Update (January 4, 2018): Today, unfortunate news broke that one of the panelists in this article, Anwar Jeewa, was arrested in connection with a fatality at his ibogaine clinic in South Africa. A post-mortem established that the man had overdosed on Xanax, with ibogaine in his system. This underscores the real risks of ibogaine, even with an experienced provider. More information about ibogaine potentiation of benzodiazepines is available in our previous interview with Clare Wilkins.

Unlike other psychedelic drugs, ibogaine is known to be potentially cardiotoxic. There are a number of fatalities associated with its use, and anyone considering working with it should be aware of the risks.

The following are highlights from the safety panel at the European Ibogaine Forum in September. The panel was made up of experts in cardiology, nursing, and ibogaine facilitation.

This conversation is in no way intended to serve as an authoritative guide to safety protocol. What’s presented here is limited in scope and only scratches the surface of factors that should be considered. We strongly encourage anyone thinking about working with ibogaine in any capacity to take the time to do further research. As one resource for more information, you can check out the clinical guidelines established by the Global Ibogaine Therapy Alliance.

Dr. Jeffrey Kamlet is an expert on cardiac safety in ibogaine treatment who has witnessed over 1800 sessions over the past 20 years.

Jamie McAlpin is a nurse and Co-Founder of IbogaSafe, an on-site training service aimed at reducing the amount of adverse events during ibogaine treatment.

Dr. Uwe Maas is a clinical pediatrician who was initiated into the Mitsogho men’s cult in Gabon.

Anwar Jeewa is Director and Founder of Minds Alive Treatment Centre in Durban, South Africa.

Moderated by Mike Margolies.

Participating audience members:

Dr. Süster Strubelt is a clinical psychologist who was initiated into the Mabandji women’s cult in Gabon.

Jean-Nicolas Dénarié has lived in Gabon since 2006, was initiated into three different Bwiti traditions, and works on local sustainability projects.

 

Mike: So let’s kick this off with a straightforward question. I’m afraid to take iboga or ibogaine. Should I be? Can it be done safely?

Jeffrey: In general, ibogaine is a pretty damn safe drug.

In the healthy population, the mortality [rate] for ibogaine is considered to be about 0.3%, but remember we’re treating a very sick patient population. Patients with HIV, hepatitis, alcoholics — not the healthiest population in the world. Looking at numbers, the mortality rate can be as high, in untrained hands, as 3%.

I have a folder of over 60 ibogaine deaths. Every single one of those could have been avoided. Every single one. These people had severe addictions. Some of them had anorexia, bulimia. Some of them had pre-existing heart conditions.

So how safe is it? I mean if you’re young and healthy and you’ve got a normal EKG, you don’t have congenital prolonged QT syndrome, and you don’t have other drugs on board that are QT prolongers, yeah pretty safe.

Mike: Jamie, you have something to add?

Jamie: Yeah, I just want to add that the human body can only take a certain amount of metabolic stress, and ibogaine does stress the body on a metabolic level. Detox is very metabolically stressful as well, so those two things in combination tend to potentiate each other a little bit. Several of the cases that I reviewed [showed] signs of metabolic acidosis and other severe metabolic stressors, and that’s something the body can’t really handle.

Jeffrey: Many of our clients come to us addicted to opiates and benzos. [Many] who say, “Well, I was taking Xanax and I took ibogaine, and I never took another Xanax again.”

Well good for you. I’m here to tell you that ibogaine does nothing for benzodiazepine withdrawal. It does not help at all. It’s a different part of the brain, and it just doesn’t work. I’ve seen people on low doses still [experience] horrible anxiety because they missed their benzos. If you don’t realize that your patients are taking benzos and you stop them, or they’re alcoholic, the risk of having a seizure is very high.

Mike: I have a question about microdosing safety. Regarding the classical psychedelics, LSD, psilocybin, etc., which are not known to be cardiotoxic, I’ve read some papers saying there are potential cardiac risks with long-term microdosing. Is that something that could be a concern for ibogaine?

Anwar: To be very honest with you, it’s about time that we research microdosing. It’s crucial. None of us have the facts yet. If you listen to stories about people microdosing, it’s always different quantities, different sources. [We’re] not getting any consistency in any of the reports, so it’d be wrong for me to give you an answer for something we don’t know yet.

Jeffrey: I very often give boosters after a flood dose. Especially if you’ve been on like, Suboxone for 10 years, you might need some small doses. I’m talking about 100-200mg of ibogaine. You don’t have to be monitored, you can go play on your computer, watch TV. Then maybe 3 days later they get the 100mg and 3 days later 50mg, and now they’re good to go home.

