presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

part of the fifteenth annual horizons conference

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

part of the fifteenth annual horizons conference

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

part of the fifteenth annual horizons conference

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

part of the fifteenth annual horizons conference

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

part of the fifteenth annual horizons conference

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

part of the fifteenth annual horizons conference

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

part of the fifteenth annual horizons conference

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

part of the fifteenth annual horizons conference

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

part of the fifteenth annual horizons conference

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

part of the fifteenth annual horizons conference

presented by horizons pbc, a public benefit corporation

Introduction to the art & science of psilocybin therapy
Over the last two decades, some of the most prestigious medical institutions in North America, the UK, and Europe have resumed the study of psilocybin-assisted therapy as a treatment for depression, trauma, addiction, and other disorders. The results of these studies have led the US Food & Drug Administration to grant Breakthrough Therapy status to research programs that advance the development of psilocybin into a medicine.

Author and psychologist William A. Richards, Ph.D., has been researching psychedelics since 1963 and currently holds positions at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Psychiatry Department and the Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic & Consciousness Research.

Brian D. Richards, Psy.D., is a clinical and research psychologist who contributed to the original research with cancer patients and healthy normal adults at Johns Hopkins. 

Brian D. Richards, PsyD

Sunstone Therapies

William A. Richards, PhD

Psychologist, Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic & Consciousness Research

Learn more >

Guiding Psychedelic Therapy Sessions and Facing Mortality
In this workshop, Mary Cosimano, LMSW, who has served as a psilocybin therapy session guide for over 20 years at Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research, will share foundational knowledge about her practice, as well as her unique perspective on the relationship between death, mental health, and the psychedelic experience.

This workshop is intended for students and professionals who are interested in pursuing a career as a psychedelic guide or therapist.

In the morning, Mary will present the fundamentals of guiding psychedelic-assisted therapy sessions. She will highlight the importance of the therapeutic alliance with attention to safety, presence, connection, intentions and integration. The use of guided imagery will also be discussed. Didactic and experiential learning via a demonstration, guided imageries, and role-playing will be used to incorporate the information and techniques discussed. Question and answer periods will follow each segment.

In the afternoon, Mary will present her Death Awareness workshop. This workshop is designed to help psychedelic guides have a better understanding of their own feelings around death by raising their personal death awareness. 

Death is a universal human experience, and yet many have a fear of dying that often results in an avoidance of addressing death. In psychedelic experiences people sometimes experience their own death, the death of others, or have encounters with those who have died. 

As a psychedelic guide, being more aware of your own beliefs and feelings around death may result in being better prepared to assist others that might encounter death experiences. Most importantly, it may help you to live your life more fully now by reducing your fears and exploring practices designed to help you face your own death, your mortality. 

Didactic and experiential learning via guided imageries and break out groups will be incorporated in this workshop. Large group share and Q&A period will follow.

Mary Cosimano, LMSW
Johns Hopkins University, Department of Psychiatry, Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research

Learn more >

Doors open

Opening remarks

The state of the psychedelic industry

In our opening session for the third annual Psychedelic Business Forum, Dan Grossman, former Managing Director and Senior Partner of the Boston Consulting Group's healthcare practice, will share his view of the state of the psychedelic industry.

In addition to his history as a healthcare industry analyst and consultant focused on biopharmaceuticals R&D and commercialization, Dan current serves as Head of Field Building for the Psychedelic Science Funder's Collaborative (PSFC) and as a board member and impact advisory committee member for Lykos Therapeutics.

Dan Grossman, PhD

Finding funding for the future

Where will the nascent psychedelic industry find funding for the next round of drug trials, and should they succeed, the infrastructure of care delivery?

In 2020 and 2021, a whole garden of psychedelic pharmaceutical and ancillary business startups blossomed, fueled by niche VC firms and retail investors.

Throughout 2022 and 2023, the landscape of psychedelic funding cooled considerably. Companies faced a challenging fundraising environment, with more than a few closing their doors as the waters ran dry.

However, 2023 also had a number of bright spots, including the arrival of institutional investors and pharmaceutical companies that had sat out the previous fundraising cycle.

