Enpsychedelia: Recent Episodes
Nick Wallis, Ash Blackwell and regular co-hosts
Harm reduction and drug law reform activism, a counter voice to current drug narratives. Breathing reality into the myths, fabrications and distortions that exist around drugs. News, academia, and culture.
Drugswrap Editor Jack Revell and Sam Douglas from the Australian Psychedelic Society join Nick to discuss the outcomes of the 2020 US Election, covering the positive news of the many wins in drug law reform.Follow Drugswrap on TwitterUS ELECTIONDr. Samuel Douglas, Philosopher and Vice President of the Australian Psychedelic Society talks US election drug war winners, and the ketamine clinics treating depression with promising results.
Jack Revell from Drugswrap talks the week in drug news with us.Follow Drugswrap on TwitterNovember 1st is International Drug User's Day and DanceWize, SSDP Australia and Pill Testing Australia have teamed up to release a 'Pill Testing Explained' video.Check out the full DanceWize campaign videos at their YouTube channel.October Online Forum: An empowering, person centered approach to Substance Use and Mental HealthDesigned and delivered by staff from Nexus Dual Diagnosis Service, Harm Reduction Victoria, Mind Australia and Wellways.Brought to you by NEMHSCA, Yarra Drug and Health Forum and Yarra Mental Health Alliance. Harm reduction is a recovery oriented essential practice that can be used by any health care worker regardless of the setting. It values the consumers own experiences with substance use and mental health and supports their expertise in planning and decision-making. In this webinar viewers will be introduced to the principle’s of Dual Diagnosis and Harm Reduction. Viewers will hear real stories using interviews and animations on how staff and consumers from Mental Health settings implemented the Before, During and After Harm Reduction tool and some of the outcomes from using this approach. Viewers will be guided to free Harm Reduction resources to use with consumers and understand why Harm Reduction is a practice that shouldn’t be limited to Drug and Alcohol workers.
Nick and Ash chat with Progressive Public Health Alliance Director, Stakeholder Engagement, Stephanie ThuesenFollow them on Twitter
Jack Revell from Drugswrap talks the week in drug news with us.Follow Drugswrap on TwitterNick and Ash catch up with Fiona Patten, a Member for Northern Metropolitan Region in the Victorian Parliament’s Legislative Council.
Jack Revell from Drugswrap talks the week in drug news with us.Follow Drugswrap on TwitterDanceWize have launched a campaign aimed at addressing some of the key issues that people who choose to take drugs may face. The campaign is 'Looking After Our Mates' and you can see it on their YouTube channelOctober Online Forum: An empowering, person centered approach to Substance Use and Mental HealthDesigned and delivered by staff from Nexus Dual Diagnosis Service, Harm Reduction Victoria, Mind Australia and Wellways.Brought to you by NEMHSCA, Yarra Drug and Health Forum and Yarra Mental Health Alliance. Harm reduction is a recovery oriented essential practice that can be used by any health care worker regardless of the setting. It values the consumers own experiences with substance use and mental health and supports their expertise in planning and decision-making. In this webinar viewers will be introduced to the principle’s of Dual Diagnosis and Harm Reduction. Viewers will hear real stories using interviews and animations on how staff and consumers from Mental Health settings implemented the Before, During and After Harm Reduction tool and some of the outcomes from using this approach. Viewers will be guided to free Harm Reduction resources to use with consumers and understand why Harm Reduction is a practice that shouldn’t be limited to Drug and Alcohol workers.
Nick and Ash chat with the team from People and Dancefloors, a UK project focused on telling the broader story of people who choose to take drugs. We also hear about how Covid-19 has effected the UK's nightlife and party scene.PEOPLE AND DANCEFLOORSFollow them on TwitterThe People and Dancefloors project was created by Daniel King and Dr Giulia Zampini. The research was designed by Giulia Zampini. The project has recently expanded to welcome Dr Eveleigh Buck-Matthews and Dr Anthony Killick on the research team. A manifesto by people who choose to take drugsWHY DO PEOPLE CHOOSE TO TAKE DRUGS?For too long, drug users have been portrayed as either criminals(1) or victims(2) of the potential ill effects of the substances that they choose to take. Although all drugs are harmful, and can be dangerous and even life-threatening(3), in most cases, the consequences of recreational drug taking are not negative.
Dr. Stephen Bright and Drugswrap editor Jack Revell join the program for a full-show panel covering a range of alcohol and other drug issues.
Jack Revell from Drugswrap talks the week in drug news with us.Follow Drugswrap on TwitterDr. Monica Barratttwitter.com/monicabarratt(link is external)Dr. Monica Barratt is a social scientist, focusing on alcohol and other drug policy, especially around how drug markets operate in the online world. Monica works with the Drug Policy Modelling Program, part of Australia's National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre at the University of New South Wales and currently a senior research fellow with RMIT UniversityDr. Nicole Leetwitter.com/drnicolelee(link is external)Dr Nicole Lee is psychologist, with expertise in alcohol and other drug policy and practice. Nicole is an adjunct professor at the National Drug Research Institute at Curtin University, a member of the Australian National Advisory Council on Alcohol and Drugs and the Director of 360 Edge, a specialist alcohol and other drugs consultancy which helps bring research into policy and practice. Global Drug Survey COVID-19 EditionThe GDS Special Edition on COVID-19 was developed as part of a global effort to better understand the impact of the pandemic on people’s lives with a specific focus on the use of alcohol and other drugs, mental health and relationships. Over 55,000 people took part. The survey ran for 7 weeks in (May – June 2020)VIEW THE GLOBAL DRUG SURVEY RESULTS(link is external)National Drug Strategy Household Survey 2019 Australian Institute of Health and Welfare(link is external)
Jack Revell from Drugswrap talks the week in drug news with us.Follow Drugswrap on TwitterDr. Monica Barratttwitter.com/monicabarrattDr. Monica Barratt is a social scientist, focusing on alcohol and other drug policy, especially around how drug markets operate in the online world. Monica works with the Drug Policy Modelling Program, part of Australia's National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre at the University of New South Wales and currently a senior research fellow with RMIT UniversityDr. Nicole Leetwitter.com/drnicoleleeDr Nicole Lee is psychologist, with expertise in alcohol and other drug policy and practice. Nicole is an adjunct professor at the National Drug Research Institute at Curtin University, a member of the Australian National Advisory Council on Alcohol and Drugs and the Director of 360 Edge, a specialist alcohol and other drugs consultancy which helps bring research into policy and practice. Global Drug Survey COVID-19 EditionThe GDS Special Edition on COVID-19 was developed as part of a global effort to better understand the impact of the pandemic on people’s lives with a specific focus on the use of alcohol and other drugs, mental health and relationships. Over 55,000 people took part. The survey ran for 7 weeks in (May – June 2020)VIEW THE GLOBAL DRUG SURVEY RESULTSNational Drug Strategy Household Survey 2019 Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
Jack Revell from Drugswrap talks the week in drug news with us.Follow Drugswrap on Twitter Yarra Drug & Health Forum presents:International Overdose Awareness Day 2020 - Compassion Not JudgementDecades of expensive prohibition and policing haven’t reduced the harms associated with drug use. Policies focused on reducing harms and understanding people’s complex needs have produced far more positive results. A compassionate approach means understanding complex problems and appropriately resourcing responses that actually work.International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD) is a global event held on 31 August each year and aims to raise awareness of overdose and reduce the stigma of a drug-related death. Originating in Melbourne 2001, the day acknowledges the grief felt by families and friends by remembering those we have lost, or those who have sustained a permanent injury as the result of drug overdose. Our minds immediately go to illegal drugs when discussing overdose, however alcohol and prescription medication are two of our biggest killers.In honour of loved ones lost and dearly missed, our aim is to raise awareness and reduce stigma within our communities around this significant health issue.Guest speakersFamilies and people with lived experience of the impact of drug overdoseMC – Jason Vandy (Aaron Short Awareness Association)Mick ColtonCherie ShortDebbie Warner (APOD)Professionals:Prof. Margaret Hamilton AOSam Biondo (Victorian Alcohol And Drugs Association)Sione Crawford (Harm Reduction Victoria)Dr. Nico Clark (Medically Supervised Injecting Room)Politicians:Martin Foley MP (State Member for Albert Park, VIC Minister for Mental Health)Fiona Patten MLC (Northern Metro – Reason Party)Dr. Tim Read MP (Member for Brunswick – Victorian Greens) Supporters:Alcohol Prescription & Other Drugs Family Support (APOD)Addiction and the Family International Network (AFINet)Harm Reduction Victoria (HRVic)Victorian Alcohol And Drugs Association (VAADA)Aaron Short Awareness AssociationNorth Richmond Community HealthFamily Drug Support
Jack Revell from Drugswrap talks the week in drug news with us.Follow Drugswrap on TwitterDrug Reporter and INPUD present:Taking Back What's Ours! An oral history of the movement of people who use drugsIn this episode of the oral history of the movement of people who use drugs, we learn about the successes and challanges in Australia, from four veterans of the user movement.The history of the movement of people who use drugs in Australia is a long and rich one. It is one of the few countries that has funded user organisations for over 30 years now.In this episode of our series, four veterans of the user movement in Australia tell us the oral history of the movement. Jude Byrne from the Australian Injecting and Illicit Drug Users League (AIVL), Annie Madden and Charles Henderson from the New South Wales Users and AIDS Association (NUAA) and Geoffrey Ward from the Canberra Alliance for Harm Minimisation and Advocacy (CAHMA).In the 80s when HIV appeared among people who inject drugs, the Australian government wisely responded by involving injecting drug users into designing and implementing the response. This approach resulted in minimising HIV infections among users in the Country. The Activists successfully advocated for the opening of medically supervised injecting rooms, first in Sydney and recently in Melbourne. Naloxone distribution is run by the user groups as well.Despite their successes, their work is far from being done. They tirelessly fight to end prohibition and the harms arising from it: the drug testing at dance festivals, which results in the death of young people, because out of fear of being caught, they swallow their week's dose of drug; the drug testing of drivers for cannabis, when your license is taken away if you test positive, even though you used days before; or the removal of children from their drug using mothers, regardless of how she treats her child.In this episode we also learn about how New Zealand successfully responded to the HIV epidemic by being one of the first countries to have a national needle and syringe exchange program.