[On a related noted], in my opinion using another psychedelic drug 90 days within ibogaine is pure insanity. There [are] clinics now advertising that they give you ibogaine and 7 days later give you ayahuasca. It doesn’t make sense to me. I think it’s disrespectful of the plant; it’s disrespectful to both these substances. It’s scary to me. [Ibogaine metabolite] noribogaine is supposed to last [in the system] for 90 days. Keep that a pure experience.

Jamie: It’s a very disturbing new trend – clinics offering ayahuasca, kambo, DMT, all these things while people still have a lot of noribogaine in their system. It’s not only unsafe, it’s very reckless in this vast uncontrolled experiment that we’re doing. And it’s not ethical. You’re literally turning your patients into human experiments without their consent. So from a legal standpoint, it’s not ethical at all, and it’s a very dangerous and reckless trend.

Anwar: I spend at least 2 hours on orientation and preparation. I think it’s important, especially for medical professionals, that you need to have informed consent. It’s our responsibility to tell the patient everything about ibogaine, the good and the bad. You explain everything and basically give them the worst-case scenario, not to scare them but to prepare them for what can happen.

Jeffrey: I also wanted to mention something I didn’t before. Don’t stack dosages, ok? As ibogaine is being converted by the liver into noribogaine, you start to see these bizarre T waves, the QT prolonging, the blood pressure going down, and the pulse going low. I’m concerned when I do that baseline EKG and the patient has a QTC baseline of 430 or 460. Whoa, ok not a good candidate for ibogaine.

There’s a blood test you can do, a genetic test, for congenital long QT syndrome. I think it’s 1 per 1000 of the population or something like that [who are born with it]. If you give them ibogaine, you will kill them. If you’re getting a baseline EKG on the patient and their QTC is in the 400’s or above, you better be really careful with that patient or defer to somebody who has a full cardiac setup.

Mike: I’ve got one more question for Uwe, then maybe we’ll open it up for other questions. So it sounds like from everything that’s been said so far, there’s obviously safety concerns around ibogaine and we need more research, but then of course iboga has been used for much longer in Gabon. So my question is, what kind of safety protocol is there in Gabon?

Uwe: During my initiation, I was told to report constantly about what I was seeing. I was led by about 8 experienced healers, who were sitting around me. They knew everything that was happening to me, and they told me to avoid these people, or open that door, or ask this person something, and things like this.

We were discussing with the Gabonese about the ibogaine treatment that is done in the West, and the only thing that they were really shocked about is that we’re not playing Bwiti music. They said, “Oh that’s very dangerous. They will all die.”

There’s so many things they’re doing for safety. I think the most important of all is that an initiate is never alone. There are always several experienced healers, several initiated people around.

Mike: So, questions from the audience?

Audience member: Jeffrey said that it’s dangerous to flood and then give another dose, so I wanted to ask the people who’ve been to Gabon if it’s common in Bwiti to keep on feeding iboga? Because I know there are ceremonies happening where [they] keep on feeding [iboga to the initiates] for 3 days.

Süster: Our experience with the Mitsogho tribe is that they were giving test doses and then 14 hours later, the flood dose. That was with the women. [The Mitsogho] never take [a flood dose] twice, but we know the Fang tribe does it one day after the other. We don’t know how safe this is, and as far as we know, the Mitsogho initiation is the original one.

Jean-Nicolas: In my experience, there are many different ways to do it. You’ve got the Disumba, for example, where the aim is that the Banzi (novice), they have him eat as much iboga as possible until he lies down, and when you pinch him, he won’t feel anything. That’s what they look for.

Anwar: I notice when giving [patients] that small dose initially, they’ve got an hour to play with. We get an idea of their tolerance level because if they feel absolutely nothing, and most of them feel absolutely nothing, then we can give them a bigger flood dose. But if they do feel something, we can drop the flood dose.

I’ve been practicing only one method and my protocol is very standard, but I use it because I find it to be very safe. We do a rough calculation, according to body weight, to get a minimum dose and a maximum dose [for the patient]. We give [the initial dose] depending on the patient’s tolerance level, and then we wait every 2 hours before we give more.

Uwe: I think if you look at the traditional ritual, everything, literally everything, is designed to make the [initiate] feel safe. The fire, the blessings, the drinks for the ones who are helping, everything is designed to make the [initiate] feel safe, and that’s the strong point of the ritual, in my view.

Mike: Any closing thoughts?