In 2024, many psychedelic companies and their investors are praying for rain, particularly in the event that the FDA grants approval of the first drug for psychedelic-assisted therapy.

In this session, we will hear from a panel of healthcare investors about the present and future of funding for psychedelic endeavors.

Ritu Baral
Managing Director, Cowen

Suprotik Basu

Managing Partner, Helena

Michael Jiang

Rethinking how we deliver care: An interview with Elliot Cohen

In this session, healthcare entrepreneur and innovator Elliot Cohen shares his thoughts on why he believes that the success of responsible and affordable access to psychedelic healing will depend on enabling a diverse series of solutions at both the state and federal level.

Elliot Cohen

PillPack

Mid-morning break

Insurance, reimbursement, and psychedelic-assisted therapy

Achieving reimbursement from major payors is essential to both ensuring widespread access to psychedelic-assisted therapy for those in need, and also the financial viability of the nascent psychedelic clinical ecosystem.

While in some ways, PAT resembles other new treatments that initially reach the market without reimbursement. However, in others, PAT remains a sui generis model with unique considerations.

In this session, we will hear about the varieties of payors in the US, and the strategies being pursued to achieve reimbursement for PAT over the short- and long-term.

Lia Mix, CEO, LMFT

CEO, Delphi

Charles Gross, PhD
National Vice President, Elevance (Anthem) Behavioral Health, Retired

Standing at the threshold: A view from Lykos Therapeutics Chairman Jeff George

After nearly twenty years of studies on the potential of MDMA-assisted therapy for the treatment of PTSD, Lykos (formerly MAPS PBC) expects the FDA to respond its New Drug Application, which has priority review, in August of this year.

In this session, Lykos Chairman Jeff George, former global CEO of Sandoz and Alcon, shares an update on Lykos’s plans for commercialization as well as his thoughts on the need for industry-wide collaboration to ensure the safety and success of new treatments requiring both medicine and therapy.

Jeff George

Chairman of the Board of Directors, Lykos Therapeutics

Mid-afternoon Break

Educating the next generation of psychedelic therapists

The presence of a skilled psychedelic facilitator and the establishment of rapport are key elements in the positive therapeutic outcomes. Ensuring high-quality industry-wide standards of training will be a priority for the success of this treatment modality. Join us to consider the strategies of preparing the next generation of psychedelic facilitators.

NiCole T. Buchanan, PhD

Board of Psychedelic Medicine and Therapies (BPMT)

Kelley O'Donnell, MD, PhD

Director of Clinical Training, NYU Center for Psychedelic Medicine

The last mile: Insights from early service providers

While many await US federal regulatory approval for drugs like MDMA and psilocybin, a handful of businesses in the US and abroad are already offering psychedelic experiences and therapy services.

In this session, we will hear from operators of clinics that serve as research sites, ketamine-assisted therapy providers, and retreat centers who already have experience supporting clients and patients on their journeys of growth and healing.

Gregory Scott Kearns

Lunch

Doors open

Opening remarks

Julie Holland, MD
Psychiatrist and Author

Survey of leading psychedelic-assisted therapy trials

Psychedelic-assisted therapy, once neglected by the medical community, shows the potential to become a viable treatment options for serious mental health disorders. This program will explore the areas of investigation which have advanced furthest in demonstrating the therapeutic potential of psychedelics.

Studying MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD within veteran populations

At the beginning of the year, the Department of Veterans Affairs issued a Request for Applications (RFA) to study the use of FDA-designated Breakthrough Therapies, including MDMA-Assisted Therapy and psilocybin, to treat veterans who suffer from PTSD and depression. 

While several VA centers and the National Center for PTSD have participated in numerous studies of psychedelic-assisted therapy over the last decade, this announcement marks the VA's first-ever direct investment in support of these studies, and signals a significant policy shift in favor of MDMA and psychedelic-assisted therapies within the VA health care system.

In this session, Paula Schnurr PhD, Executive Director of the National Center for PTSD, and veteran mental health activist Jason Pyle, MD PhD of Healing Breakthrough discuss their plans for the future of psychedelic-assisted therapy research for veteran populations.

