Podcast

Jeff Rhoades, Senior Policy Advisor of the Oregon Governor’s Office, joins us to discuss the future of regulations in Oregon. Rhoades hopes that the cannabis industry will eventually be set up like the wine industry, and also anticipates that we will s …

As the chairwoman of the Small Business Committee, U.S. Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez is unsurprisingly passionate about cannabis business rights, such as safe banking. Because public opinion of cannabis is progressing, it is important to help business …

Tjalling Erkelens, CEO of Bedrocan, joins us in our July digital workshop to discuss clinical trials and global cannabis distribution. Erkelens believes that some type of harmonization among European regulations is necessary for the global cannabis eco …

Neill Franklin, of the Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP), talks with us about policy and policing. Franklin believes that the criminal justice system is largely based on “creating evil so then we can have all these good guys to go fight it”, wh …

Shanita Penny, of the Minority Cannabis Business Association, shares with us that the MCBA is currently pushing for as much equitable cannabis legislation as possible. For Penny, equity means “ensuring that we address the social justice and criminal ju …

Steve Hawkins, Executive Director of the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), discusses his hopes and predictions for upcoming cannabis policy in the United States. In particular, Hawkins believes that states should have the right to legalize cannabis in th …

Grover Norquist, Founder and President of Americans for Tax Reform, describes the inconsistencies of taxes imposed by the federal government. For Norquist, this is more than just a cannabis issue; this is an issue of federalism and states’ rights: “You …

Dr. Ryan Vandrey, of Johns Hopkins University, joins us to discuss the best routes of administration for different conditions. For example, when treating chronic pain, oral administration is preferable, as it yields a more sustained drug effect. Howeve …

For U.S. Congressman Dwight Evans, cannabis reform is a matter of both medical justice and criminal justice. Evans realized not only that cannabis can save patients’ lives, but also that the war on drugs was undeniably a major reason for the massive pr …

Josh Hendrix, President of U.S. Hemp Roundtable, predicts that, in the next two to three years, hemp will finally begin to infiltrate the market. When that happens, there will be a race to efficiency on the agricultural side, which should lead to both …

For U.S. Congressman Charlie Crist, medical cannabis is personal: years ago, his older sister died of brain cancer, and unfortunately, medical cannabis was not available in Florida that time. That experience has informed Crist’s belief that everyone sh …

Dr. Ethan Russo, Research Director of the International Cannabis and Cannabinoids Institute (ICCI), discusses ways to create a better, safer cannabis. Russo points out the dissonance that exists between public opinion and regulators – while 80-90% of t …

U.S. Congressman Mark Amodei joins us to discuss cannabis legislation and policy in Nevada, including banking. Amodei fervently believes that legal cannabis businesses should be able to deposit their earnings and use all of the financial tools that are …

Bruce Linton, former CEO of Canopy Growth, joins us on stage at the Cannabis Business Summit to discuss life after Canopy and what his goals are for the future. Linton also explains his decision to take Canopy public – ultimately, going public gave the …

Lori Ajax, Chief of the California Bureau of Cannabis Control, joins us to give a big picture update of what has been happening in California over the past 6 months. For example, as of late, it has been a priority to transfer those in the elicit market …

Kevin Murphy, CEO of Acreage Holdings, discusses with us his beginnings in the cannabis industry as well as the importance of medical cannabis, especially for children and veterans. Murphy notes that every successful business has had to ask for help al …

Catherine Sandvos, of the Office of Medicinal Cannabis in the Netherlands, joins us to discuss the history and current state of Dutch cannabis regulations. Sandvos is pleased that other countries seem to be setting up their own regulations and producti …

Another great conversation with Don Fertman as he shares stories about his past struggles with alcohol addiction, providing a framework to talk about cannabis, addiction, and moderation: “I got myself together and got myself to work, but now I felt lik …

Kayvan Khalatbari joins us and shares how Denver progressed in leading cannabis legalization: “we knew that we had a lot of misconceptions and stigmas to overcome and it behooved us before the city and the state were regulating us very strictly, to sel …