Jamie: I just want to add that providers really need to grasp that this is an extreme responsibility they’re taking on. When you give someone ibogaine, it’s potentially cardiotoxic, and heart patients don’t get sick slow. They get sick very fast, and seconds count. Not minutes, but seconds. So there’s a lot of preparation not only for the patient, but for the provider — to know what to do when the shit hits the fan.

Read Part 11: Is ibogaine the cure for opioid addiction? It’s not that simple.

We wanted to understand Bwiti, the diverse Gabonese spiritual discipline that uses iboga. Unfortunately, we’re nowhere near Gabon and don’t speak French. Fortunately, we found a bridge between worlds who has been around it for over a decade.

Jean-Nicolas Dénarié arrived in Gabon from France in 2006 as a math teacher for an engineer training program. After his experience with iboga, he decided to stay. Between 2008 and 2009, he was initiated into three different Bwiti traditions. He has since participated in and supported different local projects including recently co-founding SOVATER, a Gabonese company that promotes sustainable use of Gabonese resources and culture.

 

What’s your story? How did you end up in Gabon, and when did your relationship with iboga begin?

Jean-Nicolas: I arrived in Gabon by chance for work 11 years ago. The first year I was here I never went to a temple. I was just living in the city and didn’t know much about tradition here. I went to Tatayo’s place for the first time. [Tatayo conducts ceremonies with iboga.] The ceremony was starting when I arrived, and I ate one spoon of iboga.

It had a rather impressive effect on me. I was initiated 6 months later, in February of 2008.  It was so surprising to me that I needed to understand more. I wanted to go to a ceremony that would be closer to the forest because during my first experience I felt that iboga has something to do with the forest.

So I spoke with people around here, and they explained to me that Tatayo’s Bwiti [practice] is a mix of Fang Bwiti and of Missoko Bwiti. Fang Bwiti is supposed to be last in the chronological order, except now I think the last Bwiti is the Bwiti of white people. But in Gabonese Bwiti, the Fang is the last. I learned that in the Missoko Bwiti there are two major trends. The Ngonde trend and the Mioba trend. The Mioba trend is closer to the forest and to curing, while the Ngonde trend is closer to prophecy, vision, so it speaks more to the village because it’s in the village that you try to build the future.

I was more interested in the Mioba style, but it’s not well-represented in Libreville [the capital of Gabon], so I had to go to Koulamoutou, which is 500 km east from here. I was initiated there after 6 months, in 2009. It was a very nice ceremony that lasted 3 days and 3 nights.

Each ceremony you go to, you eat a bit of iboga, so I can say that I regularly ate iboga at this time. I still go to ceremonies when I find time.

Could you give a bit of background about the use of iboga in Gabon?

I think Bwiti is all around Gabon, in every village. If you go on the roads and you look into the villages, you keep on seeing temples. The impression it gives me is that there are Bwiti temples all around. At the same time, when you speak with people in the streets of Libreville, they will never tell you that they do Bwiti.

Here in the city, particularly, what dominates in terms of religion is the evangelist tradition. It’s more of a Protestant trend. Here in Gabon there are a lot of Catholic churches, but most Christians here are evangelists.

So when you speak with people, they won’t be the first to talk about Bwiti – but if you start talking to them about it, they’ll know someone or have somebody in their family who practices.

So iboga and Bwiti are both pretty common even though people may not initially bring it up, but if you dig deeper it’s clear that everybody knows someone who practices Bwiti?

Exactly.

In Libreville, I think at least half of the population is not Gabonese. Everything here is more expensive, so many African people from outside of Gabon come because they can make much more money than any other city around. Many strangers are attracted, and Islam has developed a lot since the 70’s, so now it’s changing. When you speak with strangers in the streets, they won’t know anything about iboga.

You started to touch on this, but could you expand some more about the effect that French colonization and Christianity had on Gabon, specifically on Bwiti?

Part of my question, when I wanted to get initiated in a more authentic way, was to ask if this tradition is authentic. The authentic Bwiti tradition, what is it? I tried long ago to answer this question and the answer I got, I could say from Bwiti, was that this idea of authenticity is an odd idea. It’s a very Western idea.

For example, when a guy does a ceremony in Koulamoutou he does it because he learned it beside his Father [of initiation], his father in Bwiti. And with his Father, he did many ceremonies and learned how to do it. Of course after, he does it in the same way, but there’s not this obsession with keeping it exactly the same. They have a very precise way of how it should be done, but it’s not because it has to be done exactly the same way. It’s more because in Bwiti we always say, “Bwiti is first yourself.”