Jason Pyle, MD, PhD
Managing Director, Evolve Foundation

Paula P. Schnurr, PhD

Executive Director, National Center for PTSD, Department of Veterans Affairs

A Historical Lens & Clinical Trial Findings: Ibogaine's Role in Methadone Treatment

Methadone, an opioid with a prolonged half-life, has played a crucial role in treating opioid dependence since the 1970s. Utilized in Methadone Maintenance Programs (MMPs) for heroin dependency, it unfortunately led many to develop a dependence on methadone itself, resulting in extended treatments, at times spanning decades. The exploration ibogaine as a promising option for substance use disorder encountered both historical and modern-day obstacles. Societal biases from the early 20th century, including the stigma associated with hallucinations and racism, impeded research on ibogaine. More contemporary issues, like patent disputes, have additionally stifled the investigation into the advantages of ibogaine. In response to these challenges, ICEERS developed a protocol for ibogaine treatment aimed at methadone discontinuation. Dr. Bouso's presentation will delve into the historical application of ibogaine will show the outcomes of a recently completed double-blind, randomized clinical trial where ibogaine was utilized to treat methadone dependence.

José Carlos Bouso, PhD

Scientific Director, ICEERS (International Center for Ethnobotanical Education, Research & Services)

Mid-morning break

Pilot Study of Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy for Demoralization in Patients Receiving Hospice Care (PATH)

The purpose of this research is to understand how psilocybin-assisted therapy may be adapted in the context of hospice care, in order to test its safety in people with terminal illness who experience demoralization, and to study how well it works to lessen symptoms of psychological and existential distress.

Yvan Beaussant, MD, MSc

Instructor, Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Roxanne Sholevar, MD

Staff Psychiatrist, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Neural correlates of the effects of psilocybin in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD): a double-blind, placebo-controlled study

This study investigated the effects of oral psilocybin on OCD using a randomized active-placebo-controlled, double-blind study design. In this presentation, Drs. Kelmendi and Ching will present the preliminary study results.

Benjamin Kelmendi, MD

Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine

Terence Ching, PhD

Associate Research Scientist, Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine

Designing a state-funded, open-label psilocybin trial for diverse populations in the United States

In this brief presentation, Dr. Hokanson will unveil the rationale and development process for a state-funded, open-label psilocybin trial for diverse populations in the United States. Specifically, she will cover key eligibility criteria and culturally attuned study design motivations for this first-of-its-kind trial that the Emerging and Novel Applications for Consciousness-Altering Therapeutics (ENACT) Lab and the Yale Program for Psychedelic Science, as co-directed by Drs. Ben Kelmendi and Christopher Pittenger, will spearhead in Connecticut.

Jamila Hokanson, MD, MBA, MHA

Director, Veteran Advocacy & Public Policy

Lunch

Studying and managing extended difficulties following psychedelic experiences
There is a small but growing body of research on challenging and adverse psychedelic experiences. Difficulties following psychedelic use can persist for weeks, months, or even years, and are relatively unexplored in psychedelic research. Some researchers suggest that adverse experiences are rare, yet there is emerging evidence that the field could be underestimating the frequency of adverse psychedelic experiences.

Our convergent mixed-method study gained quantitative and qualitative data from 608 participants who reported extended difficulties post-psychedelic use. We also conducted a follow up interview study on how people managed ontological shock and existential difficulties following their psychedelic experiences.

Eirini Ketzitzidou Argyri, PhD(c)

PhD Candidate, University of Exeter

Therapy, therapeutics, and psychedelics

After nearly two decades of renewed study of psychedelics based on methodologies whose roots stretch back to midcentury psychologists, new dialogues are emerging about how to best unlock and understand the therapeautic potential of psychedelics.

Alongside a renewed focus on investigating mechanisms of action, the development of psychedelic-inspired non-visionary drugs, and the challenges of pursuing a novel drug+therapy combination treatment, new questions are now being raised as to the centrality of psychotherapy in the healing process.

Join us as we hear from therapists and scientists who are seeking to decipher the essential elements of psychedelic therapy.