Listen to part 1Jack Revell from Drugswrap talks the week in drug news with us.Follow Drugswrap on TwitterYarra Drug and Health Forum and VAADA Present:Independent Review of the Medically Supervised Injecting Room in North Richmond: Findings and recommendationsPresented by Professor Margaret HamiltonProfessor Hamilton has 50 years’ experience in the alcohol and other drug field including clinical work, education, research and policy development. She holds an honorary position as Professor of Public Health in the School of Population & Global Health, University of Melbourne.Her work has included founding Director of Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre , Chair of the Victorian Multiple and Complex Needs Panel and she served as an Executive member of the Australian National Council on Drugs for over 12 years, was on the Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness for 3 years, President of Cancer Council Vic., and a member of board of VicHealth, Chair of the Advisory Committee for the Centre for Alcohol Policy Studies at LaTrobe Uni as well as other roles in many drug and alcohol organisations, and national and international bodies.Co-sponsored by the Yarra Drug and Health Forum and VAADA , this online event took place on Monday 3 August from 12:30-2:00pmYarra Drug and Health Forum has been a long-time advocate for the establishment of the Medically Supervised Injecting room (MSIR) in North Richmond as a strongly evidenced , high impact strategy to prevent overdose deaths and reduce street based injecting, in a neighbourhood that has hosted a long established heroin drug market for many years.Over the first 18 months of operation , the MSIR has responded to 2,657 overdose events, and is estimated to have prevented between 21 and 27 deaths.The Review Summary document is available here.(link is external)
Jack Revell from Drugswrap talks the week in drug news with us Yarra Drug and Health Forum and VAADA Present:Independent Review of the Medically Supervised Injecting Room in North Richmond: Findings and recommendationsPresented by Professor Margaret HamiltonProfessor Hamilton has 50 years’ experience in the alcohol and other drug field including clinical work, education, research and policy development. She holds an honorary position as Professor of Public Health in the School of Population & Global Health, University of Melbourne.Her work has included founding Director of Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre , Chair of the Victorian Multiple and Complex Needs Panel and she served as an Executive member of the Australian National Council on Drugs for over 12 years, was on the Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness for 3 years, President of Cancer Council Vic., and a member of board of VicHealth, Chair of the Advisory Committee for the Centre for Alcohol Policy Studies at LaTrobe Uni as well as other roles in many drug and alcohol organisations, and national and international bodies.Co-sponsored by the Yarra Drug and Health Forum and VAADA , this online event took place on Monday 3 August from 12:30-2:00pmYarra Drug and Health Forum has been a long-time advocate for the establishment of the Medically Supervised Injecting room (MSIR) in North Richmond as a strongly evidenced , high impact strategy to prevent overdose deaths and reduce street based injecting, in a neighbourhood that has hosted a long established heroin drug market for many years.Over the first 18 months of operation , the MSIR has responded to 2,657 overdose events, and is estimated to have prevented between 21 and 27 deaths.The Review Summary document is available here.
Support Don't PunishIs a global campaign, focused on prioritising public health and human rights in our drug policies, rather than punishment and coercion. Enpsychedelia has supported #SupportDontPunish since our first broadcasts in 2015 on Melbourne's 3CR 855AM.SSDP AustraliaThis year, the Students for Sensible Drug Policy Australia crew held a webinar 'Uncovering the Australian War on Drugs' with guest speakers:Dr. Mary Harrod Dr. Peta MalinsTara Schultz
Nick catches up with Dr. Stephen Bright from AODMediaWatch.com.auMusic from Ape Suit - Bow ValleySegment from AOD Media Watch - Been Skewed Over by the Daily Telegraph? This is what I didYou can watch the video of the segment at our YouTube channel:Music from Missy Higgins and Tim Minchin - Carry YouI caught up with Dennis McKenna as part of the EGA Live Broadcast on their YouTube channel:
Standing With The Waters : A Benefit Album For Standing Rockby Aquatic CollectiveStanding With The Waters : A Benefit Album For Standing Rock by Aquatic CollectiveKathleen Harrison - Veins Of Light: Feminine Awareness & Visionary MedicineEntheogenesis Australis Dec 8th 2017, Melbourne Australia. Synopsis What is the role of feminine awareness in relationship to visionary species? We often personify powerful plant species as spirits, many of them female. We can examine how this perception affects our relationship with them and their effect on us.Curiosity, compassion, and truth-telling are qualities that plants and mushrooms sometimes exhibit, just as we do. Let's follow that line of thought together. Bio Kathleen Harrison, M.A., is an ethnobotanist who has worked in the field since the 1960s.She is informed by long relationships with indigenous healers, California subcultures, an array of expert naturalists, and her own decades of psychedelic curiosity. She co-founded the organization Botanical Dimensions with Terence McKenna in 1985, and continues as its perennial Program Director, initiating ongoing projects in Mexico, Peru, California and Hawaii.Kat has taught globally for both universities and many conferences. She is currently based and teaching at the Botanical Dimensions Ethnobotany Library, in Northern California. She specializes in the study of nature-based worldviews, patterns of belief, ritual, healing, art and the plants that live where they evolved.
Nick and Ash are joined by former Executive Officers and committee members of the Yarra Drug & Health Forum (YDHF), a unique organisation bridging gaps between community and clinician through events and discussion. Guest speakers:Greg Denham, former Executive OfficerVera Boston, former Executive OfficerPeter Wearne, Executive Committee memberYDHF Meetings are currently being held online. You can find out about upcoming meetings at their website or watch previous meetings on their YouTube channel.
Nick mentions a couple of things you might be interested in:HAVE A GOOD TRIP: ADVENTURES IN PSYCHEDELICS (Netflix) is a documentary featuring comedic tripping stories from A-list actors, comedians, and musicians. Star-studded reenactments and trippy animations bring their surreal hallucinations to life. Mixing comedy with a thorough investigation of psychedelics, HAVE A GOOD TRIP explores the pros, cons, science, history, future, pop cultural impact, and cosmic possibilities of hallucinogens. Australian Tobacco Harm Reduction Association live Facebook video, Vaping Facts and the Status of Vaping in Australia, Wednesday 13th May 2020Ronnie Grigg - Zero Block Society (pt2)Listen to part 1 hereRonnie is from Vancouver in Canada and joins the program to talk to us about the overdose crisis that has swept Canada over the past five years, and the longer history of advocacy for people sleeping rough, community-based harm reduction initiatives and his newly formed not-for-profit organisation, the Zero Block Society.AOD Media Watch: Are you a vulnerable celebrity? Why not try meth with The Seven NetworkAuthor:Katie Horneshaw, Op Ed columnist and features writerReviewers:Dr Stephen Bright, Senior Lecturer of Addiction at Edith Cowan UniversityDr Liam Engel, Adjunct Research Fellow at Edith Cowan UniversityFeatured image: Promotional image for 7News’ documentary, Ben Cousins: Coming Clean.Disclaimer: The author takes full responsibility for the content of this article.On the evening Sunday the 29th of March, Channel Seven aired a one hour program about former AFL player Ben Cousins called “Coming Clean”. In the opening sequence, the audience is greeted with footage of Ben from ten years ago, polished and media-trained. “I hope this documentary can send a powerful message about how addiction affects your life,” he warns, before the camera cuts dramatically to Ben in 2020. It’s a shock. He stares straight at the camera, media-friendly smile wiped away, visibly aged, a long beard and shaggy ponytail obscuring much of his face. He croakily finishes the spiel that former Ben began: “But I feel there are some real lessons to be learnt here. And I think some good can come from it, for everyone”If there was any hope that Seven might at least aim for objectivity in what was promoted as a “documentary”, it’s lost within these first few frames. Ben’s decades of struggles are whittled down to a spectacular opening sequence which frames the documentary’s central theme: Ben Cousins, the AFL star turned jobless, criminal, addict.“Brownlow to garbo, inside a jail”, Basil Zempilas contemplates at one stage, with pantomimed disbelief.Still, the piece could have functioned as a legitimate cautionary tale, had there been some attempt by Seven to contextualise Ben’s journey within a framework of punitive drug policy, stigma, the pressures of fame, and party culture; or to educate viewers on how one might reduce the harms that Ben has endured in their own lives. Instead, Ben Cousins is trotted out like a wind-up monkey and his sad story reduced to spectacle.READ MORE at AODMEDIAWATCH.COM.AU
Take the Global Drug Survey COVID19 special edition and help make sense of what's the same, what's different and what's changing. And take the Penington Institute's short survey on drug use patterns here.Goosebumpz - AutophagyInterview with Ronnie GriggZero Block SocietyRonnie is from Vancouver in Canada and joins the program to talk to us about the overdose crisis that has swept Canada over the past five years, and the longer history of advocacy for people sleeping rough, community-based harm reduction initiatives and his newly formed not-for-profit organisation, the Zero Block Society. Yarra Drug & Health Forum Online - What works and why – Evalutating peer worker programs We hear from two of the five speakers at this month's Yarra Drug & Health Forum. Watch the full forum on YouTube.Danny Jeffcote - Program Facilitator AOD West cohealthDavid de Been - Peer Overdose Response Worker – Harm Reduction Team Barwon HealthDone By Law - Policing & protests during COVID-19A short segment from 3CR's Done By Law (Tuesday, 6-6:30pm) is played, talking about the challenges to our civil liberties during the pandemic and subsequent government response.Background music used throughout the show from M&Ms
Ash touches on some news, including this apparent plan to re-purpose the Passive Alert Detection dog (Sniffer dog) program, Expert reveals how Aussie sniffer dogs could fight coronavirusAngus green - Vital Techniques & MC Pean - Bun up the Ting [Angus Green Remix] Covid Policing Part 2Listen to part 1 hereKitty ForestNick chats with Kitty about the future of festivals and the last party on Earth.Pandemic Party – Tribal Gathering Panama Locked Down With 100s of Doofers StrandedReports are coming in from Panama that hundreds of doofers, artists and crew have been placed in a forced lockdown by the army on the Tribal Gathering site due to fears the number of international travellers at the festival may infect the local population with COVID-19.Organisers of the event, Geoparadise, posted on their Facebook pageTip of the Iceberg- How COVID 19 is Impacting the Underground and How You Can HelpUnless you’ve been hiding in your fully prepped bunker in the middle of the desert with no wifi to wait out the apocalypse, you’d be well aware that COVID 19 has decimated the entire music industry, taking the underground electronic scene with it.Half Wild put out the call a few weeks ago to musicians and businesses in the industry to let us know how they’ve been impacted and how our readers can help. We were so overwhelmed with responses, it brought us to tears at Half Wild HQ. So many cries for help that we can’t possibly publish them all. So instead, we’ll bring you a series of articles and features to help promote those in need it as well as a special something we’re holding up our sleeves to announce real soon.Know Your Stuff NZAsh chats with Rhiannon from Know Your Stuff NZ about sensible advice for people who take drugs during a pandemic.
