Psychedelic Outlook 2021: How Far Can This Industry Go?

by | Jul 26, 2021

Industry analysts are bullish about the financial potential of the psychedelic drug market, predicting North American sales of almost $7 billion by 2027. A continuing search for new and effective treatments for burgeoning mental illnesses fuels the confidence. On the other hand, new medicinal drugs can face more regulatory roadblocks than recreational ones. This panel, representing some of the most active companies in psychedelic research and development, will come up with a realistic timetable for the full greenlight for licensed psychoactive healing.

 

Moderator – Katie Pringle

Honouring Indigenous Roots

by | Jul 26, 2021

Scientists studying the clinical applications of psychedelics inevitably find their way to ayahuasca shamanism and the role of natural mind-altering substances in Indigenous spirituality and religious practice. In a field of study where science and religion can truly co-exist, researchers and non-Indigenous people must be mindful of honouring the traditions of sacred plants as they attempt to build a bridge between Native cultures and the efficacy of their medicine. This session will consider the traditional use of psychedelics and the reciprocity that must come with adapting it.

Legal and Regulatory Landscape in Canada and Abroad

by | Jul 26, 2021

Some jurisdictions have already moved toward legalization of medical use of psychedelics. And the wellness community, investors and researchers are thinking positively about imminent wide acceptance. Upcoming breakthroughs may involve court challenges, or changes in existing legislation. Canada has already opened the door for access for end-of-life care, and therapists are seeking to expand the latitude they’ve been given. Once prohibition is past, then a full-fledged regulatory landscape will replace it, covering intellectual property, inspection, quality control, distribution, etc. This panel will look ahead to a legal, regulated future for psychedelics.

 Moderator – Sam Riches

Psychedelic Psychiatry: A Historical Examination of Medical Experimentation, Culture Wars, and Drug Policy in Canada

by | Jul 26, 2021

In 1956 psychiatrist and superintendent of the Provincial Mental Hospital in Saskatchewan, Canada Humphry Osmond, first used the word ‘psychedelic’ to describe the feelings and sensations associated with an LSD drug reaction. A year later his new word was published and later added to the English lexicon after corresponding with literary genius, Aldous Huxley. In spite of the popular connotations now connected to the word psychedelic, Osmond developed the term out of his experiments with LSD that led him to propose a new theory of schizophrenia alongside a somewhat radical suggestion to treat alcoholism using LSD. In contrast with many of his psychiatric contemporaries, Osmond maintained that pharmacotherapies flourished most when combined with tenets of empathy, deference, and even ritual – features he learned from Indigenous ceremonies with plant medicines. Although Osmond was not alone among his psychiatrist colleagues in the 1950s fascinated with the medical applications of psychedelics, his work in Canada brought him international recognition and made him a major figure in the history of LSD and addiction research, but also an awkward character in a looming countercultural revolution. LSD was banned from use by the late 1960s for a combination of moral and scientific reasons, but new developments in the 21st are encouraging policy makers and researchers to revisit these historical studies. This presentation examines some of the historical Canadian trials with LSD, while it remained a legal substance, and considers how the drug and its supporters dealt with challenges, first from the medical community and later from political and moral authorities concerned about the abusive characteristics of the drug.