Access to Psychedelics Is National Security Issue, Says Colo. Prop 122 Campaign Leader
Kevin Matthews was a key figure in both the 2018 campaign to decriminalize psilocybin in Denver and the 2022 campaign to pass Prop 122, which legalized psychedelics in regulated and personal use settings. Today he is CEO of the Helix Consulting Group, a public affairs and education services firm for the psychedelic ecosystem. Matthews recently […]
Treating Those ‘Who Truly Have No Other Place to Go’
A Q&A with Alchemy’s Deidra Somerville Deidra Somerville is the executive director of the Alchemy Community Therapy Center, a nonprofit psychedelic-therapy clinic that treats underserved populations in Oakland, California. HealingMaps named it one of the best ketamine clinics in the region for striving to create “a world where everyone can access the freeing mental health […]
Why Psychedelics Will Attract More ‘Mission-Minded’ Businesses Than Cannabis Does
A Q&A with Sheva Pekar A long-time advocate of policy reform in both cannabis and psychedelics, Sheva Pekar was one of the driving forces behind Denver’s decriminalization of psilocybin in 2019. Today, her consultancy firm PsyCann Advisors works with businesses around the country to navigate the varying legal landscapes of these emerging markets. Pekar recently […]
Shifting Local Laws Make Psilocybin Businesses ‘A Lot of Work’ to Establish in Oregon
A Q&A with Oregon’s Angela Allbee Angela Allbee is manager of the Oregon Psilocybin Services Section, which is part of the Public Health Division of the Oregon Health Authority, and oversees the implementation of Measure 109. In January, her team began accepting license applications from aspiring psilocybin facilitators, manufacturers, service centers and testing labs. A […]
How to Bridge the ‘Huge Knowledge Gap’ Between Those Inside the Psychedelics Bubble and Those Outside
Taylor West served as chief of staff for New Approach, a PAC that campaigned for Oregon’s Measure 109 and Colorado’s Prop 122, both successful ballot initiatives that made psychedelic therapies legal in those states. A veteran in drug policy reform with more than two decades of experience in project leadership and strategic communications, she has […]
Will Colorado Look to Rein In Prop 122’s Personal Use Clause?
A Q&A with Psychedelics Attorney Sean Allister A legal pioneer and in both cannabis and psychedelics, Sean McAllister was one of the key thought leaders behind Colorado’s Natural Medicine Health Act, aka Prop 122. His firm, McAllister Law Office, serves a wide range of clients interested in psychedelics, from religious spiritual practitioners to psychedelic […]
‘We’ll Refine It Until We Get It Right,’ Says Co-Chief of Prop 122 Campaign
For two years, Veronica Lightning Horse Perez led the community-outreach efforts for the Natural Medicine Health Act in Colorado, also known as Prop 122. She traveled the state, talking to residents about plant medicines, engaging with local reporters and politicians, and gathering signatures for the ballot initiative. In November, voters passed the measure by 53.6%, […]
Combat Veteran Neil Markey on How His Struggle with PTSD Led to a New Approach at Beckley Retreats
By Brad Dunn — Neil Markey served with the U.S. Army Rangers, the premier light infantry unit and special operations force, in Iraq in 2007 and Afghanistan in 2009 and 2011. After coming home, he enrolled at Columbia University’s Business School in New York City, where he excelled as an MBA student, but began suffering […]