I have something to say about the interview actually, if you don’t mind. All that I say is just a point of view from a Western guy that’s spent 10 years here, but not studying Bwiti. I wouldn’t say I study in Bwiti, because to study Bwiti is to be in the temple every day. I’m working, so it’s not possible to do that for me. I’m not a healer. I’m just a Western guy that is trying to understand what this is. I’m just interested in the subject.

Thank you for bringing that up. That’s something we actually wanted to mention very explicitly, that you’re a French guy living in Gabon, and we’re obviously missing something by not being on the ground in Gabon to speak with Gabonese people.

So when you do the Bwiti, there’s a rather important prayer during the ceremony and it’s performed when your concentration is at its most. The prayer is called the Mwaru. To be initiated, the initiate has to know the Mwaru. They all have their own Mwaru. In this prayer, you tell the story of how you became yourself. And telling this story, you tell the story of the ancestors, and at the same time you tell the story of how Bwiti changed.

What’s interesting is that Bwiti considers itself as a culture that’s changing. I saw this as different from our traditions. So when you ask the question, “how has Bwiti changed, have Western people changed Bwiti?” I think Bwiti is always changing. Of course, as the people that were doing Bwiti came in contact with Western people, it changed the way they do it.

I observed that they use objects they like. For example, as soon as money arrived in Gabon, I’m quite sure that it arrived in Bwiti temples because it was something that was seen as valuable. When you do a ceremony, you bring everything that is valuable that you can find. You take the best plant from the forest. You get the best palm wine. You get everything that you can find. So if money was considered valuable, then money would go in the temple. And it’s not changing Bwiti, that money arriving in the temple. It’s just Bwiti expressing itself through this new way.

Now you have many Christian crosses, particularly in the Fang tradition. Christian crosses entered into the temple, and even saints. They sing many songs for God. “God brings us many benedictions,” and “We thank God for benedictions,” and things like that. Any sacred representation can enter into the Bwiti temple.

So by its nature, Bwiti is a tradition that’s very fluid, open, and changing versus strictly adhering to specific customs?

There’s not two temples that will do exactly the same Bwiti. You can’t have that. It’s not possible. It’s like a kaleidoscope.

What Bwitists would say is that Bwiti speaks every language.

What’s the Gabonese impression of the use of ibogaine in the West?

They are not aware of it.

There’s no awareness in Gabon of ibogaine being used to treat addiction in Western countries?

No. I mean, if you ask somebody in the streets, they wouldn’t know.

Wow, okay. Do you forsee the growing interest in ibogaine having an impact on Gabon in the future?

Of course there’s the subject of the impact on iboga supply in Gabon. If the use of ibogaine implies that iboga has to be collected in Gabon, and is collected in a way that exceeds actual supply, stock could disappear.

I participate in a project called SOVATER, and it’s a project that wants to bring the benefits of the forest to the countryside through different forest plants.

We’re writing a paper to present the project. Gabon signed the Nagoya Protocol, which is an international protocol that explains how genetic and cultural resources of a country should be distributed and things around that. We’re in touch with the Ministry of Wood and Forest in Gabon, and we’re speaking with them to set up sustainable and fair trade for these kinds of products, which include iboga.

There’s not just iboga. When you’re in a Bwiti temple, they don’t only use iboga. You have to spend many years learning about plants from the forest to do the job properly. That’s why I think there’s a big difference between what happens in the West and what happens here with iboga. Iboga in itself is an excellent product. Instead of wasting iboga producing big amounts of ibogaine, maybe we should try to start learning how to use iboga itself.

We have to do research to show there are ways to heal with iboga, but actually we heal with iboga here in Gabon every day.

Read Part 4: We are Bwitists and healers in Gabon. Here’s what we think of the global interest in iboga

The Czech Psychedelic Society’s newest project, PsyCare, is a free service aimed at providing professional help at larger music events to individuals undergoing a challenging psychedelic experience that could otherwise have unpleasant psychological consequences. Basically, they are creating the Czech version of the Zendo Project and KosmiCare. And they are leveraging the power of crowdfunding to do it.

We talked about the project with Czech Psychedelic Society’s Eva Césarová. Eva is also one of the organizers of last year’s Beyond Psychedelics Global Psychedelic Forum and the upcoming International Transpersonal Conference in Prague, featuring Stan Grof, Alex and Allyson Grey, and more. Psymposia will be organizing stories from the presenters and attendees about various altered states of consciousness – including journeys beyond psychedelics.

How did you become involved with the Czech Psychedelic Society?

I happened to be around when a group of practitioners and students of psychiatry, psychology, and psychotherapy started meeting to create psychedelic community in the Czech Republic. I was studying marketing and communications, and they thought that it was needed as well. So I jumped in.

