Dr. Hemant Kumar Bid, Ph.D. accomplished his graduate degree in Medical Biochemistry, recently graduated from Ohio State University with MS (Pharmacology) degree, and has 16 years of experience in the field of cancer drug discovery and health care management. Teaching commercial-scale cultivation operation, medicinal aspects of CBD including the history of cannabidiol, the medicinal potential and the future of cannabinoid medicine, Patient Navigation and the Endocannabinoid System (ECS) including how medical cannabis affects the body, and how it is used to treat illnesses from a neuroscience perspective. He has a passion for Oncology research, pharmacology, Cannabis, and cancer therapy. Extensive experience in biologics, drug discovery, and early development programs, including research activities stretching from drug target validation, assay development, lead optimization, antibody generation utilizing multiple discovery technology platforms and drug screening, in vivo pharmacology, and expertise to create PDx (patient-derived xenograft), preclinical models. Actively engaged in research and the scientific community as an editorial board member for various scientific journals, teaching, and community fundraising for cancer research. Endorsed for leadership and collaborative abilities. Mentored students, trained staff and have given lectures to diverse audiences. Currently, as an Instructor, he teaches Patient Navigation, Commercial Cultivation Operations, The Endocannabinoid System, and CBD Comprehensive at Cleveland School of Cannabis (CSC). As a Consultant at Alcyone Lifesciences, he is involved in preparing and overseeing regulatory submission documents. (Pre IND/IND).

The work of Professor Marco Falasca has shown that CBD can synergize with gemcitabine to fight pancreatic cancer in preclinical models. The Pancreatic Cancer Initiative was launched to raise funds to support further preclinical and clinical research by Dr. Falasca to improve the prognosis of pancreatic cancer patients.

Roger Pertwee MA, D.Phil. DSc. (Oxford) is an Emeritus Professor at the University of Aberdeen, still actively engaged in cannabinoid research. He is also an Honorary Fellow of the British Pharmacological Society (BPS), has served as President (twice) of the International Cannabinoid Research Society (ICRS) and as Chairman of the International Association for Cannabinoid Medicines (IACM), and is on the IACM (and ICRS) Board of Directors. His awards include (1) the 2002 Mechoulam Award and the 2018 Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Cannabinoid Research Society, (2) the 2011 Wellcome Gold Medal “for outstanding contributions to pharmacology, based mainly on research achievements, (3) the 2013 International Association for Cannabinoid Medicines Special Award, and (4) a 2019 Highly Cited Researcher Award from Clarivate Analytics in recognition of the production of Pharmacology papers ranking in the top 1% by citations. His research has focused mainly on the pharmacology and therapeutic potential of cannabinoids. His research achievements include the joint discovery of delta-9- tetrahydrocannabivarin in cannabis, and of endocannabinoids, the discovery of a CB1 receptor allosteric site, and significant contributions to the pharmacological characterization of phytocannabinoids and notable synthetic cannabinoids. See also https://www.abdn.ac.uk/people/rgp.

Bonni Goldstein, M.D., is the owner and medical director of Canna-Centers Wellness and Education, a medical practice devoted to educating patients about the use of cannabis for serious and chronic medical conditions. She is also medical advisor to Weedmaps.com.

In 2008, Dr. Goldstein developed an interest in the science of medical cannabis after witnessing its beneficial effects in an ill friend.  She has since helped thousands of adults and children with chronic and serious medical conditions achieve a better quality of life with the use of cannabis treatment.

Dr. Goldstein received her undergraduate education at Rutgers College and earned her medical degree at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ). She completed both her internship and residency, serving as chief resident, at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Dr. Goldstein was a Clinical Instructor in Pediatrics at USC School of Medicine in Los Angeles, Emergency Transport Attending Physician at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, and Emergency Medicine Attending Physician in the Pediatric Emergency Department at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center.

A frequent speaker nationally and internationally, Dr. Goldstein was awarded “2017 Healthcare Professional of the Year” by Americans for Safe Access, a non-profit that promotes safe and legal access to cannabis throughout the nation. Dr. Goldstein is on the board of the International Association for Cannabinoid Medicines.

Dr. Goldstein’s first book, Cannabis Revealed, was awarded “2017 Semifinalist Book of the Year” by the American Botanical Council.  Her latest book, Cannabis is Medicine, was published by Little, Brown Spark in September 2020.

Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) is the largest global youth-led network dedicated to ending the War on Drugs. At its heart, SSDP is a grassroots organization, led by a Board of Directors primarily elected by and from student and youth members. They bring young people of all political and ideological orientations together to have honest conversations about drugs and drug policy. They create change by providing a platform where members collaborate, communicate, share resources with, and coach each other to generate policy change, deliver honest drug education, and promote harm reduction. Founded in 1998, SSDP is comprised of thousands of members in hundreds of communities around the globe.

SSDP mobilizes and empowers young people to participate in the political process, pushing for sensible policies to achieve a safer and more just future. They do this while fighting back against counterproductive policies – in particular, those that directly harm students and youth.

