PNP Zones of Engagement Map

The PnP Zones Map is a new conceptualization of an individual’s PnP Journey which draws on key insights from the lived experiences of 2SGBTQ+ men who party n’ play and extensive research. The map translates an abstract concept into a visual roadmap, enabling community members and service providers alike to identify and understand “where they are at” with Party & Play. This also allows for more impactful support and more personalized strategies when addressing challenges arising from partying. The brochure for Party & Play, Zones of Engagement Map, is an outcome of research and community consultations conducted by Ismail et al. (2022).

The Zones of Engagement Map is made up of two sections, the first of which situates Party n’ Play in a historical, structural, and socio-cultural context. The map draws from research on PnP, the history of Canadian drug policy and harm reduction, and the experiences of stigma, criminalization, and persecution of 2SGBTQ+ men, that both made PnP a site of sexual liberation and intense social rejection.

The second section is the actual map which outlines each of the four Zones. Included here are a description of what PnP looks like in this zone, a number of potential common behaviours and outcomes, some of the challenges of offering support to those in the zone and lastly potential solutions to these challenges.

The four zones are an excellent descriptive tool  for 2SGBTQ+ men who PnP and their providers to assess where they are in relation to their involvement with PnP, allowing for deeper awareness and understanding, but also for the creation of more specific and personalized supports and services that meet community members where they are at, not where we think they should be.

To quote the authors, “The Zones Map is meant to support a broad range of stakeholders, including healthcare workers who provide services to men who PnP; public health and community health agencies who seek to meaningfully engage these men; and scholars who are interested in the PnP phenomenon. We hope the Map leads these stakeholders to understand the diverse and complex needs of those who PnP and to recognize the broader historical, structural, and socio-cultural factors shaping PnP.”