arah was born and raised in Fort McMurray, Alberta. She completed her Juris Doctor at Bond University in Queensland, Australia, and currently works as a criminal defence lawyer at a boutique law firm, Leamon Roudette Law Group, centrally located in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia. Her practice area is focused on impaired driving offences under both provincial and federal legislation.
Last year, Sarah was personally selected by the government of Canada to appear as a legal expert before both the House of Commons and the Senate to testify about proposed changes to impaired driving law. Sarah is a contributing writer to The Georgia Straight and The Huffington Post. She is regularly sought out by the media for the expertise in impaired driving law. She has appeared on Power & Politics, CBC, Global News and on CTV. She is passionate about social justice and community involvement. She acts as the Board Chair for PACE Society in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side and co-founded of The Coven Club, a social enterprise founded for the advancement of women, as well as the Women’s Association of Criminal Lawyers British Columbia.
Deepak Anand is a globally recognized cannabis industry expert and the Principal of British Columbia–based ASDA Consultancy Services, a strategic advisory firm working with clients across the legal cannabis value chain. With over a decade of experience navigating the intersection of policy, regulation, and business development, Deepak has advised governments, large CPGs, and multinational tobacco companies on cannabis strategy, compliance, and market entry.
He has played a pivotal role in shaping cannabis regulations in Canada and internationally, including active involvement in government consultations and the formation of industry associations. Deepak is also highly regarded for his work with Indigenous communities and his deep expertise in complex licensing and regulatory pathways.
A frequent speaker at global conferences, Deepak brings a uniquely practical and cross-jurisdictional perspective on the evolving cannabis landscape from domestic legalization models to international trade and pharmaceutical integration.
Av Singh is one of the leading proponents of regenerative organic cannabis production being engaged in cannabis projects across six continents. Dr. Singh has authored over 200 peer-reviewed papers, chapters, and extension articles and has been an invited speaker to over 600 workshops, conferences, symposia as well as guest-lecturing at over 30 universities in Canada, the US, the UK, and India. Av has had the privilege of visiting over 2500 farms across five continents which has shaped his extension of holistic, system-based design solutions. Emphasizing a union of traditional knowledge with science, Av works with growers to cultivate an appreciation of plant:soil interrelationships.
Currently, Av is the Executive Director of the Scotian Cannabis Alliance; the Chief Scientific Officer at Adonis Living Soils; Scientific Advisory Chair with Cannaray (UK) and also serves as a Cultivation Advisor within the cannabis industry with Flemming & Singh Cannabis and Lav & Kush Consulting having clients in over 20 countries. Av also works as the Chief Science Officer at BoomBrains; Chief Agricultural Scientist with Green Gorilla (US); the Chief Agronomist at BetraLif, the Chief Soil Scientist at CaliCann (Colombia); and the Cultivation Advisor at WildLeaf (Zimbabwe). Av has had his hand in developing several award-winning (High Times Stash Award) living soil recipes for container and living soil bed systems worldwide.
Lastly, Av is a long-time member of the Canadian Organic Growers and the National Farmers’ Union, as well as the Vice-President of Régénération Canada. Av is also a faculty member at Earth University (www.navdanya.org) in India where he delivers courses on agroecology and organic farming and has recently completed delivering a course on cannabis cultivation at the Nova Scotia Community College. Most importantly, Av and his wife, Ren Shepard have two amazing daughters (and grand-daughter, Mira), who all are kind enough to tolerate his obsessions with Bob Dylan, whisk(e)y, and rugby union.
Av is proud and privileged to be a settler in Mi’kma’ki, the unceded territory of the Mi’kmaw people, and constantly seeks to better understand his roles and responsibilities in adhering to the Peace and Friendship Treaties signed by the respective governments.
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