In this episode, we talk about inconsistent and confusing policing in Victoria of the COVID-19 restrictions, and the pandemic's effects on drug markets and the flow-on effect to those who access these markets.Mista Savona - Live at Glastonbury 2019 Interview with Jarryd BartleMaestro of Vice - Researcher and consultantThe Conversation - Drug use may increase the risk of coronavirus. Here’s how to reduce the harmsPeople who use illicit drugs, whether they are dependent or use them occasionally, are potentially at increased risk of harm during the coronavirus pandemic.The coronavirus is too new to know the exact interaction with illicit drugs. There has been no peer reviewed research yet, and we don’t know how many people who have contracted the virus also use drugs.However, we can estimate some of the possible impacts from what we know generally about drugs, their effects on the body, and how people use them, including in times of increased stress.Regardless of your views on illicit drugs, reducing the harms from drug use during the pandemic will improve the well-being of people who use them, and those close to them. Reducing harms will also help avoid additional pressure on the health system.Interview with Michelle and Jen from Covidpolicing.org.auVolunteers lawyers from Melbourne Activist Legal SupportCOVIDPOLICING WEEKLY ROUNDUP #2Now in its second week of operation, the Covid Policing website has had and additional 32 reports concerning police interactions. Victoria had by far the highest number of reports at 25 (15 for inner and greater Melbourne and 10 for regional Victoria), New South Wales (4), Queensland (1) and Western Australia (2). A majority of people reported that they had a negative experience of their interactions with police, describing their interactions as: aggressive, interrogatory, intimidating, harassing, rude, very rude, unpleasant, nasty, forceful, not friendly, frightening.Read more...Stream Local Musicwith QuarantunesBacking music from Tongberang'i Ngarrga Inc
Nick and Ash discuss recent news during the COVID-19 pandemic, and are seeking any information you might have about drug markets or trends. Get in touch with us via secure email enpsychedelia@protonmail.comAngus Green - Quarantine Beat #2 [Like That]Interview with Bo KittyBo has worked in a variety of roles over several decades at festivals in Melbourne and around Australia, doing Event Operations manager and a Public Safety Officer, also creator of events, tours, master classes, site logistics, project systems, global art exhibitions, nightclub events, live graffiti shows, and outdoor festivals worldwide.We discuss the quick changes that COVID-19 has made to the lives of many who work in a variety of creative, logistics and festival-nomad businesses. Interview with Gabi from 3CR's Midnight Mass
Our first show back after a Covid-19 hiccup / cough. We've been experimenting with ways to keep in contact during isolation. Like many, we have started using Zoom to conduct interviews and have been producing both live and pre-recorded video for our social media channels.During the Facebook Live chat, we caught up with:Dr. Stephen BrightSenior Lecturer in AOD at Edith Cowan University and head of AOD Media WatchSione CrawfordHarm Reduction Victoria - Executive OfficerSteph TzanetisDanceWize Program Coordinator - Harm Reduction Victoria You can watch the technical disaster of a live show here, but I recommend just listening to the podcast.The HRVic website has a special section on COVID-19 for people who use drugs. The following posters are downloadable as high quality files at the HRVic website.
Nick and Ash discussPeking Duk - Wasted Interview with Professor Monique MarksUrban Futures Centre at the Durban University of TechnologyInitially trained as a social worker, she has a doctorate in Sociology from the University of Natal, and writes predominantly in the field of criminology. She has published widely in the areas of youth social movements, ethnographic research methods, police labour relations, police organizational change and security governance. She has published four books: Young Warriors: Youth Identity, Politics and Violence in South Africa; Transforming the Robocops: Changing Police in South Africa; and Police Occupational Culture: New Debates and Directions (edited with Anne-Marie Singh and Megan O’Neill) and Police Reform from the Bottom Up (edited with David Sklansky). She has also published over 45 peer reviewed articles and numerous reports. She sits on a number of journal editorial boards as well as the Board of Trustees of the Safer South Africa Foundation. She is a B-rated researcher, indicating that she has substantial international recognition. In her research work on security governance she has forged close relations with government, both local and national. Monique also runs a large community engagement project in Durban’s largest low income municipal housing estate, Kenneth Gardens.Interview with Sarsani SchenkHarm Reduction worker with Unity in the NetherlandsAsh chats with Sarsani about harm reduction initiatives in the Netherlands, which has much more progressive drug policies in many areas.
In this edition of Enpsychedelia:Interview with Dr. Christopher ZalewskiDirector of Research – Plant Sciences and Co-Founder, Front Range BiosciencesMEDIA RELEASE: Front Range Biosciences Launches Hemp and Coffee Tissue Culture Samples to SpaceFront Range Biosciences® (FRB), an agricultural technology company focused on breeding and nursery production of new plant varieties and seeds for the hemp and coffee industries, today announced that its mission to transport plant cultures to space to examine the effects of zero gravity on plant gene expression is scheduled to launch this evening at the Kennedy Space Center. In partnership with SpaceCells USA Inc. and BioServe Space Technologies at the University of Colorado Boulder, FRB's coffee and hemp cell cultures will be delivered to the International Space Station (ISS) on the SpaceX CRS-20 cargo flight slated to depart today at 4:50 a.m. UTC, weather permitting.Peking Duk - WastedInterview with Michael Pettersson MLAMember for Yerrabi, Canberra Labor (ACT)Michael was integral in getting this change in place. It is a small step, so we talk to Michael about exactly what it does and doesn't allow.The Conversation - ACT cannabis laws come into effect on Friday, but they may not be what you hoped forThe new laws will allow territory residents aged 18 or older to grow cannabis plants at home. There will be a limit of two plants per person and four per household. And each person will be allowed to be in possession of no more than 50 grams of dried cannabis.Cannabis plants can only be cultivated on private properties. And only by people who usually live there.Interview with Dr. Peter RohdeAsh chats with Cryptoanarchist and quanatum computer scientist Dr. Peter Rohde on the state of medical cannabis in Australia.Blog - MEDICAL MARIJUANA IN AUSTRALIA IS A SCAMWhen I was in Switzerland last year climbing in the Alps, I noticed that CBD (the marijuana extract, Cannabidiol) was available over the counter in pharmacies, without a script. I’d been wanting to test out CBD for a long time, given its reputation in assisting with improving sleep cycles, and alleviating symptoms of anxiety, depression and mood disorders, without the medical side effects of prescription meds, such as benzos (liable to cause tolerance, addiction, and subsequent withdrawal) or SSRIs (which have countless side effects, including rapid weight change and loss of sleep), both of which I have used in the past, but want to avoid as much as conceivably possible.
Nicotine and vaping in AustraliaWhere's the smoke?Documentary maker and author John Safran has turned his attention to vaping in Australia. He's currently research a book into the state of vaping and joins us on Enpsychedelia to share some of his research so far, and to hear updates from experts and community members.GUESTSDr. Colin Mendelsohn - Australian Tobacco Harm Reduction AssociationColin is a Conjoint Associate Professor in the School of Public Health and Community Medicine at the University of New South Wales, Sydney. He was a general practitioner for 27 years and now works as a Tobacco Treatment Specialist helping smokers to quit. He has a special interest in the use of less harmful alternatives to smoked tobacco for smokers who are unable to quit (tobacco harm reduction).He is a member of the Expert Advisory Group that develops the Australian national smoking cessation guidelines and is past Vice President of the Australian Association of Smoking Cessation Professionals, Australia’s peak body for experts in the field of smoking cessation.Colin is actively involved in teaching health professionals and research in smoking cessation and has published widely in the field.For more information, visit his website at www.colinmendelsohn.com.auBrian Marlow - Legalise Vaping AustraliaBrian Marlow is Legalise Vaping Australia’s Campaign Director.Legalise Vaping Australia was formed in 2017 as a joint initiative of MyChoice Australia and the Australian Taxpayers' Alliance, as a unique grassroots advocacy and activist organisation. Legalise Vaping Australia is dedicated to campaigning for the legalisation and risk proportionate regulation of vaping and e-cigarettes across Australia.While we all know the best way to eliminate harm caused by smoking is to quit smoking completely, for those who are unable to quit, moving to smoke-free products provides an opportunity for better health and an improved life.E-cigarettes and vapes are endorsed by the National Health Service in the United Kingdom and Public Health England as being a better alternative to smoking and more effective for smoking cessation than nicotine-replacement therapy. Legalise Vaping Australia and its community of supporters are working to legalise vaping in Australia, ensuring Australian smokers have access to these less-harmful devices.The Legalise Vaping Australia campaign is funded by supporters via donations and sales of campaign merchandise. We have not and we will not accept funds from the tobacco industry.Along with the help of experts and leading researchers, the Legalise Vaping Australia team is engaged with key politicians across Australia and across the political spectrum to find the right regulatory balance that ensures these products are available to all Australian smokers who are trying to quit.
Nick and Ash talk drug news over the summer 2019-2020 period.Haydos - Bad AppleMichael Aguilera from Labor for Drug Law Reform speaks to Ash about their goal to push for evidence-informed drug policy in the Victorian Labor Party.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news and the stagnation of sensible regulation for those who choose to use a nicotine vape.Jorian GardnerFormer Canberra radio jock and current advisor to Fiona Patten MLC, with a passion for cannabis law reform. Jorian joins the program to talk cannabis legalisation in his former home territory and what's on the horizon for cannabis law reform in Victoria.Dr. Martin WilliamsPsychedelic Research In Science and Medicine (PRISM) President, Dr. Martin Williams provides an update on the St. Vincent (Melbourne) psilocybin trial for end of life anxiety. Mama Wonkita at RSF 2017Fungi MapCameron from Fungi Map talks to us about this important citizen science initiative.We are mapping the distribution of fungal species over time around Australia and we do this thanks to the work of hundreds of volunteers – professional and amateurs – who send us the records of their observations from the remotest parts of Australia to parks and gardens in our cities.We spread the word about the ecological importance of fungi.We advocate for fungal conservation and investment in mycologyWe assist by providing online field guides and tools for identification, help with conducting fungi forays and observation record templates. We hold events and training in fungal identification.We also:oversee fungal observation records for transfer to the Atlas of Living Australia databaseestablished a rare species database for tracking rare and threatened speciessupport regional fungal study groupspublish books on fungi and links to other sources of knowledgehold national and local events and training in fungal identification and surveyingpublish enewsletters and occasional blogsencourage and support state-based and regional fungi groupsprovide educational resources to primary and secondary school teachersoffer advice in effective management of fungi to land managersWe use the data from observations and the work of mycologists and researchers to inform government and the broader community about the ecological importance of fungi and the need for much more research and protection to avoid species loss.https://fungimap.org.au/
Nick and Ash are joined in the studio by Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP) Australia's Greg Denham on the final episode of Enpsychedelia for 2019. Greg provides valuable insight into the mindset of policing as we discuss issues related to festival policing, the politics of policing and how the drug law reform discussion is affected by policing politics in Victoria._Lobe_ SubterrestrialWe play an excerpt of this clip of Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Rick Nugent speaking to Sky News.There was a recent festival safety forum, with stakeholders ranging from across the festival industry in Victoria organised by Victoria police. This is an excerpt from VicPol's media release on this forumPolice will today join health, emergency services and music festival industry experts and leaders at a forum in Melbourne that is putting safety at music festivals at the forefront. Hundreds of thousands will attend music festivals across Victoria this summer, and the Music Festival Industry Forum is key to preparing for the vibrant season. The Music Festival Industry Forum, organised by Victoria Police, will be hosted by Professor John Fitzgerald and will include guest speakers, interactive workshops and discussion from a range of stakeholders.We play an excerpt from Drug Policy Australia's event at the Melbourne Town Hall:Is it Time to Legalise or Decriminalise Drugs? Panel discussion and book launch of Pills Powder and Smoke by Antony Loewenstein at the Melbourne Town Hall 9th September 2019Mista Savona - Carnival (Opiuo Remix)Know Your Stuff NZWendy Allison joins the program to talk pill testing in New Zealand. KnowYourStuffNZ is a community organisation of volunteers operating in collaboration with the New Zealand Drug Foundation to provide drug related harm reduction services at events around New Zealand, including drug checking. The service is free of charge to clients.
Every week Nick and Ash start the show with a chat about what's been in the news locally and internationally for drug policy.Unharm Director Will Tregoning NSW Coroner's reportLegalise Vaping CampaignBrian Marlow talks about why vaping of nicotine has become such a vexxed issue in Australia and the campaign to change that."PROTEST ALL DAY, PARTY ALL NIGHT": HOW RAVE IS UNITING THE LEBANESE REBELLION - MixmagPsychedelic Panel Discussion at Dosed Screening in MelbourneThis panel was held at Cinema Nova in Melbourne on Wednesday the 28th of August 2019. It followed a screening of the movie Dosed Panel hosted by Cam Duffy from the Australian Psychedelic Society, with panelists:Paul Liknaitzky - Executive Officer of Mind Medicine AustraliaFiona Henrich - Clinical Psychologist DOSED - dosedmovie.com winner of the Melbourne Documentary Festival Audience award
Harm reduction is a broad approach to drug policies, programmes and practices that aim to reduce the harms associated with the use of psychoactive drugs in people unable or unwilling to stop. The defining features are the focus on the prevention of harm, rather than on the prevention of drug use itself, and the focus on people who continue to use drugs.Peer workers are vital to harm reduction. They bring the wisdom, knowledge and connections needed to prevent and reduce harm in our community.GUESTSPeter Wearne, Chair of Yarra Drug and Health ForumAssoc. Professor Kate Seear, Law Research Services Monash UniversityTim Payne (May you rest, good soul), EGA co-founderSione Crawford, Executive Officer, Harm Reduction Victoria
Today's show was recorded live at Rainbow Serpent Festival in January this year.The video is available to watch on Rainbow's YouTube channel.We're hoping to do a second part to this panel at Rainbow Serpent Festival in 2020 and focus deeper on current issues, but always with context to the broader story.Subscribe to our podcast, follow us on Facebook and Twitter and get in contact with us if you have something to share. Sorry for this cheesy intro. I was tired and getting a little too sensual with the microphone.Our topic was Australian Festivals and the Culture Wars. A topic familiar to regular listeners of this show.Our focus on this show is drug policy. We talk about policy in a broad sense: Our laws, social conventions, education, justice system and so on.Underneath this all is the reality of human lives.And for as long as there has been humanity, there has been a quest to explore new frontiers.But, there is always also a wondering, a pondering. How far is too far? Which paths should be less tread?And, in response, some choose to quest anyway, wondering whether what is said to be, really is?
Rainbow Serpent Festival 2019 Safe & Sustainable Partying - DanceWize FeaturingMelissa DentSteph TzanetisNick KentLinda Cowan DanceWize (formerly RaveSafe) is celebrating 20 years of being a government-funded, peer-based harm reduction service. With grassroots origins beginning in 1995 as ‘RaveSafe’, we’ll share the story of DanceWize/RaveSafe with you, including the inspiration for the original ‘RaveSafe’ name being from a video made for rave VJs and filled with messages about safe sex and other harm reduction themes. Our team members, original members and new, come from a wide variety of backgrounds and will share with you some of their work in the event harm reduction space from the 1990s to date. DanceWize uses a peer education model to reduce alcohol and other drug (AOD) related harm at Victorian music events and festivals. Over the past two decades of operation, hundreds of volunteers have attended hundreds of events; providing harm reduction education and care for thousands of Victorians to reduce the risks associated with the music scene.
Nick and Ash talk about the week in drug news, along with Ash's recent trip to Australia's regional Burner event, Burning Seed.The 3CR Monday Breakfast team caught up with Dr. Nicole Lee, to talk cannabis legalisation in the ACT.PODCAST:Monday 30th September: US Right to Life activism in NSW, Moral responsibility for Australia's 'exported' emissions, ACT legalises growing small amounts of cannabis, Walk for Epilepsy, Connecting with the Melbourne International Arts Festival3CR Breakfast shows are 7am - 8:30pmMore events and drug policy discussion
Sydney SSDP event, talking about drugs, addiction and complex trauma.Strong language and people talking candidly about their experiences with drugs. If you are concerned about someone else’s drug use or your own and want further advice, call DirectLine on 1800 888 236.DirectLine is a confidential alcohol & drug counselling and referral available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Help is available whenever you need it and never hesitate to call in a time of need. Call 1800 888 236”Nick Kent, Director of Students for Sensible Drug Policy AustraliaBeau Jaco, Signs and symptoms of overdose, particularly opiates and stimulantsNicholas Andrews, counsellor experienced in working with people who have complex trauma and addictionsMJ, South African runs drug safety checking services
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug newsMUSICDubarray - Flow Like Water, from the Sound of Prana albumSEGMENTDavid Shoebridge MLC (NSW Greens) joins the programSEGMENTJudy Ryan - Victoria Street Drug Solutions RVSDS continues its work at the grassroots level of this community through membership of the Richmond Estate Public Tenants Association, consisting of marginalised women who just want to be heard and respected, and have functioning washing machines/secured laundries, better security, and supervised homework clubs and playgrounds for their kids.There are more communities that need MSIR trials in their areas, such as Hoppers Crossing, Footscray, St Kilda, Dandenong and Frankston.Some of the issues Judy talked with us about were:The development of a space for clients to go when they leave the facility.Manage the presence of drug dealers in the MSIR vicinity Commence a trial of hydromorphone at the MSIRMassive injection of government funds into the renewal of the housing estate This is a huge issue for the tenants and the community more broadly. The inexcusable degraded nature of these towers is a constant reminder of the misery and poverty of the area, therefore (according to the detractors) exacerbating the drug dealing/using and opposition to the MSIR.MUSICThe Cat Empire - BarricadesSEGMENTMJ
Roadside Drug Testing SpecialGuests:Fiona Patten MP - Member for Northern Metro representing the Reason PartyThomas Arkel - Efficacy of roadside drug tests in determining impairmentGreg Denham - Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP)David Limbrick MP - Member for South Eastern Metro representing the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)Petition for an inquiry into our current approach to drug drivingLetitia Wilkinson from MSIR Residents Action Committee (MRAC) talks to us about MRAC's position on Richmond's supervised injecting facility.
Nigel Damon from the Council for Homeless Persons joins the show to guest host and share his own story. - We speak with Dr. Colin Mendelsohn from the Australian Tobacco Harm Reduction Association (ATHRA) about the role of vaping nicotine in reducing tobacco related harm, but also the role of regulation on creating strange public health scenarios, where idealism tramples pragmatism.Ash was in Sydney for the Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD) event
International Overdose Awareness Day is on the 31st of August every year. In this episode, hear audio from an IOAD event held in Richmond for the Aaron Short Awareness Association (ASAA Inc) in collaboration with the Yarra Drug and Health Forum, APOD Family Services and Harm Reduction Victoria.Location: Richmond Town Hall @ 1pm – 5pmInternational Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD) is a global event held on 31 August each year and aims to raise awareness of overdose and reduce the stigma of a drug-related death. Originating in Melbourne 2001, the day acknowledges the grief felt by families and friends by remembering those we have lost, or those who have sustained a permanent injury as the result of drug overdose. Our minds immediately go to illegal drugs when discussing overdose, however alcohol and prescription medication are two of our biggest killers.In honour of loved ones lost and dearly missed, our aim is to raise awareness and reduce stigma within our communities around this significant health issue.Read the Vancouver safe supply statement
Regular hosts Nick and Ash are joined by Jarryd Bartle, who specialises in consulting on a range of issues often thought of as vice territory.This was our list of topics to discuss. Can't guarantee we got to all of them, nor in the same order. But while you listen, it may be of use.Pill testing debateGreens Bill -https://greens.org.au/vic/pill-testing-draft-billAUDIO: Tim Harvey, “In many ways the community i’m here representing today encompasses many of the ideals we need today”Alternative models to pill testingThe Lynch Grinch - Those who believe that pill testing is bollocks and we should just legalise drugs and put all energy into doing that.CannabisMedical cannabis accessibilityCannabis regulation and the inquiry into cannabis market regulation in VIctoriaSecured: Australia’s first inquiry into cannabisVaporising nicotineCurrent state of market, regulations, recent attempts at regulatory changeTGA denied recent request for nicotine re-scheduling that would have allowed for nicotine in vaporisersAUDIO: Fiona Patten, “Y’know abstinence doesn’t work all the time. SO it’s about providing alternatives”Roadside Drug Testing‘Australia’s second generational approach to roadside drug testing’ - A report from the National Drug Driving Working Group October 2018 - page 16AUDIO: David Limbrick, “The October 2018 report from national drug driving working group”Inquiry into drug driving reform petition 117 on the legislative council e-petition websiteDeterrence theory
We are proud to present some of the talks from the Australian Psychedelic Society (Sydney)'s Bicycle Day event. Dr Vince Polito - Experiences Of microdosing psychedelics: An observational Study - Bicycle Day 2019'From Changa to Change - Self to Society' by Jef Baker @ The Politics of Awe 2019
Nick introduces this week's special, with audio from The Penington Institute's debate:Pill testing – Lifesaver or false comfort?Should pill testing be trialled at music festivals?Can you ever tell whether a pill is safe?Could pill testing save lives?Following a series of tragic deaths at music festivals this summer there is widespread debate about whether states and territories should allow pill testing.Supporters say it will save lives, while those opposed are concerned testing won’t actually help.Are there problems with the tests?Could they could give a false sense of security?Or should we give pill testing a try?To understand what the issues really are, and to shed more light on the debate, Penington Institute is hosting a public information forum with specialist experts to air the pros and cons of pill testing.You will hear the evidence on pill testing from recognised authorities for and against, as well as the story of one Victorian mother whose son died following an overdose at a music festival.Expert speakers will include:Adriana Buccianti (parent of Daniel, who died at a festival in 2012)Andrew Liebie, Safe Work LaboratoriesDr David Caldicott, Calvary Hospital, CanberraEveryone is welcome.Date: Friday, 8 February 2019Time: Noon for 12.15pm – 2.00pmLocation: Multicultural Hub, 506 Elizabeth St, Melbourne VICWatch the full debate:
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug policy news and events. SEGMENTGreg Denham from Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP) Australia talks about law enforcement's role in drug policy, accompanied by Will Tregoning (UnHarm) and Dr. John Jiggens.MUSICHugo the Poet - ResponsibilitySEGMENTNick was recently in Nimbin for the annual Mardi Grass protestival, speaking about the rise of novel psychoactive substances, especially 'synthetic cannabinoids'.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug newsMUSICGriff - Dawn Trails (w Eastward & Yikesdoor)SEGMENTMelbourne Dosed screening at Cinema Nova. Out-take from the Q&A session with Dr. Martin Williams (President, PRISM), Dr. Margaret Ross (St. Vincent's Psilocybin Trial), Melissa Warner (Mind Medicine Australia).Host of the Dosed panels, Cam Duffy from the Australian Psychedelic Society talks about the panels.SEGMENTAsh caught up with libertarian and cannabis legalisation activist Avens O'Brien at the Friedman Conference held in Sydney, May 2019.
Nick and Ash kinda start talking about news, but Nick also rants a bit too much about drug stuff, veering frequently off track.Dr. John Jiggens joins the show to blow some sense into things.Dr John Jiggens is a writer and journalist who has published several books including The Incredible Exploding Man, Marijuana Australiana, The Sydney Connection and, with Jack Herer, the Australian version of The Emperor Wears No Clothes. Along with Matt Mawson, Anne Jones and Damien Ledwich, he edited The Best of The Cane Toad Times.As a journalist, he has contributed feature articles to The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, Rolling Stone, Penthouse, Simply Living and many other magazines. He edited The Cane Toad Times,The Westender and Brisbane Theatre Magazine.His Ph.D was ‘Marijuana Australiana: Cannabis Use, Popular Culture and the Americanisation of Drugs Policy in Australia 1938 – 1988‘. The two volumes which derive from his doctoral dissertation are The Sydney Connection and Marijuana Australiana.
Nick and Ash discuss in-depth drug news from Australia and around the world.SEGMENTWe speak with Mike Williams who has spoken about road industry safety issues on 2GB in Sydney and 2CC in Canberra. Former owner driver, now working as a long distance driver carting bulk chemicals all over the east coast about roadside drug testing and his Twitter commentary on public issues.SEGMENTMeredith is the Vice President of the Australian Psychedelic Society and an (almost fully qualified) therapist, who caught up with us after a recent trip to a conference in Canda. Meredith is also a musician, Registered Music Therapist and psychotherapist with a breadth of experience. As well as her private work, Meredith has experience working in early childhood, community, mental health, gender equity, and the disability sector. She has facilitated Music Therapy groups in adult mental health and with drug and alcohol inpatient therapy groups.Meredith has a private practice in Guided Imagery and Music therapy, a form of music psychotherapy that developed out of LSD research in the 1960s. She works with a holistic approach to address the needs of her clients and special interests include LGBTQIA+ issues, healing from trauma, relationships and spiritual issues. Meredith also works with Australian Psychedelic Society, facilitating integration workshops for people who have had challenging psychedelic experiences.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news.6th June marks the United Nations International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. Historically, this date has been used by governments to showcase “progress” in drug control in highly punitive terms.The Global Day of Action seeks to reclaim and shift that day’s narrative. Every year, on or around 26th June, an increasing number of activists all over the world join this unique and multifaceted show of force for harm reduction and drug policy reform.This year, we will be focusing on the intersection of justice and AOD (Alcohol and Other Drug) issues in Victoria, with the launch of the Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP).Law Enforcement Action Partnership Australia’s Greg Denham will host the event, with a range of guests talking about justice issues for people who use drugs.The event will finish up with a panel discussion and Q&A.SPEAKERSGreg Denham (Law Enforcement Action Partnership)Peter WearneKate SeearShaunnaShaunna is a transgender woman who grew up in eastern Australia. She’s presenting experiential insights into opioid and stimulant use in Australia in the context of law, human rights, poverty, homelessness, rough sleeping, street-based population groups, overdose mortality, health and harm reduction.Sione (Harm Reduction Victoria)
Nick introduces the show, with Tara Schultz taking over as host for the show, with a panel of guests talking candidly about their own experiences with drugs and the law.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug policy news, events and activism.Re-play of an interview we conducted with Johann Hari, author of Chasing The Scream and Lost Connection.
This episode is the 3CR Radiothon special, which you can still donate to for a little while after June 16th 2019.SPECIAL GUESTSNick and Ash are joined by two special guests with decades long experience from vastly different, but converging backgrounds.Greg Denham from Law Enforcement Action Partnerships Australia (LEAP Australia)Peter Wearne is an executive member of the Yarra Drug & Health Forum with decades of experience in the AOD sector.Magistrate Tony Parsons spoke at the 2016 Supprt Don't Punish event in Footscray about the drug courts program.View video of the full event on Facebook.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news on drug law, policy and culture. POPPERSMaestro of Vice, Jarryd Bartle joins the program to discuss the recent decision by the TGA to re-schedule alkyl nitrites (poppers).Read the FULL TGA DECISION ON RE-SCHEDULINGCANNABIS LEGALISATIONReason party leader and Upper House member for the Northern Metropolitan Region Fiona Patten talks to us about her successful initiative for an inquiry into regulation of cannabis and associated products in Victoria. Secured: Australia’s first inquiry into cannabis (Fiona Patten MLC)GUIDELINES FOR AOD DISCUSSIONS IN THE MEDIA Read the Mindframe guidelines.The Mindframe for Alcohol and Other Drugs project uses research evidence to reduce stigma associated with AOD use, increase help-seeking behaviour in people who may require treatment or support, and minimise harm.The evidence-informed guidelines aim to positively influence the quality of media reporting on AOD-related issues, improve community attitudes towards people living with issues related to AOD use and increase help-seeking behaviour.These guidelines are designed to inform, support and empower media to report safely and responsibly on AOD in ways which minimise harm, stigma and discrimination while maximising help-seeking behaviour.The guidelines include detailed information on:Communicating about someone who uses alcohol and other drugs.Helpful ways to communicate about alcohol and other drugs.Harmful ways to communicate about alcohol and other drugs.Language advice.Help-seeking information and services.Detailed evidence about the impact of media reporting.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news and are then joined by special guests David Nickles and Jessie Ray.David Nickles is an underground researcher and moderator for The DMT-Nexus community. He has worked on numerous harm reduction projects including KosmiCare, TLConscious, The Bunk Police, The Open Hyperspace Traveler and others. David has offered cultural critiques and commentary on psychedelics and radical politics as well as novel phytochemical data for psychedelic preparations at venues ranging from scientific conferences to music festivals around the world. David is also a glassblower, operating under the moniker of Oneiros Glass, and can be found in his glass studio during most of his waking hours.Why you should always scrutinise your substances (Happymag.tv) (Jessie speaks with Happymag.tv)Jessie Ray Murray is a former DanceWize NSW coordinator and advocate for sensible reforms to our drug laws. Jessie works tirelessly to support the building of resilient and strong communities that can take care of themselves and overcome many of the problems within themselves. Jess is also an artist and performer.
