A US Police expert on gang violence will be amongst guest speakers at a three-day conference to highlight and offer answers to the problem of addictions in Bermuda, ranging from domestic violence to child pornography and drugs.

And the conference will be the first major event held at the newly built Berkeley Institute building when it is staged next month.

The school has yet to come in to use for students, but it is anticipated many future pupils will take the opportunity to see inside the new school by taking part in the second multi-addiction conference to be held on the Island.

Organisers hope young people will take part along with their parents and other adults, as professionals from across the Island and overseas meet to discuss solutions to the problem of addictions, particularly those that affect families and children.

Health Minister Patrice Minors gave a short rundown of what can be expected at the conference, to be held from March 8 -10, when she joined Premier Alex Scott at a press conference yesterday.

The Minister said: ?Following the success of the conference we had last year we are quite excited about this one. The venue will be the new Berkeley site, it will present a wonderful environment for this conference.

?There will also be a pre-conference workshop and this will be catering to the professionals and those that work within the area and it will touch areas such as professional burn-out, compassionate fatigue, using peer educators, the role of the family in effective treatment and the principals and practices of youth development.?

New Jersey Police officer DeLacy Davis will be amongst the guest speakers attending, bringing with him the latest information on gang violence and his understanding of how it is affecting Bermuda. He has carried out a survey on the Island.

Mrs. Minors said other areas to be covered included substance abuse, relationship abuse and domestic violence in the family and child pornography legislation. She added: ?We value our young people and we use every opportunity that we can to embrace them and provide them with information that would engage them in a more productive lifestyle.

?There will be a segment of the conference catering to the older youth called ?20 Point Choices? which will seek to equip them to the challenges of the future.?

She said there will also be a special segment of the conference for younger children and there will be no cost for young people who attended the conference.

Last year?s conference focused on obesity, sexual addiction and drug addiction, whereas this year?s was ?branching out a bit further looking at the family and the young people and the issues that they face,? said Mrs Minors.

Premier Mr. Scott said that as the Government and the country worked to rid society of drug abuse and addictions it also had to understand what drives addictions in the first place so that the core reasons can be tackled.

This was where this second annual multi-addiction conference would play a key role, he suggested.

?This year?s sessions will build on last year?s conference with the aim of moving individuals, families and the community toward healing and recovery,? he said.

?It will empower professionals through exposure to best practices and universal trends and provide the opportunity to work collaboratively and embrace new skills and tools.?