Medical Psychadelic Series And World Economic Forum Take Place Simultaneously
EDITOR'S NOTE: Over the last decade, we’ve seen two related yet opposing trends quietly making their way through the more upwardly mobile circles of “youngish” America, particularly among the Millennial startup crowds in Silicon Valley. The first is a return to a “natural humanism” of sorts. From paleo, keto, and fasting to cold therapy and a minimalist mindset, these emphasized seemingly “natural” solutions to bring about a strange hybrid of retro-evolution. The second trend is best represented by the micro-dosing of psychedelic drugs at work or the consumption of synthetic nootropics to boost productivity. Unlike the former, the latter can be profitable, manufactured, and used to manage productivity. So, perhaps it isn’t surprising that the elites at Davos decided to dedicate a portion of their annual meeting to just that: the Medical Psychedelic Series. As Jason Silver of Brain Games explains, “As psychedelics find increasingly mainstream acceptance as positive psychological interventions…they are raising as many questions…including how to integrate the actual religious quality of these experiences into our normal waking lives.” Perhaps there was a time when disrupting the natural ebb and flow of economic activity to introduce “artificial” measures was frowned upon. It shouldn’t be too surprising if the Davos crowd might find themselves enamored by a synthetically manufacturable solution to certain mental conditions that human nature is, by itself, equipped to manage. It wouldn’t be very profitable to let humankind use its intrinsic capabilities. It also wouldn’t lend itself to a greater degree of control seems to be the underlying theme of any World Economic Forum agenda.
As Covid-19 and the war in Ukraine dominate the news cycle, we’re seeing an increased emphasis on mental health as a key topic of conversation: The world gets more stressful every day and we need new ways to deal with this.
With a growing body of evidence that suggests psychedelic-assisted therapy could represent a breakthrough in treating countless mental health ailments, such as depression, substance abuse disorders and PTSD, how will the presence of a “Medical House of Psychedelics” in Davos change the future of global health policy?
A Meeting Of Like-Minded (And Open-Minded) Individuals
As the world’s top political and financial leaders gather in Switzerland for the World Economic Forum’s flagship annual event, the biggest names in the psychedelics space will fly out to do the same. It’s not shamans or a “Burning Man crowd” that will come together in the iconic European town, but rather drug development experts, clinicians, nonprofit organizations, advocates and influencers from the space.
While the event itself, the Medical Psychedelic Series, is not part of the World Economic Forum, both the dates and location coincide with the iconic gathering of world leaders.
“Psychedelic experiences often follow a kind of dream logic and perhaps we should interpret them as such: filled with metaphors and messages we can deconstruct, in the same way we might probe our dreams for insights into our lives, so we might probe these transpersonal journeys for visionary inspiration and transformation,” he added in an exclusive chat.
The Deets
The inaugural Medical Psychedelic Series will take place between May 21 and May 26, at the Medical Psychedelics House of Davos, located at Platzhirsch Club Davos, Promenade 63, 7270 Davos, Switzerland.
The full agenda can be found here. Interested parties can also join online following this link.
“This is a one-of-a-kind opportunity for the medical psychedelics ecosystem to share the breakthroughs in psychedelic therapeutics for the first time with world leaders,” says Marik Hazan, CEO of Energia Holdings Incorporated.
Hosted by Energia Holdings, the event series will feature presentations and panels seeking to educate attendees on the potential of psychedelic therapeutics for mental health. The focus will be placed on regulatory approval processes for psychedelic compounds and their therapeutic potential; policy, safety and efficacy; biocultural preservation; drug development pipelines; and patient access.
In addition, there will be experiential sessions “curated to engage all six senses and give an unforgettable heart-opening, mind-stimulating, experience of human connection through sound meditation, breathwork, and conscious leadership workshops.”
Featured speakers include:
- David Nichols, PhD researcher and founder of the Heffter Research Institute
- Rachel Yehuda, PhD. endowed professor and vice chair of psychiatry at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
- Amanda Fielding, founder of the Beckley Foundation
- Deepak Chopra, famed author, psychedelic medicine advocate and TV personality
- Jason Silva
A total of more than 40 key opinion leaders from all over the globe will be participating in the event. In addition, some of the world’s most innovative psychedelic organizations like the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), Maya Health, Compass Pathways and the Imperial College London, will be in attendance.
“We know that when the general public hears ‘psychedelics’ they first think about ‘shamans’ and ‘hippies’, but what we hope to show over our weeklong series is the evidence-based legitimacy behind psychedelics when used for treatment in the clinical setting,” said Hazan.
For Maria Velkova, managing partner of Tabula Rasa Ventures, an accelerator that works with psychedelics startups, the ultimate objective is to “spark conversations about the high unmet need in mental health, the future of regulatory approval for psychedelic-assisted therapy, provide a platform for establishing meaningful relationships and partnerships, and build trust with the global community.”
“Clinical research findings published in recent years suggest that psychoactive compounds could be very effective for treating mental health ailments, though we still have a lot more research to conduct if we are to roll out these therapies in the safest possible way,” she concluded.
