Summary: MAPS Founder Rick Doblin, Ph.D., speaks with psychedelic research advocates about psychedelic science, MDMA-assisted psychotherapy, and the prospect of making psychedelics legally available for medicinal purposes during a panel discussion at the 2015 International Drug Policy Reform Conference.
Originally appearing here.
Criminalization of drug use needs to end, and marijuana legalization has provided one pathway to that. Public and political support for legalizing other drugs is low – so in what other ways can we end criminalization and create legal access for MDMA and other psychedelic drugs? What would a medical model look like? Would a spiritual model using approved guides work for something like ayahuasca? What about licensing users or specific venues? And would any of these models show promise for drugs with addiction potential like cocaine, methamphetamine or heroin?
Moderator:
Stefanie Jones, Nightlife Community Engagement Manager, Drug Policy Alliance, New York, NY
Speakers:
• Constanza Sanchez Aviles, Ph.D. Law, Policy & Human Rights Coordinator, ICEERS, Barcelona, Spain
• Jag Davies, Director of Communications Strategy, Drug Policy Alliance, New York, NY
• Rick Doblin, Ph.D., Executive Director, Multidisciplinary Association of Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), Boston, MA
• Amanda Feilding, Executive Director, Beckley Foundation, Oxford, UK
• Paula Frango, Prevention and Community Intervention, SICAD, Lisbon, Portugal
• Steve Rolles, Senior Policy Analyst, Transform, London, UK
Thank you to the Drug Policy Alliance (http://drugpolicy.org) for hosting the International Drug Policy Reform Conference (http://reformconference.org).