Members of SSDP have been instrumental in achieving many significant medical cannabis reforms throughout the United States.

United in Compassion is Australia’s Peak Medicinal Cannabis advocacy body which helped bring about the 2016 legislative changes that made lawful cultivation of the plant for medical and research purposes possible.

Founded in 2014 by Lucy Haslam and her late son Dan, UIC’s main functions since then have been to promote education and knowledge around clinical uses of cannabis as well campaigning for improved patient access to what, for many, can be a life-saving medicine. This is in light of the fact that the 2016 Amendments to the Narcotic Drugs Act have failed and are failing to deliver on the promise to deliver affordable cannabis products for sick Australians who need them.

Our philosophy is the dignified alleviation of suffering with compassion and empathy according to ‘Dan’s Test.’

Our primary mission is advocating for patient access to Full Spectrum herbal Medicinal Cannabis extracts and dried herb cannabis in a manner which is safe, effective, affordable, equitable and favourable to patients.

Dan’s test sets expectations of high quality products that are legally and easily accessible with no patient left behind.

Such products should be:

• Equitably and favourably accessible to patients;
• Naturally outdoor/greenhouse grown herbal Medicinal Cannabis;
• Cultivated using organic principles;
• Available in of a wide range of varieties (chemovars) to treat an equally wide range of health conditions;
• Manufactured with Full Spectrum plant extraction processes;
• Dried Herb (cannabis floral clusters) for use in electric personal vaporisation devices;
• Of high standards of production & manufacturing, by employing relevant of Quality Assurance practices.

Dan Haslam was instrumental in bringing the issue of the therapeutic use of herbal Medicinal Cannabis to the forefront and into the national Australian consciousness. He benefited dramatically from his use of local Australian grown herbal medicinal varieties of cannabis during his battle with cancer.

Though he passed away on the 24th of February 2015, his legacy lives on.

‘Every step we take on Medical Cannabis, will be built on the footsteps Dan Haslam left behind.’

Mike Baird – Premier of New South Wales

The mission of Americans for Safe Access (ASA) is to ensure safe and legal access to cannabis (marijuana) for therapeutic use and research.

ASA was founded in 2002, by medical cannabis patient Steph Sherer, as a vehicle for patients to advocate for the acceptance of cannabis as medicine. With over 100,000 active members in all 50 states, ASA is the largest national member-based organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research. ASA works to overcome political, social and legal barriers by creating policies that improve access to medical cannabis for patients and researchers through legislation, education, litigation, research, grassroots empowerment, advocacy and services for patients, governments, medical professionals, and medical cannabis providers.

Dr. Tori Rerick is the creator of Well Connected Membership, host of the 6 Degrees from Cannabis podcast, and Director of PR for Moon Mother Hemp. She also provides holistic consultation services, and is a relief pharmacist at Flatirons Family Pharmacy in Colorado. Dr. Rerick is passionate about the individualization of each patient’s healing journey, and believes strongly in the role of mindfulness and cannabinoids to enhance deep healing.

Dr. Swathi Varanasi, or Doctor Swathi, is a medical consultant for CBD/hemp companies, a clinical cannabis researcher, a natural medicines educator, and a content creator for print & online publications.

Doctor Swathi is the co-founder and first-ever resident of the PGY1 Integrative Health Pharmacy Residency (IHPRx) program and is training at an independent natural pharmacy and interprofessional HIV/AIDS clinic in the Los Angeles metro area. She co-founded PharmSupplement, the first natural medicines educational platform for healthcare professionals and students, providing pharmacist-designed resources, online courses and drug information services.

Emphasizing an evidence-based approach, Doctor Swathi is passionate about educating practitioners, students and patients on the intricacies of the endocannabinoid system and the power of food as medicine. As a healthcare disrupter, she looks for opportunities to break barriers and challenge her western-trained colleagues to think beyond the conventional scope of their practice. Through the many modalities of integrative medicine and patient-centered shared decision-making, she believes that health and wellness is achievable for everyone.

Doctor Swathi studied at the Medical University of South Carolina and Carleton College. She is currently pursuing further specialized training in functional medicine and plant-based nutrition from The Institute for Functional Medicine and Cornell University, respectively. Dr. Varanasi was selected to be a part of the state-wide California Pharmacists Association Leader Development Institute, is on the Executive Committee of the Greater Los Angeles Pharmacists Association and is on the Cannabis Science Pharmacist Continuing Education Planning Committee of the Society of Cannabis Clinicians.

Dr. Mara Bilibajkich graduated from Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada and has been practicing family medicine for over 20 years. She is the founder of RxLeaf, a medical cannabis information website for patients, healthcare professionals, producers, and distributors to come together to learn, share, and engage in authentic conversation about cannabis medicine. She has over 20 years of experience as a family physician, and eventually began prescribing cannabis after witnessing its effectiveness in reducing consumption of opioids and other medications.