Rachel Yehuda, PhD

Director, Mt. Sinai Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research

Srinivas Rao, MD, PhD

Chief Scientific Officer & Co-founder, atai Life Sciences

Mid-afternoon break

The enigma of psychedelic trial design

Psychedelics are a sui generis class of drugs whose effects and best practices were not anticipated by typical regulatory assumptions and trial designs. What lessons have scientists learned from decades of research and data, and how will the next generation of trials and studies offer more robust findings and valuable data? Join us to consider how researchers are innovating and moving the field forward.

Harriet de Wit, PhD

Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago

Natalie Gukasyan, MD

Assistant Professor, Columbia University Medical Center

Tehseen Noorani, PhD

Senior Research Fellow, University of Auckland

Listening to BIPOC Therapists

As in many areas of clinical research and care, ethnic and racial minorities are underrepresented in studies of psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT), hindering generalization of reported treatment outcomes as well as the opportunity to develop accessible, culturally-informed treatment models in our multi-cultural society. Increasing the diversity of psychedelic therapists and researchers might contribute to address this issue. However, little is known about how therapists of colors view their potential role in this field, and what opportunities and barriers they identify. 

The Psychedelic Therapists Diversity study explores, through qualitative methods, opportunities and barriers for therapists of colors to engage in PAT and research. We will recruit a sample of therapists who identify themselves as Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC), and have different degrees of familiarity with PAT, who will participate in a single individual, audio-recorded semi-structured interview or focus group. Transcripts will be analyzed using Dedoose software, through template and thematic analysis. 

Study findings will inform the development of a survey that will be used to investigate knowledge about, perception of and attitudes toward PAT in a large cohort of BIPOC therapists.

Yvan Beaussant, MD, MSc
Instructor, Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Candace Oglesby, LCPC

Psychotherapist

Victor Alfonso Cabral, LSW

Assistant Director of Community Care at Naropa Center for Psychedelic Studies

Closing remarks

Doors open

Opening remarks

What Will People Think? Revealing Public Knowledge, Belief, and Perceptions of Psychedelics

As the psychedelic field experiences exponential growth, many of its goals will be directly affected in significant ways by what the general public knows and believes about psychedelic substances. But aside from narrowly focused opinion research tied to specific political efforts, the field has not had an evidence-based understanding of those public perceptions and knowledge. Until now. In this session, Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics executive director Imran Khan will present the findings of the inaugural Psychedelic Insight Poll, a national baseline survey that serves as the cornerstone of a multi-year opinion research program launched by BCSP in 2023 to provide the entire psychedelic community with data-driven insights into the general public's beliefs, hopes, fears, and questions about psychedelics and psychedelic therapies. The Psychedelic Insight Poll will be conducted annually to more fully understand public perceptions, track how those perceptions shift over time, and examine how current events, research discoveries, media and communications efforts, business strategies, and other activity in the field are influencing those shifts.

Imran Khan
Executive Director, UC Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics

A Small Step and A Giant Leap: The Implications of FDA Approval of Psychedelic Drugs

For decades, few policy-makers dared to even mention psychedelics in any other context but risk. Now, with a House caucus focused on psychedelic therapy, bipartisan legislation proposed in the Senate, successful state regulation campaigns, and new access pathways for psychedelic treatments in Canada, a new momentum is gathering. What do the next few years have in store? Join us to explore how activists, community campaigns, and law-makers are paving the way for a post-prohibition future.

Matthew C. Zorn

Partner, Yetter Coleman LLP

Shane A. Pennington

Partner, Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP

National and regional policy reform in North America

For decades, few policy-makers dared to even mention psychedelics in any other context but risk. Now, with a House caucus focused on psychedelic therapy, bipartisan legislation proposed in the Senate, successful state regulation campaigns, and new access pathways for psychedelic treatments in Canada, a new momentum is gathering. What do the next few years have in store? Join us to explore how activists, community campaigns, and law-makers are paving the way for a post-prohibition future.

Mid-morning break

State initiatives to support psychedelic research and access

A dramatic expansion of psychedelic policy activism is underway at the state level.

