2022, we were able to hire our first dedicated staff member, preventing the program's closure. Leveraging this initial investment, the Bad River Tribe secured additional funding, allowing us to grow significantly. Today, we boast three full-time harm reduction staff and a network of six contracted community members, all Native Americans with lived experience. Together, we serve a vast, four-county rural region in northern Wisconsin. Furthermore, we've partnered with NextDistro to provide harm reduction supplies across the entire state via mail order. This expansion reflects the program's growing impact.
Beyond financial support, HRFF has provided valuable technical expertise. Their educational programs and networking opportunities with other Midwest and national harm reduction programs have been immensely beneficial. We deeply appreciate the collaboration with HRFF's outstanding team of leaders in the field. Our long-standing partnership with AIDS United has been a source of immense pride for the community and the Bad River Tribe.”
