The Real Work
Wendell Berry
It may be that when we no longer know what to do
we have come to our real work,
and that when we no longer know which way to go
we have come to our real journey.
The mind that is not baffled is not employed.
The impeded stream is the one that sings.
This brief post is written without the consultation or consideration of the leader of this meager scientific endeavor. Because his humility would run up against it. Sorry, Nab.
Earlier today, Nabarun Dasgupta was one of 25 thought leaders named as a 2025 MacArthur Fellow. The fellowship comes with plenty of funding and prestige. More importantly for us, as colleagues, it comes with validation of what we already knew: That Nab is a human worth celebrating. We hope that if this is your first visit to the page, you'll spend some time learning about his two-plus decades of tireless advocacy for people who use drugs, and in shaping policies and practices that humanize them.
A MacArthur Fellowship is a career-defining moment. And while today might be an opportunity for reflection and appreciation, it is telling that in the chaotic aftermath of the announcement, in e-mails and texts and calls, Nab's immediate focus is not on the past nor present but on the future: How this award will help us expand our work. 80,000 Americans died from overdose last year. That's tens of thousands fewer than what we've come to expect. But it's still tens of thousands too many. The work continues.
To bookend with a statement that Nab likely would approve of: Every human being, no matter what they consume or why they consume it, deserves dignity, autonomy, and safety. Harm reduction – the not-so-radical notion that uplifting is a more practical response to the overdose epidemic than condemning – is the way we choose to support this ideal. There are thousands of grassroots organizations across this country working to guarantee access to basic materials like naloxone, drug checking equipment, and safe use supplies. As importantly, these organizations offer the rare spaces where people stigmatized for their drug use are met with humanity and compassion. We hope you will consider donating, volunteering, and advocating for these efforts.
Sincerely,
The Opioid Data Lab
Header image courtesy of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation