Bioneers Conference Panel on Psychedelics
October 18-20, 2019
San Rafael, CA
Women, Diversity, and Sexual Minorities in the Psychedelic Community
Co-sponsored with The Chacruna Institute for Psychedelic Plant Medicines
The enormous growth of interest in and research on psychedelic substances’ potential for psychological healing and consciousness expansion is exciting, but there are shadow sides of the psychedelic community that require attention. Women’s contributions to the field have too often been downplayed, and the abuse of women in some psychedelic underground circles has been a serious problem. Also, people of color, LGBTQ and other minority communities have been under-represented in psychedelic conclaves. A stellar panel of figures at the cutting-edge of inclusivity advocacy in the psychedelic community share their wisdom on how to remedy these problems. Hosted byBia Labate, Ph.D., Executive Director of the Chacruna Institute, on the faculty of CIIS, and Public Education and Culture Specialist at the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). With: Emily Sinclair, leader of the Ayahuasca Community Guide for the Awareness of Sexual Abuse initiative; Sarah Scheld, a coordinator of MAPS’ MDMA Therapy Training Program; Monnica T. Williams, Ph.D., Associate Professor of psychology at the University of Connecticut; Sara Reed, MS, MFT, a study therapist in the Psilocybin-assisted Psychotherapy for Major Depression initiative at Yale University.
Biographies:
Moderator
Beatriz Caiuby Labate, Ph.D. (in social anthropology from the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Brazil), is Executive Director of the Chacruna Institute for Psychedelic Plant Medicines, on the faculty at the East-West Psychology Program at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS), and a Public Education and Culture Specialist at the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). She has published twenty books. (https://chacruna.net)
The Chacruna Institute Ayahuasca Community Guide for the Awareness of Sexual Abuse
Emily Sinclair is an anthropologist whose research focuses on the globalization of ayahuasca and its impacts, especially in the Iquitos region of Peru where she was based between 2014 and 2018. She is a member of the Ayahuasca Community Committee of the Chacruna Institute for Psychedelic Medicines and also leads the Ayahuasca Community Guide for the Awareness of Sexual Abuse initiative. (https://chacruna.net/community/ayahuasca-community-guide-for-the-awareness-of-sexual-abuse/)
The Ecology of Trauma: Ethical Considerations in Psychedelic Medicine
Sarah Scheld works for the MAPS (Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies) Public Benefit Corporation, where she helps to coordinate the MDMA Therapy Training Program. Her work focuses on trauma awareness, somatics, and the ethical use of psychedelic medicines to help heal people, communities, culture and the environment.
Culturally Informed Psychedelic Therapy
Monnica T. Williams is a board-certified licensed clinical psychologist and Associate Professor at the University of Connecticut in the Department of Psychological Sciences and Department of Psychiatry. She is also Clinical Director of the Behavioral Wellness Clinic, where she provides supervision and training to clinicians for empirically-supported treatments. Prior to her move to Connecticut in 2016, Dr. Williams served as the Director of the Center for Mental Health Disparities at the University of Louisville in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences. Dr. Williams’ research focuses on African American mental health, culture, and psychopathology, and she has published over 100 scientific articles on these topics. Current projects include the assessment of race-based trauma, unacceptable thoughts in OCD, improving cultural competence in the delivery of mental health care services, and interventions to reduce racism. This includes her work as a PI in a multisite study of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD. She also gives diversity trainings nationally for clinical psychology programs, scientific conferences, and community organizations. Dr. Williams is Associate Director of the Chacruna Institute for Psychedelic Plant Medicines.
Equitable & Inclusive Practices in Psychedelic Medicine: From Theory to Practice
Sara Reed, MS, MFT, is a Marriage and Family Therapist at the Behavioral Wellness Clinic in Tolland, Connecticut and a Study Therapist for the Psilocybin-assisted Psychotherapy for Major Depression initiative at Yale University. A member of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) Advisory Board, Sara also served as a Sub-Investigator and Study Coordinator for MAPS’ Phase 2 MDMA Clinical Study of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). She is a member of Chacruna’s Racial Equity and Access Committee.
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