Papanastasatos Gerasimos

Sociologist – Criminologist

Gerasimos D. Papanastasatos, Doctor in Social Studies, is a sociologist – criminologist. Since 1992, he has been working at the Therapy Center for Dependent Individuals’ (KETHEA) Research Department holding the position of the Department’s Head. He has been involved in addictive behavior research since the late 1980s, designing and implementing research programs to evaluate treatment, prevention and education projects for professionals. Due to his expertise on the field of psychoactive substances addiction, he has developed research projects for treatment evaluation efforts based on policy and strategic plans in national and global level. He is international evaluator of research proposals at European level. Because of preparation requirements of candidate countries aiming to support their affiliation to European Union, including development of adequate structures and institutions, he participated to the expert and technical groups, which provided education and training in building information collection and monitoring systems. As part of his research activity, he has participated to committees for the development of information systems and evaluation of research applications in many countries. As principal trainer, he organizes training programs and he is principal participant to special workshops related to research in the field of addictive behaviors, treatment services development, research instruments use, as well as methodology of evaluating interventions, programs and policies. Beside his firm collaboration with Universities in Athens, Thessaloniki and Cyprus he teaches as visitor lecturer in relevant University Departments mainly subjects relating to addictive behavior, program development methodology, resource finding, group dynamic research methodology, evaluation research and ethics. He participates in many national and international committees as an expert and he has a significant number of publications. He is supervises many evaluation programs in Greece and abroad as well as programs aiming to investigate, search and develop policies, strategy and action plans. As certified Addiction Counselor (ICRC) he is evaluator for the certification of new members. He is member to many relevant professional and scientific associations, member of the editorial board of scientific journals and reviewer of scientific articles, as well as member of scientific committees and organizing committees of international and national conferences. He has been in charge as Special Secretary to the Board of the Hellenic Palliative Care Society for Children and Adolescents and their Families. During the Greek Presidency, the first 2014’s semester, to the Council of the European Union, he was been appointed to Council of the European Union Horizontal Drug Group’s Vice-Chair. He is an alternate member of the Board of EMCDDA, representative of Greece in the Bureau and member of the permanent Greek delegation of the Council of Europe’s Pompidou Group, representative of the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs and the Horizontal Drug Group of the Council of the European Union.