Over a dozen states have recently considered legislation addressing psychedelics, including bills proposing research funding, decriminalization, regulated adult use, and more. 

Join us to learn about the variety of initiatives underway, and how legislators and activists consider and design strategies unique to their state.

Natasia Poinsatte

Colorado Director, Healing Advocacy Fund

Christine Diindiisi McCleave, MA

Doctoral Student in Indigenous Studies at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Center for Cross-Cultural Studies

Tamar Todd

Legal Counsel, New Approach

Angela Allbee

Manager, Oregon Psilocybin Services Section at the Oregon Health Authority

W. Bryan Hubbard, JD

The legalities of religious use of psychedelics in the US

In recent years, the medical model has reigned supreme over dialogue, legislation, and funding of psychedelics in the US.

And yet, there exists another uniquely American route to the legal use of psychedelics: religious practice, protected by the First Amendment.

A patchwork of federal legislation and judicial precedents, including the unanimous UDV vs. USA Supreme Court ruling in 2006, uphold the ability to use psychedelics within sincere religious contexts.

However, the existing legal affirmations were very hard-won for their petitioners, and there exists much gray area in determining to whom and how they apply, and much risk for group seeking clarity.

In this session, we will consider the legal relationship between religious freedom and spiritual practices that use psychedelics.

Allison Hoots, Esq

Attorney, Hoots Law Practice PLLC

Lunch

From personal to collective: ayahuasca as a peace-making tool among Palestinians and Israelis

In the spring of 2022, three groups of Palestinians and Israelis were invited to participate in an ayahuasca peacebuilding program. The invitation was to explore the ceremonial and healing space of ayahuasca through a collective intention: to ground the transformative spiritual practice in the political reality of conflict and oppression; to heal collective trauma and liberate from rigid narratives and ethos; to invite revelations and transform them into actions of co-resistance; to create a community of solidarity and care; and to celebrate life and good music together.

In this joint presentation, Sami Awad, a Palestinian peace activist and one of the leading facilitators, will present the program – tailored for this intention - and discuss the processes the groups went through. Leor Roseman, an Israeli psychedelic researcher from Imperial College London, will present quantitative, qualitative, and phenomenological research findings from the program.

The presentation will reveal how psychedelics can be used intentionally for socio-political endeavours beyond personal healing.

Leor Roseman, PhD

Senior Lecturer, Department of Psychology, University of Exeter

Sami Awad

Holy Land Trust

Ethnobotanical approaches to psychedelics

Recent efforts to situate psychedelics in the current medical system have necessarily introduced mediating factors into the psychedelic experience. Another tradition of use exists, however, which seeks a direct relationship with plants and fungi themselves. What benefits, challenges, and mysteries emerge from this approach? Come learn from the explorers and wisdom keepers cultivating personal, non-mediated relationships with plant medicines.

Mid-afternoon break

Psychedelic Parenthood: Could we include families in the psychedelic renaissance?

The field of psychedelics is growing rapidly, and many participants in this movement happen to be parents and caregivers to children. 

This presentation will address both the potential and risks of scientific research and therapy with psychedelics for children and adolescents, and social, economic, and decolonial aspects related to the inclusion of psychedelic families, especially children and mothers, in the psychedelic field.

Ethnographic reports indicate that the psychedelic experience can help parents with challenging realities such as imposter syndrome and maternal guilt, and positively re-signify the experience of parenting. 

We also know that there are several traditional cultures where psychedelics are an integral part of community life, and may also be used during pregnancy and childbirth, such as the Santo Daime tradition of midwifery, and the practice of breastfeeding by Wixárika mothers.

Despite this, the Western psychedelic mainstream still has difficulties in including children, adolescents, and psychedelic families in its spaces, discussions, and scientific research. 

Based on a review of empirical evidence and the lived experience of the presenter, who is the father of three children who have been born and raised in a psychedelic context and culture in Brazil, this presentation offers a reflection on the need for open discussion of psychedelic parenthood in the psychedelic community.

Glauber Loures de Assis, PhD

Chacruna Institute

Grand panel

End-of-day reflections and dialogue from the day's ensemble of speakers and final Q&A with the audience.

Closing remarks