Harm reduction is becoming an increasingly important part of the conversation in the psychedelic community. How did you become interested?

I also became involved in an international organization called Youth RISE that is focused on harm reduction for all drugs. That was when I started to really understand the need and urgency of harm reduction.

I personally attended a number of festivals and parties with unknown sources of substances, poor prevention and quality of information, and high rates of recreational use. It is a miracle that there haven’t been more tragedies.

What does PsyCare do to help with these situations?

Well, PsyCare creates a safe place, a quiet zone where people can go through a challenging experience, and if needed, they will get a personal sitter who will help them with whatever the situation calls for. Sometimes it is just a presence, touch, or voice. We have a number of volunteers (currently about 50) who are involved in the project.

At the Ufo Bufo festival in June, three team members were in constant shift, and the service was running from Thursday 8pm until Sunday 2pm. There were 23 people who we helped through a difficult experience, and we answered questions for dozens of others.

Because we understand the importance of a comfortable place, we had a jurta with mattresses, blankets, pillows, chairs, tables, and first aid supplies. For Ufo Bufo, we rented everything. Now we want to raise money to buy the equipment.

What about the issue of people not knowing the sources and quality of their substances?

That is a big issue all over, not only in the Czech Republic. Basically, you never know. Until substances are regulated, nobody can be 100% sure (except in the medical setting, of course). So the best option would be to regulate all drugs so people have access to pure substances. Until that happens, we can only do our best to reduce risks related to the drug impurity. And that is, for example, by drug testing. Unless you go for an expensive chromatograph, it is not as reliable as we may wish, but it is still a way to warn someone about adulterated substances. Fortunately there are also progressive projects like Energy Control in Spain, that are identifying substances that people send them for free.

One more important thing about harm reduction — more people are helped than the ones receiving drug testing or sitting services. A lot of people come just to get information and ask questions. Most of those are the “90% of people who use drugs but are not addicted” (according to World Health Organization) and “don’t have a problem.” These people would never come to the services, but they are still receiving valuable information.

Some people and policies view harm reduction practices as helping to spread or encourage drug use. For example, the RAVE Act in the US. What are your thoughts on this?

You know, since we have been children, we have been pushed to do sports. To keep our “physical temple” fit. On the other hand, you have consciousness. Some people train it with meditation, lucid dreaming, yoga, etc. And then you have psychedelics and other psychoactive drugs. We can think of their use as an adrenaline sport for the mind. Adrenaline sports are generally dangerous but that doesn’t mean that we should forbid them. Instead, we apply safety measures that help to make these activities safer. And that is exactly where psychedelic harm reduction is aiming. Reduce the harms.

Harm reduction is an approach that doesn’t judge anybody, acknowledges that people use substances no matter what the law or society say, and makes the conditions as safe as possible.

Why do you think people use psychedelics at festivals and parties?

People use psychedelics for various reasons – for spiritual purposes, insights, self reflection, therapy, creativity, fun. I often think, what do people do when they don’t?

When you feel overwhelmed, tired, when it is just simply too much and you don’t use psychedelics, what do you do? Last year while balancing at the edge of my power and abilities, I left everything and went to a festival where I dropped acid… And it was amazing. I went from a state of “everything sucks, the project [Beyond Psychedelics 2016] I have been working on for the past six months is not going to happen” to “everything is going to be alright.” And that mindset really changed it all.  And if you would ask me, “Would you do that again?” I would say yes. But another question is, “Is that safe?” No, it is risky. No matter how experienced of a psychonaut you are, there is always a possibility that something can go wrong. And that is why PsyCare is so important to be present at events where attendees use psychedelics.

You mentioned working on Beyond Psychedelics 2016, which was amazing! You’re also one of the organizers for the upcoming International Transpersonal Conference in Prague. What have been your favorite aspects of working on these conferences?

I am not directly organizing but I manage public relations (PR) and therefore I get to be in touch with many of the international organizations’ coordinators and communication people. I get to meet them eventually and it is really beautiful to see that the movement really attracts similar people. The longer you stay, the more doors open to new possibilities and collaborations. And it gives you hope.

On the other hand, being part of these conferences is also an opportunity to learn, grow, and meet the people whose names you have on your bookshelves. You can see their lectures, ask them questions, or eventually speak with them, and that is an experience I am very grateful for.

What are your fondest memories from BP16?

