In this follow-up to his highly acclaimed first book, The Fellowship of the River, medical doctor and curandero Joe Tafur looks to this prophecy as he invites you to rediscover the sacred in yourself and in the world around you. Tafur offers fascinating stories–medicine songs–of his own and numerous others’ including spirit-opening encounters, together with a chronicle of the past 30+ years of scientific breakthroughs known as the Psychedelic Renaissance. These parallel accounts reveal that sacred plants and psychedelic medicines, offered responsibly, whether in medical clinics or spiritual retreats, can catalyze profound emotional healing through spiritual awakening.

Psychedelics such as psilocybin, ketamine, and MDMA have shown promise as novel therapies across various psychiatric conditions including mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders. Clinical research suggests a number of factors such as subjective drug effects, enhanced psychological flexibility and mindfulness, and even quality of therapeutic alliance can influence treatment efficacy of psychedelic therapies. Additionally, preclinical data indicate a possible role for neuroplasticity inducing and other biological mechanisms underlying psychedelics' benefits. This presentation will provide a brief overview of key clinical findings on psychedelics from the past decade along with mechanistic insights and an interactive discussion to consider the ramifications of current data and future directions for the field

Our ever-increasing intimacy with technology means we live more of our lives with, through, and mediated by it. The science suggests that our connection with technologies carries both opportunities and risks to our social, societal, emotional, cognitive, and spiritual dimensions. The concerns about our disconnection caused by distraction, social comparison, loneliness, and lack of true connection, both inner and outer dominate the conversations, however technologies have the potential to enhance our self awareness, insight, and compassion. This talk with focus upon digital mood and emotion tracking apps and the online Atlas of Emotion as examples of how our technologies have the potential for helping us become more mindful and ultimately free from destructive emotions. The conscious cultivation of awareness through practices that teach us how to pay attention to our…

In this talk, Dr. Warter will delve into the transformative potential of psychedelics in psychiatry and beyond. This presentation will explore his fifty+ years of study in this area and highlight how psychedelic substances can facilitate profound healing and growth. When we transit from the labeling of “hallucinogens” to “psychedelics” one leap occurs.   When we move to enthrone their effects on knowledge of self we have “entheogens” – this opens the doors to the realization of the human promise that is the initiatory act of mystical awakening and has been used by healers for thousands of years. Mainstream psychiatry largely abandoned psychedelics by the 1970s for a variety of reasons. There is renewed hope for their efficacy because current treatments are inadequate yet calling them "medicine" is problematic.

Despite burgeoning research on psychedelics, best practices for their safe and effective use in and out of clinical settings are still poorly understood. Like psychedelics, meditation can involve non- ordinary states and psycho-spiritual impacts and has the potential for adverse effects despite well- recognized benefits. This talk will describe how meditation research can inform key questions in psychedelics, including monitoring adverse effects, addressing spirituality, and developing culturally responsive treatments.

Ceremonial practices bring a spiritual context to work with sacred plant medicines and psychedelic medicines. This expansive context facilitates shifts in emotional processing that appear to underlie relevant mental health improvements. In this lecture, Dr. Tafur will draw upon his experience in traditional ceremonies and on research in the fields of psychedelic clinical medicine, emotional biology, and spiritual well-being.

Ceremonial practices bring a spiritual context to work with sacred plants and psychedelic medicines. This expansive context facilitates shifts in emotional processing that appear to underlie relevant mental health improvements. In this lecture, Dr. Tafur will draw upon his experience in traditional ceremonies and on research in the fields of psychedelic clinical medicine, neuroscience, emotional biology, and epigenetics.

Dr. Cahn will provide an overview of his 20+ years of studies of the neurophysiologic and psychological correlates of meditation in expert vs. novice practitioners and psychedelics. He will also present research findings on the brain & mind effects of both meditation and psilocybin, specifically focusing on how the brain correlates to sensory and cognitive processing, highlighting similarities and differences.

Dr. Linda Carlson will discuss the Mindfulness-Based Cancer Recovery (MBCR) program development and research, with a focus on current innovative studies, including Virtual Mind, which evaluates a Virtual Reality mindfulness program for chronic cancer pain, and the SEAMLESS research, which is evaluating a mindfulness app in a clinical trial of cancer survivors across Canada. She will also review current research assessing the effects of MBCR on the gut microbiome and work in developing mindfulness-based psilocybin-assisted therapy.

Dr. Linda Carlson will review the development of the Mindfulness-Based Cancer Recovery program and summarize research evaluating its efficacy for treating anxiety, depression, stress symptoms, sleep, fatigue, and other psychosocial outcomes. She will also review recently published oncology clinical practice guidelines recommending mindfulness-based interventions and the overall evidence supporting these recommendations.