Chloe Span hosts this week's show, with special guests Frank, Sarah and Kate (pseudonyms). This episode focuses on personal dimensions of drug use and how things like class and gender can effect the experience of taking drugs and the perception of the person taking the drug.
Recorded live at Nimbin Town Hall Saturday 4th May for the 2019 Mardi Grass HemposiumDrug Testing Driver Saliva: Safer Roads or Bigger Brother?Panel Discussion: Roadside saliva drug testing is an increasingly commonplace strategy used by police to apparently address road safety issues. However, there is very little research concerning the effectiveness is a zero tolerance policy of traces of cannabis in saliva and reducing harm on the roads. After many years of rigorous research, an agreed limit of allowable alcohol and safe driving was agreed upon. Why can’t the same be done for cannabis? What’s happening in Australia, and around the world?NSW’s controversial Roadside Drug Testing scheme has come under increased scrutiny. The RDT program was first rolled out in Victoria in the early 2000’s, with tests for cannabis and methamphetamine, and a promise of increased road safety. The scheme continues to be promoted as a road-safety initiative similar to breath-testing for alcohol. Each year it costs tens of millions of dollars and leads to thousands of lost licenses. All of this would seem justifiable if each driver removed posed an increased risk on the roads. The problem is that the Securetec Drugswipe devices used by police across Australia do not distinguish between impairment and detection. And research shows that being able to detect whether or not someone uses cannabis has nothing to do with whether or not someone is currently impaired by cannabis.3CR’s Enpsychedelia explores issues at the intersection between drugs and society. Nick Wallis from Enpsychedelia will be hosting a panel exploring this issue of incomplete science leading to expensive policy, sold on a shaky road-safety rationale.Facilitator: Nick WallisSpeakers: Steve Bolt [Solicitor]Adela Falk [Pow420]Andrew Katelaris [Medical Cannabis Advocate]Andrew Kavasilas [HEMP Party]Sally McPherson [Solicitor] Fiona Patten [Reason MLC Victoria]
This episode was broadcast live on the 12th of May 2019 from Springvale City Hall. Hosts:Nick Wallis and Ash BlackwellPanellists: Torsten WiedemannDr. James RoweRay Thorpe (pre-recorded)Snu VoogelbreinderSynopsis: Prohibition began with plants. Poppies were joined by coca and then later cannabis. The drug laws focused more so on the alkaloids and similar synthesised chemicals, but the plants were never far away from the iron scythe of prohibition. As prohibition morphed during the 1970s and 1980s into the behemoth we see today, its scope widened until anything with a psychoactive effect was automatically presumed to require prohibition.In Australia, a range of plants and fungi have had heavy restrictions placed on them or have been prohibited, with no apparent pathway toward becoming legal, other than through a very stringent and solely medical or therapeutic context with the Therapeutic Goods Administration. The Thin Green Line panel explores how we got to these modern drug laws and how so many plants, especially in the 21st century, became spectacularly entangled in this Kafkaesque mess. Join us as we tease out some of the complexities of the war on plants.Technical production:Michaela Stubbs & 3CR technical crew
Ash Blackwell talks about the past few weeks in news on drug policy and science from across Australia and around the world.SEGMENTPsychedelic Research In Science and Medicine (PRISM) President Martin Williams spoke at the Melbourne Australian Psychedelic Society (APS) Mushroom day in 2018 at Sooki Lounge in BelgraveINTERVIEWPenny Hill (Australian youth civil society representative at the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime’s Commission on Narcotic Drugs sessions in Vienna, Austria) joins the program to discuss recent meetings at the UNODC and international moves to a different approach for drug policy, which are also challenged by a prohibitionist approach seeking further international punitive controls.
Chloe Span hosts this week's show, with special guests Frank and Sarah (pseudonyms). Frank attends Narcotics Anonymous and talks to us about their life-long journey with drugs and why abstinence seems the better option for Frank at the moment.Sarah talks to us about her childhood use of drugs and why she believes that, in some circumstances, mandatory rehabilitation may be a good option for people under the age of 18.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news and then join Matt Riley from Free Cannabis Victoria at the recent 420 Rally in Flagstaff GardensSEGMENTStduents for Sensible Drug Policy Australia's National Director Nick Kent joins the program to discuss his recent trip to Vienna, for United Nations talks on the international drug treaties that guide our policies and laws. Nick also talks to us about his visits to various other countries currently conducting pill testing.
Nick and Ash are joined by SSDP National Director Nick Kent, who has recently returned from Vienna where there have been talks on the state of international prohibition. INTERVIEWApril 20th marks the global 420 celebrations, a day the cannabis community come together to celebrate the plant. Free Cannabis Victoria's Matt Riley talks to us about the upcoming weekend's picnic at Flagstaff Gardens, 2-7pm.April 19th is Bicycle Day, the annual psychedelic celebration of the first intentional acid trip. Read more at our website about Bicycle Day.We hear a small part of Dr. Prash's talk at the 2017 Entheogenesis Australis Psychedelic Symposium - Psychedelic Science: Resistance to the Renaissance
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug policy, events, campaigns and news.INTERVIEWSCEO of the Australian Injecting and Illicit Drug Users League (AIVL) Melanie Walker to talk about the implications of the 2019 federal budget (under Scott Morrison, about one month out from a federal election) and how Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) sector organisation would be faring. Read the AIVL response here.Founder of AOD Media Watch Dr. Stephen Bright joins the program to talk about the recently launched Mindframe Guidelines for reporting on Alcohol and Other Drug issues.PhD candidate Liam Engels speaks with Ash about a recent Herald Sun article, 'DEALERS LIKENED TO ‘TERRORISTS’ IN WAR ON DRUGS' (paywalled), in context with our discussion with Dr. Bright about how language can feed into policy responses and law.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news.INTERVIEWMatt Noffs, CEO of the Noffs Foundation joins the program to talk about the roots of prohibition and his two recent books on its effects, Addicted and Breaking The Ice.
Nick and Ash catch up on the past few weeks in news.INTERVIEWPsychedelic artist Roger Essig joins the program to talk about the Cyberdelic Incubator event in Brunswick on the evening this episode was aired. The theme of the Melbourne node is 'The History and Future of Cyberdelics.'The term “Cyberdelics” emerged from the visionary psychonauts and leading minds of the ’60s. With the launch of the personal computer revolution, Timothy Leary famously said: “The PC is the LSD of the ‘90s” followed by one of the most remembered memes of the 60’s “the medium is the message” which fully embraced McLuhan’s concept of the Global Village as the natural evolution of the new media technology.Roger talks to us about his DMT-inspired trek through the realms of multimedia, to recreate and bring forth an experience that left Roger perplexed. Through his work with a variety of mediums, especially virtual reality more recently, Roger seeks to share an understanding of these hidden psychedelic worlds with others, to see if they see what he's seen and to help use these experiences to bring positive change to people's lives.
The NSW state election on on Saturday the 23rd of March 2019. Nick is joined by Emily Blatchford, a researcher of alcohol and other drugs and treasurer of Students for Sensible Drug Policy Australia. SSDP have prepared this scorecard for a selection of NSW political parties contesting the upcoming election.INTERVIEWSWe spoke with candidates from The Greens and Keep Sydney Open.David Shoebridge is an environmental and social justice activist and former industrial law barrister. He has been a Greens member of the New South Wales Legislative Council since September 2010 and will be recontesting his seat at the NSW state election.Tyson Koh is from the Keep Sydney Open party, a political party that began because they weren't being heard. When night-time safety was a headline story, they saw it as an opportunity to build an even more vibrant and inclusive nightlife, supported by 24-hour transport, smarter policing and better services. This would have enabled NSW culture and economy to grow while making the city safer. Instead, NSW got lockout laws. READ MORE...
EGA Garden States is on Sunday May 12th and Enpsychedelia will be broadcasting live from the event, with 'The Thin Green Line', taking a look at Australia's drug law history and how it has affected plants and fungi.Rainbow Serpent Festival 2019 Lifestyle VillageThe Australian Psychedelic Society Presents: Counter-Culture Meets Mainstream AustraliaWith:Dr. Martin Williams - PRISM (Psychedelic Research In Science and Medicine) Melissa Warner - Mind Medicine Australia
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news, policy and events.SEGMENTSNick recently attended the Don't Kill Live Music rally in Hyde Park, Sydney. Overbearing regulation, exorbitant police bills, a lack of respect for NSW businesses, and very little recognition of the significant positive impacts of music on our communities is forcing music out of NSW. The State Government has declared war on music and culture in NSW, proclaiming that music and music festivals are high-risk activities.Music is being killed off by Premier Berejiklian and the LNP. Festivals are being forced to cancel or move interstate.The NSW State Government is vilifying live music with knee-jerk regulation (more details here). Instead of consulting with festival experts, the NSW Government imposed punitive regulation that specifically targets music festivals and music fans. Festivals are being used as a scapegoat for years of failed drug and alcohol policy.We want our music culture to be safe and inclusive. Onerous and ill-considered regulation will not save lives. And the State Government is decimating our music culture in the process. The Saturday after DKLM in Sydney, Ash attended the City Rave Protest in Carlton Gardens, Melbourne.Five young Australians have died in the last five months. In 2017, Seven young Australians died of drug related causes.Sniffer dogs at events has not worked to save these lives.The set up of road blocks at events has not decreased the amount of people taking drugs.Banning drugs and criminalising drug users will not help those families who have lost loved ones.Safety programs have worked in the past with speeding, seat belts, pedestrian safety. Why don’t the government think Pill Testing will minimise harm in this instance?It's time to tell the Government this is not working.BRING PILL TESTING IN…SAFETY FIRST ALWAYSThe Melbourne Dance Community want action and we want it now!Speakers:Greg Chipp (CEO Drug Policy Australia)Fiona Patten (State MP Reason Party)Tim Read (State MP Greens)David Limbrick – State MP Liberal Democrats
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news, policy and events.Professor David Nutt has been in Australia for the VAADA (Victorian Alcohol And other Drugs Association) Conference 2019 and also helped launch Mind Medicine Australia. Professor Nutt is the founder Chair of DrugScience.org.uk (formerly the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs – ISCD) and has held many leadership positions in both the UK and European academic scientific and clinical organisations including the European Brain Council, the British Neuroscience Association, the British Association of Psychopharmacology, the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology and the UK Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs. He is a Fellow of the Royal Colleges of Physicians, of Psychiatrists and the Academy of Medical Sciences. He is also the UK Director of the European Certificate and Masters in Affective Disorders courses and a member of the International Centre for Science in Drug Policy.
Chloe Span hosts Enpsychedelia, talking about the upcoming International Family Drug Support Day and hosting guests:Tara SchultzSofia Devetak (SSDP NSW)Penny Hill (SSDP Australia Co-founder)
Part 2 of the Rainbow Serpent Festival 2018 panel - Drugs in Australia: Going Round the Twist with:Nick Kent, President of Students for Sensible Drug Policy Melbourne University chapterMartin Williams, President of Psychedelic Research In Science and Medicine (PRISM)Ash Blackwell, Co-Host of Enpsychedelia and co-founder of SSDP AustraliaFiona Measham, The Loop
A special for Students for Sensible Drug Policy Australia's #BeHeardNotHarmed campaign, with special guest co-host Andy Bain from SSDP.Launch of the #BeHeardNotHarmed campaign at Revolver UpstairsSSDP Victoria's James Haigh hosts the launch and introduces the evening's guests:Federal Victorian Senator Richard Di Natale (Australian Greens)State Victorian Upper House member for the Northern Metro district Fiona Patten MP (Reason)DanceWize coordinator Steph TzanetisSSDP Australia National Director Nick KentVoices from the Reclaim the Streets rally in Sydney, including:SSDP NSW's Sofia Devetak, calling for the NSW Government to allow the implementation of pill testing at festivals in the state.DanceWize NSW's Jessie RayAnd finally, a selection of voxpops from the launch of the #BeHeardNotHarmed campaign launch at Revolver.
Nick Kent talks about the upcoming launch of the #BeHeardNotHarmed campaign, the first national, youth-led campaign for pill testing. Hear a speech from Fiona Patten MP, member for the Northern Metropolitan Region and representative of the Reason Party in Victorian Parliament, talking pill testing at a Fitzroy rave.And finally, hear from Fiona Measham as she launches The Loop Australia in Brunswick, calling for effective pill testing as part of Victoria's overall harm reduction strategy.
National Director of Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) Australia, Nick Kent promotes the upcoming launch of the pill testing campaign, #BeHeardNotHarmedDONATE TO THE #BEHEARDNOTHARMED CAMPAIGNRAINBOW SERPENT FESTIVAL 2018 PANELHear from David Caldicott and Fiona Measham speaking at the 2018 Rainbow Serpent Festival about pill testing, including the methods and evidence supporting this harm reduction initiative.
Ash Blackwell joins Nick Wallis from the road, on his way to Tanglewood Festival for New Years Eve, to chat about all that has happened in drug policy during 2018.2018 WRAP UPWe wrap up the year that was by looking back at some of our diverse interviews from 2018.Hear from:Yarra Drug & Health Forum executive director Greg Denham Fiona Patten MP, Member of the Upper House for the Reason Party. First broadcast on the 3CR Wedneday breakfast program with Judith PeppardGary Clark from the University of Adelaide talks psychedelics and the mindDr. Attila Danko, former director of the New Nicotine Alliance talks nicotine vaping and its irrational prohibition in AustraliaLiam Engel is a Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Canberra and talks about where people are currently obtaining their online drug informationThe show finishes with author and journalist Jenny Valentish taking reigns of the program and interviewing Nick and Ash
Nick and Ash discuss the week and year in drug news.INTERVIEW:Author and journalist Jenny Valentish joins the program to talk about a variety of issues, especially her piece for AOD Media Watch, 'Attack of the 50-foot ice queens'.With Victoria's new parliament elected and ready for action, we hear a variety of snippets from Victorian parliamentarians on their views on drug policy issues.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news.Ash chats with Cody from the Vapourium in NZ at the Hemp Health and Innovation Expo and we hear a part of the speech from Drug Policy Australia's Greg Chipp.INTERVIEW:Part 2 of our chat with Counter culture author and co-founder of the Australian Sex Party (now Reason Party) Robbie Swan talks about his experience with early counter-culture festivals like the Aquarius Festival and the Sunbury Music festival. Robbie shares stories of early police crackdowns, including a recollection of an under-reported incident, demonstrating a long-held cultural friction between progressive and conservative culture in Australia "During an afternoon performance, members of the audience were attacked -- apparently without provocation -- by police in full riot gear, and more than 150 arrests were made. Many students barricaded themselves into the Union building. The next day they marched on Civic police station to protest the arrests, but the marchers were again set upon by police, who were accompanied by a group of 'bikers' who, Davies alleges, were colluding with the police to provoke violent incidents, resulting in more arrests." - AQUARIUS FESTIVAL OF UNIVERSITY ARTS at Milesago.com
Ash Blackwell joins Nick Wallis on the program live from the Hemp Health and Innovation Expo 2018 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, chatting with Max Stone and Myz Guidance from the Nimbin Hemp Embassy.INTERVIEWS:PART 2: Erik Lamir-Pike, director of the Bohemian Beatfreaks festival and Rabbits Eat Lettuce festival in NSW joins the program to talk about the dramatic and unprecedented rise in user-pays policing fee put on them just weeks out from their festival, leading to a last minute location change across the NSW border into Queensland. PART 1: Counter culture author and co-founder of the Australian Sex Party (now Reason Party) Robbie Swan talks about his experience with early counter-culture festivals like the Aquarius Festival and the Sunbury Music festival. Robbie shares stories of early police crackdowns, including a recollection of an under-reported incident, demonstrating a long-held cultural friction between progressive and conservative culture in Australia "During an afternoon performance, members of the audience were attacked -- apparently without provocation -- by police in full riot gear, and more than 150 arrests were made. Many students barricaded themselves into the Union building. The next day they marched on Civic police station to protest the arrests, but the marchers were again set upon by police, who were accompanied by a group of 'bikers' who, Davies alleges, were colluding with the police to provoke violent incidents, resulting in more arrests." - AQUARIUS FESTIVAL OF UNIVERSITY ARTS at Milesago.com
Nick Wallis and Ash Blackwell discuss the week in news following the Victorian state election, as votes are still being counted.INTERVIEWS:NSW Greens MP David Shoebridge joins the program to discuss the on-going battle for pill testing in NSW as the festival season ramps up. Erik Lamir-Pike, director of the Bohemian Beatfreaks festival and Rabbits Eat Lettuce festival in NSW joins the program to talk about the dramatic and unprecedented rise in user-pays policing fee put on them just weeks out from their festival, leading to a last minute location change across the NSW border into Queensland. READ MORE: Bohemian Beatfreaks to go on but not as planned (Echonet Daily)
We open the show with the victory speech from Daniel Andrews (ALP MP), leader of the Labor Party in Victoria and winner of the 2018 state election.Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news, with special consideration for the previous day's election.SEGMENT2017's Entheogenesis Australis (EGA) Psychedelic Symposium featured a wide range of speakers, including Dr. Ben Sessa, who's talk is hear on this show.Dr Ben Sessa (MBBS BSc MRCPsych) is a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist working in adult addiction services and with custodial detained young people in a secure adolescent setting. He trained at UCL medical school, graduating in 1997. He is interested in the developmental trajectory from child maltreatment to adult mental health disorders. Dr Sessa is currently a senior research fellow at Bristol, Cardiff and Imperial College London Universities, where he is conducting the UK's first clinical studies with MDMA-assisted therapy for the treatment of PTSD and alcohol dependence syndrome. In the last ten years, he has worked on several UK-based human pharmacology trials as study doctor or as a healthy subject administering and receiving test doses of LSD, psilocybin, MDMA and ketamine. He is the author of several dozen peer-reviewed articles in the mainstream medical press and has written two books exploring psychedelic medicine; The Psychedelic Renaissance (2012) and To Fathom Hell or Soar Angelic (2015). In speaking publicly at universities and medical conferences, Dr Sessa is outspoken on lobbying for change in the current system by which drugs are classified in the UK, believing a more progressive policy of regulation would reduce the harms of recreational drug use and provide increased opportunities for clinical psychedelic research. He is a co-founder and director of the UK's Breaking Convention conference.
Nick and Ash discussed the week in news, before quickly seguing into a segment about the launch of the University of Melbourne's Student Union and Students for Sensible Drug Policy Australia new Safer Partying Initiative.Nick and Ash also launched the Enpsychedelia fundraiser. Donate here.
Greg Denham, Executive Officer of the Yarra Drug & Health Forum recently returned from a short work trip to Canada, where he spoke with groups running supervised injecting centres and spoke to professionals working in Canada's drug policy space. Greg's trip also coincided with Canada legalising the recreational market for cannabis.VICTORIAN ELECTION 2018 PANEL:Richard Wynne MLA (ALP)Member for RichmondJudy Ryan (Reason)Candidate for Richmond(Note: Liberals informed YDHF they would not be running a candidate in the seat of Richmond. This is the seat where the medically supervised injecting centre resides and as far as we know at this point, the Liberals are still promising to close this centre if elected.)Nina Springle MLC (Greens)Member for South-Eastern Metropolitan RegionFiona Patten MLC (Reason)Member for Northern Metropolitan RegionStephen Jolly (Socialists)Candidate for Northern Metropolitan RegionHosted by Yarra Drug & Health ForumExecutive Officer: Greg DenhamChair: Peter Wearne
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news. The SSDP Conference Harm Reduction Panel, with: Dr. Attila Danko (New Nicotine Alliance), Stephanie Tzanetis (DanceWize), Annie Madden (AiVL), Dr. Monica Barratt (NDARC)
Nick and Ash kinda talk about creeks and the environment around inner northern Melbourne and surrounds for a bit. They eventually reach some drug news, most of which they'll get back to you about later.Dr. Dean Wright from the Australian Psychedelic Society joins the program to update us on the latest in psychedelic science, including the research where an Octopus was given MDMA. David Nickles chats with Ash and Nick about the current state of play as psychedelic regulation looms forward. The players involved, the potential motivations, the patterns we've seen previously... It's a bigger discussion than one podcast can do justice, but an important issue for our community to discuss.