Haha, when I saw a retired academic artist, former dean of the University of Art in Prague, dancing to electronic music and introducing himself to girls. And next to him a girl was dancing and shouting that it was the best conference she ever attended. But I think that more than memories of the event itself, what I find important are the post-processes that took off after the conference. There were a lot of those, and that is very valuable for me — loads of new projects, research, open doors, friendships, and even a couple romantic follow ups. I think that for our first conference it was a miracle that nothing major went wrong, but I still hope that the next one will be even better.

What are you most excited about for ITC 2017 Prague this September?

I am personally really looking forward to ITC because of the unique list of speakers. I read books and works of many of them, so it is very exciting to welcome to Prague my own heroes like Stan Grof, founder of transpersonal psychology and pioneer of LSD research; Ervin Laszlo, author of the Akasha paradigm; the great artist Alex Grey; Dean Radin, who will be speaking about magic; Charles Grob who is one of the most significant psychedelic researchers; and many of the top researchers of MDMA such as the Mithoefers, Janis Phelps, and Rick Doblin himself.

I think that it is really needed to review reality from the point of view of the potential of consciousness and its role in the next development of mankind.

I’m definitely looking forward to it! Can you tell us about your crowdfunding campaign for PsyCare?

Well, we have until 26th of July to raise 6800 euros.

The platform HitHit allows us to have both Czech and English text, and we are willing to send rewards abroad. We are offering books, shirts, psychedelic canvases, posters, pendants, patches and other things.

We decided to test the support of the community that has been growing since the start of our activities on the national level as well as the international one. Harm reduction has been a grassroots movement that came from the people to the people. A lot of our volunteers come from the psytrance community and have experienced difficulties firsthand. And since it can happen to anyone’s child, anyone’s friend, we should support each other, no?

Dennis McKenna is an ethnopharmacologist, research pharmacognosist, lecturer, and author. He is the brother of well-known psychedelics proponent Terence McKenna and is a founding board member and the director of ethnopharmacology at the Heffter Research Institute, a non-profit organization concerned with the investigation of the potential therapeutic uses of psychedelic medicines.

On June 6-8, Psymposia worked with Dennis on — this is a mouthful — the Ethnopharmacologic Search for Psychoactive Drugs II: 50 Years of Research.

Psymposia: For someone who doesn’t know, what exactly is ethnopharmacology?

Dennis: There’s an informal definition, which is basically the study of medicines and poisons used in traditional or indigenous societies.

A more formal definition is: “The interdisciplinary scientific investigation of biologically active substances used or observed by humans in traditional societies” in the words of Bo Holmstedt. This definition is more accurate, because it’s not always about plants, and it’s not always about medicines that people ingest. Arrow poisons, for example are important topics that fall under the scope of ethnopharmacology.

EPSD50 is the 50th anniversary of the original 1967 symposium. What happened there?

It was a closed conference. It was the first time at a group of investigators working in a variety of disciplines ranging from chemistry, pharmacology, neuroscience, and anthropology got together to share their research. It was not aimed at the public; it was aimed at specialists in the discipline. The book that resulted from it was a landmark publication, for those that were in the field, and it was very influential at the time.

What influence did it have on you?

It made me aware that there was a scientific framework, an actual set of interdisciplinary fields, that were specifically related to these studies. And that this work was important; it wasn’t just about seeking out the next exotic hallucinogen. These discoveries had real significance, for example for the discovery of new psychoactive medicines that had therapeutic use, or potential for therapeutic use. The conference took place before there was widespread stigma and condemnation of psychedelics. But the conference wasn’t limited to psychedelics.

What are you most excited about for ESPD50?

It’s been 50 years since the last one. A lot of work has been accomplished since then. The original idea was to hold follow up conferences every ten years or so. But then the war on drugs came along, the public’s, and the government’s, attitude changed, and the followups were never held. But the work continued, and many significant discoveries have been made over the last 50 years that were either not on the radar, or barely on the radar, for the first conference. Ethnopharmacology is an important field, especially with respect to psychoactive medicines used traditionally. Some of these point the way to the medicines of the future. It’s time to take another look at the current state of the art, where it’s going, and where it should be going. I hope that this conference will refocus attention on ethnopharmacology, especially for young people who may be considering careers in this field. It’s far from dead; there is more work to be done than ever.

How do you envision the future of ethnopharmacology?

Well just that, as I said above. But also I want it to focus the discussion on the need to preserve biodiversity, and preserve traditional knowledge, and investigate that systematically, and provide incentives to prevent the decimation of these habitats and the disappearance of this knowledge. You can’t develop a cure for schizophrenia, say, if it’s found in a plant that grew in a rainforest that you cut down last week! Billions, if not trillions, worth of undiscovered ‘blockbuster’ drugs lurk in the rainforests awaiting discovery (not just rainforests, obviously). We make unwise decisions about the use of these resources that don’t make sense, even from the perspective of cold, calculating capitalism.

