It was with great sadness that the EMCDDA learned of the passing of Richard Hartnoll on 9 December, following a long illness.

Richard made a major contribution to the development of the European drug information system, first through his work with the Council of Europe’s Pompidou Group and, subsequently, through his pioneering work at the EMCDDA.

Richard was involved in the activities of the EMCDDA from its very outset, joining the agency as Head of the Epidemiology Department in 1995. He worked at the agency until 2002, and in these years, made a substantial contribution to the development of the current EU drug monitoring system. In many ways, he can be regarded as the father figure of the EMCDDA’s core epidemiological indicators.

Before joining the agency, Richard worked at the influential Drug Indicators Project in London, and at the Institut Municipal d’Investigació Mèdica (IMIM) in Barcelona.

His work spanned all of the critical drug monitoring questions of the day — and included the development work that resulted in Europe’s current approach to monitoring drug treatment.

In his retirement, Richard found a new love, photography, and would enjoy strolling through Lisbon with a camera in his hand, often inviting his former colleagues to his exhibitions.

He will be greatly missed by all his colleagues at the EMCDDA and we send our condolences to his loving family.

The presentation focused on three specific points in time when young people need particular support to maintain their integration progress. These are when turning 18, when getting a positive asylum decision and at first reception. FRA discussed the challenges and good practices at the local level. 

The training manual will be developed using the guidance set in the FRA’s and the European Commission’s Handbook on Guardianship for children deprived of parental care, as well as principles in the UN’s child rights convention and EU law. For its development, FRA will closely cooperate with the European Network of Guardianship, formed by representatives from different Member States.

During the discussion, FRA drew on its existing findings in the field of AI and big data, in particular those related to facial recognition technology, data quality, discrimination in data-supported decision making. It also referred to preliminary findings from its research on artificial intelligence and fundamental rights published on 14 December. 

The presentations focused on the legal framework as well as good practices from practitioners in Member States. Some of the discussions related to best interests of the child throughout the return process, the right to information, limitations to the use of force and the need for further guidance and training. A checklist on monitoring returns where children are present will be developed as a follow-up to the workshop.