2019 has already proved itself a big year for cannabis, but not without its fair share of hiccups. Once the 2018 Farm Bill passed, the industry believed it would make things easier. They figured banking would open. Federally, hemp was defined as all parts of the plant under 0.3% THC, which means all cannabinoids from […]

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 prison population in Pennsylvania. Since then, Evans has developed a firm belief that […]

I’ve been involved with Denver’s cannabis policy reform since 2005. Since then, my role has expanded across the state and country both as an advocate and business owner. Denver was one of the first cities in the country to regulate medical cannabis. Because of this, I knew that it behooved me to strictly self-regulate in […]

The Compassionate Use of Cannabis Act was passed in Illinois August of 2013. It took five years to get the proposed legislation through the capitol. When the legislation was first developed, there were no examples of highly-regulated compliance cannabis programs out there. The State of Illinois viewed the legalization of medical marijuana from a lens […]

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 should have the right to use cannabis as a healer. Crist also notes that people throughout the U.S. […]

I have a stressful life. I know I’m not the only one, and I advocate strongly for anyone whose lives are heaped with stress to take care of themselves. Charlotte’s first five years were hellish for us all. She was so sick. As a parent, it was sometimes necessary to put myself second for the […]

The energy put into the winding path toward legalization shifted away from California after a legislative loss in 2010. Some activists focused on Colorado. Others in Washington. I had stayed out of the previous failed efforts in 2008, but I recognized the potential 2012 held. Washington State gains momentum In March of 2001, the ACLU […]

Cannabis Economy Digital Workshop Post-Show Report  The initial Cannabis Economy Digital Workshop took place July 30-31, 2019. Each day we had 15 straight hours of content resulting in 38 sessions from Science, Policy and Business leaders. Thank you to our presenters, partners and sponsors for making the event such a success. Whether or not you […]

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 available to other types of businesses – this is an issue of public safety as well […]

The war on drugs disproportionately affected minority communities, and now is the time to right our wrongs through reinvestment and reconciliation. When we legalize and regulate cannabis, we’re not starting from scratch. We’re making new regulations on an industry that has existed for decades. We must consider the criminal justice implications holistically if we don’t […]