As an ethnopharmacologist, how do you react to the “plants only” crowd in this movement?

Well I think that plants have their place, but it’s short-sighted to insist that only plants are valid medicines. Plant compounds provide ‘ideas,’ molecular templates for structures that medicinal chemists (who are after all, totally natural!) can use to develop analogs that may be improvements in some ways on the natural compounds.

There is also concern about ‘biopiracy,’ the appropriation of traditional knowledge without providing any compensation to the cultures that are the keepers of the knowledge. This is a real problem, but it’s a moral, ethical problem. Drug companies that turn to traditional medicines to find new patentable compounds should also see ways to give back tangible benefits to the traditional cultures that have used those plants.

Reschedule cannabis!” roar the masses. And I have to respectfully disagree. The entire scheduling system is fundamentally flawed and needs to go.

We talked with Michael Verdon, the artist behind the burning temples of Catharsis, about what inspired him to create transformative art.

How did you first become involved in Catharsis?

Robert “Roman” Haferd began paperwork to have a Burning Man-style event on the National Mall. He asked me if I would be interested to create burning art for the event. I was honored to have been asked to participate in this vigil and create work that would help unify the event and break unprecedented barriers.

My passion is transformative art work focused on bringing community together. This has led me to design and lead 11 large-scale site-specific temple projects. These sacred structures are built to be burned with the intention of facilitating a space for communal and individual healing. People are invited to participate by sharing their stories and leaving mementos inside the structure. Our collective memory is woven together and then released in the structure’s transformation. We rise from those ashes.

What does this event mean to you?

When Roman asked me to sign on, it was important to me that the vigil have a focus on bringing people together to facilitate curative processes through direct action and experience. Healing and health are swept aside far too often in our society.

Catharsis on the Mall is both a reflection and a celebration. It offers a safe space to learn, listen, dance, create, and so much more. We hope to grow every year and bring in new groups and people who want to share this space with us.

The event creates a space where all are welcome to gather and maintain a safe space for each other. This type of space is needed… and to do it on our National Mall – this is powerful. I would like to see this vigil expand into a National Day of Healing.

Last year your art installation was a wooden temple, and when burned revealed a steel prison cell on the inside that eventually collapsed in flames. What was the inspiration behind this?

The art theme last year was dedicated to victims of the drug war. The structure was modeled after a prison cell that many citizens experience daily due to unjust policies and practices of our system. The interior of the sacred object was small and confined – unlike any temple I had designed, but with the intention of sharing that terrible experience.

The drug war is corrupt. It destroys communities and erases people’s ability to change the system waging this war. It is a grave injustice to the people and the society. It targets groups of citizens disproportionately. It hurts us all. We fill our prisons with people who are leased to private companies to make profit from the inmates labor. The convict-lease system is a new form of state-sponsored slavery. It robs citizens of their life and freedom. Prohibition has never worked. Burning the prison cell represented a call to end to these failed policies that slowly shred our families and communities.

How many times did you practice to get it to collapse perfectly? That was impressive.

Thank you. That means a lot. The burn is as important as the build. We spend countless hours making sure the burn ceremony is inspirational. This was the only one-of-its-kind, as I like to keep being inventive; so, the only practice were the ceremonies I’ve led already.

I think of myself as a detailed planner – meticulously reviewing plans and ideas. I have led about 11 of these structures and feel I have become intune in some ways of how the fire will act and behave. Fire is its own master, but I have techniques of bending it my way and working with it.

What are some other installations you’ve done?

I create a lot of transformative work. I have led 11 Temples at events on the east coast in 5 years. Even non-temple work is often destroyed as part of its experience. Some work is made for private collections. I prefer making site-specific installation with each work unique and innovative.

8030: A Memorial to Veterans was an installation about terribly high rates of veteran suicide. Participants learned through action, interaction, and conversation. In the end, that project was demolished using tools associated with tearing down houses as an act of structural transformation.

What’s this year’s temple like?

This year’s theme is about healing from trauma. There isn’t a single source of trauma or symbol because it is so personal and variant. There are two key elements to healing trauma: coping and catharsis. It is infinitely easier to write about than to perform.

Coping is how we handle a situation. We relive trauma over and over, until we have the tools to fully process the experience. Catharsis is how we let go of that experience and put it behind us. After time has passed and understanding is gained, we are reborn.

