Wednesday, January 15th, 2025 from 12:00-1:30pm PST

We are delighted to invite you to Chacruna’s first Community Forum of 2025, which will explore the evolving landscape of religious and spiritual uses of natural medicines in Colorado. This discussion will examine the complexities surrounding state regulation of psychedelics, alongside diverse ethical and self-regulatory challenges within the psychedelic community. How can the sincerity of self-proclaimed ceremonial leaders be assessed? How can we safely integrate psychedelic care without jeopardizing sincere ceremonial practices under federal law? And how should the state track adverse events in underground psychedelic contexts without putting people at legal risk at the federal level? Should state agencies in Colorado be more intentional in defining what qualifies as a ceremony? Join us as we hear from an esteemed panel of speakers: Jamie Beachy, a professional chaplain, spiritual care educator, and ethics consultant with expertise in palliative care, hospice, and trauma care; Matthew Brockmeier, an attorney specializing in controlled substances within healthcare and wellness contexts, as well as drug policy reform; Taylor West, the executive director of the Healing Advocacy Fund and a leading figure in the emerging fields of psychedelic and cannabis policy reform; and Karina Bashir, an accomplished attorney and thought leader focusing on the intersection of law, business ethics, and psychedelics.

Jamie Beachy PhD, MDiv, is a professional chaplain, spiritual care educator, and ethics consultant with experience in palliative care, hospice, and trauma care. Jamie was a sub-investigator for MAPS Phase 3 clinical trials researching the safety and efficacy of MDMA-Assisted Therapy for the treatment of PTSD and currently serves as an MDMA-AT Training Consultant Jamie developed degree program offerings and curricula related to psychedelic therapies as Director of Education and Co-founder of Naropa University’s Center for Psychedelic Studies. She is currently Field Scholar with Emory’ University’s Center for Psychedelics and Spirituality. Jamie sits on the Board of Directors of the Chacruna Institute for Psychedelic Plant Medicines. She lives in the mountains above Boulder with her husband Wael Garas, an integrative physician.

Matthew Brockmeier began his career in Chicago with a national law firm, navigating insurance coverage in multi-million dollar multi-state commercial litigation. After working in policy and management consulting in DC, Matt relocated to Colorado where he was a member of the healthcare practice group of an AmLaw100 firm, assistant general counsel to a health insurance company, and practiced corporate/ regulatory law with a prominent cannabis law firm before joining Antithesis. His current practice involves the law, business, and sometimes even politics of drugs. Specifically, he focuses on controlled substances in the context of healthcare/ wellness as well as drug policy reform.

Taylor West is executive director of the Healing Advocacy Fund, a nonprofit organization supporting the breakthrough potential of psychedelic-assisted therapy through carefully designed state-regulated programs. Founded in 2020, HAF is the leading organization ensuring that state psychedelic care programs are built well and work well. Over the last decade, Taylor has been centrally involved in the emergent fields of psychedelic and cannabis policy reform, serving as chief of staff for New Approach, the primary strategic partner for numerous state-level drug policy campaigns, as communications director for the Psychedelic Science Funders Collaborative (PSFC), and as deputy director of the National Cannabis Industry Association. She also co-created and directed the UC Berkeley Psychedelics Survey and served as philanthropic advisor to Flourish Trust, a Colorado-based fund supporting breakthrough mental health therapies. Taylor spent the first decade of her career as a strategist for a host of high-profile political candidate and issue campaigns.

Karina Bashir, an accomplished attorney and thought leader, specializes in the intersection of law, business ethics, and psychedelics. As counsel with Antithesis Law, she provides guidance on business and regulatory matters, including corporate formation, contract drafting, compliance, dispute resolution, best practices, and fractional general counsel services. Her expertise includes international human rights, ESG, best practices, compliance, and internal investigations. Karina’s nearly decade-long experience in human rights informs her perspective that psychedelic legalization should be recognized as a human rights issue, due to its significant healing potential. A leading voice on regulatory matters, she collaborates with organizations to advance safe and equitable access to psychedelics, promoting best practices and enhancing industry accountability. She serves on the Board of the Psychedelic Bar Association and is a steward of the Religious Use Committee. A Fulbright and Gates Cambridge Scholar, Karina holds a J.D. from UC Berkeley and an M.Phil. from the University of Cambridge.

Psychedelics Legality and Ethics in Colorado: Where We Are vs. Where We Want to Be