The temple is phoenix-themed and full of fiery motion soaring above our heads. This regenerating creature is a symbol across multiple cultures. The structure’s interior is large enough to accommodate many visitors at a time including seating for 16.

The altar, a special place to leave mementos in the center of the temple, represents coping and catharsis with its two towering blades. The two blades become one and direct our thoughts and prayers to the heavens. A labyrinth is at the entrance of the temple for all who seek to find their own journey. This temple will be unlike anything you’ve ever seen.

Seating for 16 before it’s set aflame, right?

We have seating outside for thousands when it is set aflame.

Iwas a couple strong beers in when I reached over for my friend’s vaporizer and took several drags. My consciousness entered a deep, relaxing state. My head was floating as I listened to him speak. It was, dare I say, pretty psychedelic.

Nicotine and alcohol have gotten a bad rap.

An otherwise open-minded psychonaut might openly express resentment for these two particular chemicals, embodying the very “these drugs are good, those drugs are bad” attitude that we resent about the drug war.

Certainly, the stats will show you that – save perhaps heroin – these are two of the most harmful drugs in the health impact and addiction departments. But like any drug, when used properly, alcohol and nicotine use can be positive (contrary to popular belief, that goes for heroin too, but that’s a piece for a different day).

As with psychedelics, we have to think about set and setting. The effects of alcohol and nicotine should not be reduced to the chemical alone. A psychedelic magazine section called “InJest” would be remiss if it didn’t reference Bill Hicks, so I’ll use this opportunity to quote a classic bit of his:

Always that same LSD story. You’ve all seen it. Young man on acid thought he could fly, jumped out of a building. What a tragedy. What a dick. Fuck him! He’s an idiot. If he thought he could fly, why didn’t he take off from the ground first? You don’t see ducks lined up to catch elevators to fly south. They fly from the ground, you moron. Quit ruining it for everybody.

How about a positive LSD story? ‘Today a young man on acid realized that all matter is merely energy condensed to a slow vibration, that we are all one consciousness experiencing itself subjectively, there is no such thing as death, life is only a dream, and we are the imagination of ourselves. Here’s Tom with the weather.’

Just like we wouldn’t want to evaluate LSD’s worth based on the kid who jumped out of the building, we should not evaluate nicotine and alcohol based solely on chain smokers and binge drinkers.

Native Americans use tobacco as a sacred medicine, including ceremonial use of rapé. Ever had that stuff shot up your nose? Holy shit what a cleansing experience that is!

And of course, alcohol is one of the best social drugs. We all know how much fun it is to drink with friends… responsibly. But seriously, this is not something to be downplayed. Alcohol is used universally across cultures and times to celebrate. There’s nothing quite like the human connection between drunk people. It’s magical. Unless it turns into a fight. Then it’s awful.

Nicotine can be a great social drug too!

Sometimes I bum cigarettes from people just to have an excuse to make a new friend. Have you ever tried rolling your own tobacco and passing it around like a joint? What a great social way to experience nicotine!

What’s nice about these drugs is, your state of consciousness won’t suddenly launch out of your control. Not the case for weed. Weed can certainly be a good social drug, but it’s very easy to take too big of a hit and blast out into a very uncomfortable, paranoid state. Alcohol can take you to uncomfortable states too, but it’s generally not going to be sudden and unexpected. Unless you’re ripping shots of Everclear.

Ah, but then there’s MDMA. The ultimate social drug. The problem with MDMA is, it’s not necessarily something you want to be taking every weekend, lest you deplete all that precious serotonin.

LSD? Good experienced with close friends. Not necessarily the best drug for making new ones… but then again, that depends on the party. Although even the most experienced psychonauts can find themselves overwhelmed in unfamiliar situations, not to mention the large time commitment LSD requires.

But alcohol and nicotine! What wonderful tools, when used the right way. I say we reclaim them! Perhaps we need attention on harm reduction for alcohol as much as the other drugs. Or better yet, benefit enhancement. And can we please get away from the asinine binary framing on every health form of “Are you a smoker?” There is an entire spectrum of options between “I have never smoked one cigarette” and “I smoke a pack a day.”

Perhaps we just need to make our alcohol and nicotine use more intentional. When you treat any substance with respect, there’s a much higher chance you won’t mindlessly overconsume and make yourself sick.

The feeling of an alcohol buzz or a nicotine high is not one to be glossed over. It’s nice. It’s relaxing. It’s enjoyable. Until you do too much.

Back at our place after a night at the bar, I found myself feeling ill and then puking my guts out. Whoops, you got me again alcohol! …Then again, maybe a contributing factor to the spins was that I smoked too much weed that night.