An update on news and events from your hosts Ash Blackwell and Nick WallisInterview with Greg and Lorraine North Richmond residents from the Richmond Victoria Street Drug Solutions community groupInterview with Gabe Buckley President of the Liberal Democratic Party Australia on federal cannabis reformEvents and campaigns
Nick, Ash and Penny get in-depth on news items from the past week.FAIR TREATMENT CAMPAIGN LAUNCHThe Uniting Church Synod of ACT and NSW launched the Fair Treatment campaign, looking to decriminalise drugs and move resources toward treatment, rather than punishment. EGA TALKMark Pesce - Last Days of RealityFrom Entheogenesis Australis 2017 Psychedelic Symposium.
NEWSNick and Ash dsicussed the week's news, including Ash's particpation in the NSW and President of Harm Reduction Australia, Gino Vambucca speaking about pill testing at Groovin The Moo festival at the recent Yarra Drug & Health Forum AGM.INTERVIEWSStephen Elsom - ATHRABrain Marlow - Legalise Vaping AustraliaCharles Yates - New Nicotine Alliance AustraliaThe Vapers Table
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news, then we hear from a range of people who attended Drug Policy Australia's event featuring author of 'Chasing the Scream' and more recently 'Lost Connections', Johann Hari at the Melbourne Town Hall.INTERVIEWSex, Drugs and Crime consultant and candidate for the Reason Party in the upcoming Victorian election, Jarryd Bartle joins the program to discuss moves by the TGA to re-schedule alkyl nitrites (poppers), effectively banning the current market for them.PhD researcher Dan Reeders is the author of Bad Blood, a blog focused on stigma and society, with special focus to HIV, cancer screening, and sexual and reproductive health. Dan helps contextualise the TGA's processes and why there is a push to re-schedule poppers.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news and are joined in the studio by Rite Brian from the Loop Australia.EGA Panel - The Festival War: Creating Safe SpacesFacilitator: Martin Williams (EGA and PRISM). Panellists: Tim Harvey (Rainbow Serpent Festival),Paul Abad (Earth Frequency Festival),Michael Balderstone (MardiGrass),Shane Russell (Dragon Dreaming Festival),Stephanie Tzanetis (Dancewize)With hyperbole ever-present in the media, regulatory tightening, and law enforcement’s increasing presence at festival sites, one of the front lines of the war on drugs is fought at festivals. In this climate, impeccable harm reduction practices are imperative. Join the conversation with representatives from major festivals throughout Australia on the dynamics of creating safe spaces. This discussion includes but is not limited to: A short history of the festival movement in Australia. The mainstreaming of festivals. The current pressures of running large-scale festivals compared to small-scale events. What is a safe space and what might it look like? How do festival producers assist in making safe spaces and what other services are involved to assist with this goal? The importance of considering ‘set, setting and substance’ in creating safe spaces. What might people need a safe space for and protecting from? The most effective safe spaces are collaborative projects built by the community it exists to serve. Should safe spaces be segregated in some cases, eg. gender-based or medical reasons? Education around drug use and the services available if someone needs assistance. Peer support and educating attendees to look out for each other. Being proactive around safety and harm reduction activities and services. Failed drug policy and the pressure police and councils place on festival organisers. Police presence at festivals. DIY approaches to safe spaces and harm reduction. Upscaling of police forces and presence at festivals and the effect of such operations.
Update on the Medically Supervised Injecting Room with Dr. Nico ClarkSally Finn for International Overdose Awareness Day chats to us about how she created IOAD in Melbourne, and how it reached people across the world.Author of Chasing the Scream Johann Hari talks to us about his book.Supersillyus - Aeon Bahamut
Nick, Ash and Penny discuss the week in news, including Ash's trip to Sydney and attendance at a protest against the reliance of the sniffer dog program in NSW. David Shoebridge MLC from the NSW Greens joins the program in the on-going push for a change to drug law policing, especially at festivals.Wendy Alison from Know Your Stuff NZ talks about the testing her organisation has done at festivals across New Zealand.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news and upcoming events.GUESTSAsh caught up with Florian Scheibein while in Warsaw. Florian is from Help Not Harm (Deputy Director), Youth RISE (International Working Group member) and SSDP Ireland (co-founder).Music Psychotherapist Meredith Louise joins the program to talk about her therapeutic practices, with a special focus on psychedelic psychotherapy. Meredith also works on integration circles with the Australian Psychedelic Society.
Ash and Nick touch on the week in drug news, before Ash delves deeper into the tales he's brought back for us from his trip to the Beyond Psychedelics conference in Prague.First panel: Rick Doblin, William Richards, Amanda Feilding and David Nichols - Chanllenges and shadows of the psychedelic movementSecond segment: Melissa Warner and Jack Alloca from the Australian Psychedelic Society talking meditation and Bufo alvarius respectively.Third segment: Lea Petříková, Ph.D. cand.: Pharm'n'Film: Altered States of Consciousness in Sandoz Arthouse Films
SSDP Australia's Chloe Span helps produce an Enpsychedelia special, looking at the way drug use is framed differently, especially for young women.Dr. Kat Daley helps to facilitate a discussion with Jane and Sarah.Kat's book Youth and Substance Abuse is out now.
First we hear from Ash Blackwell who's in Warsaw at the Global Forum on Nicotine, speaking with Gerry Stimson, a public health sociologist with over 40 years’ experience of public health research and advocacy in the field of psychoactive substance use.RADIOTHON PANELGlenn Woodworth - Philosophy Student, University of Montana, USAGreg Denham - Executive Officer, Yarra Drug and Health ForumNick Kent - President, Students of Sensible Drug Policy AustraliaRachel Hopkins - Principal Solictor, Fitzroy Legal ServiceSteph Tzanetis - Coordinator, DanceWize program (Harm Reduction Victoria)
Nick, Emily and Steph discuss the week in drug news.SEGMENT 1Dr. Manuel Cardoso was one of the key players involved with Portugal's move away from punitive drug policies, and into a decriminalised model that prioritised health in the year 2000. He's in Australia to speak in Sydney at an event and Nick caught up with him to see how Portugal's decriminalisation policy has been tracking.What If Police Stopped Arresting People for Drug Use? (Australia21 with Dr. Manuel Cardoso)SEGMENT 2Psychedelic artist Roger Essig uses mediums ranging from paint and a canvas, to the sky with his drones, and to your mind's eye with virtual reality. Roger was invited to talk at ACMI's Alice In Wonderland exhibition about the character of Alice, and the many tales that swirl round her origins.
Nick and Ash siphon through the week in drug news.GUESTSEmily Blatchford (psychology honours) from Edith Cowan University joins the program to talk to us about her Drugs, Personality and Social Attitudes research.Dr. Stephen Bright, vice-president of Psychedelic Research In Science and Medicine (PRISM) and founder of AOD Media Watch has had his eye on some more questionable reporting on drug issues by the mainstream mediaUnharm Director Will Tregoning talks about an upcoming visit from Portugal's Manuel Cardoso, who helped to decriminalise drugs in Portugal.
Nick, Ash and Emily discuss the week in drug news.Myz Guidance from the Nimbin Hemp Embassy recently finished up this year's Mardi Grass festival and reports in. Tom Marrat from SSDP University of Adelaide talks to us about his piece for SSDP Australia's website, 'Dependence on War on Drugs', about the SA government's plan to introduce sniffer dogs into schools.Adriana Buccianti joins the program to talk about her recent trip to Canberra to present the Change.org petition.
Broadcast live from the Entheogenesis Australis (EGA) 2017 Psychedelic Symposium at Holmesglen in Eildon.Hosted by Nick WallisWith blanket bans on psychoactives increasing, cognitive liberty is in chains. Where does reform for laws covering psychedelics fit within drug law reform? In an environment where evidence is not the drive for policy how do we keep policy makers accountable? What have we learned recent work and development? How can you help with the next steps? A number of individuals who have been involved with drug law and policy activism will join a panel to discuss strategies for reform.The panel will bring along some recent examples of activism and workshop these with the audience, drawing out successful strategies, unsuccessful strategies and discussing potential future campaigns.PANELRICK DOBLINIn the mid 1970s MDMA, then known as Adam was used quietly in psychotherapy. In the 1980s, growing recreational use of Ecstasy led to the criminalization of the drug and the formation of MAPS in 1986. Now, MAPS is about to embark on FDA-approved Phase 3 research to make MDMA-assisted psychotherapy a legal treatment for PTSD. This talk will discuss the historical implications of MDMA use and the plans for ongoing clinical research.Rick Doblin, Ph.D., is the founder and executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). He received his doctorate in Public Policy from Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, where he wrote his dissertation on the regulation of the medical uses of psychedelics and marijuana and his Master's thesis on a survey of oncologists about smoked marijuana vs. the oral THC pill in nausea control for cancer patients. His undergraduate thesis at New College of Florida was a 25-year follow-up to the classic Good Friday Experiment, which evaluated the potential of psychedelic drugs to catalyze religious experiences. He also conducted a thirty-four year follow-up study to Timothy Leary's Concord Prison Experiment. Rick studied with Dr. Stanislav Grof and was among the first to be certified as a Holotropic Breathwork practitioner. His professional goal is to help develop legal contexts for the beneficial uses of psychedelics and marijuana, primarily as prescription medicines but also for personal growth for otherwise healthy people, and eventually to become a legally licensed psychedelic therapist. He founded MAPS in 1986, and currently resides in Boston with his wife and one of three children (two in college).MONICA BARRATTDR MONICA BARRATT is a social scientist at the Drug Policy Modelling Program, part of Australia's National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre at the University of New South Wales. Monica's work examines the social and public health implications of digital technologies for people who use illicit and emerging psychoactive drugs. Research topics emerging from this interest include online drug markets or cryptomarkets and policy responses to novel psychoactive substance evolution. She specialises in engaging hard-to-reach networks and groups in digital spaces in conversations about research and policy, to inform policy change. Monica also serves as an Editor for policy-related articles at the International Journal of Drug Policy, and as the Director of Research at the international drug harm reduction community Bluelight.org. Monica is a lead researcher for the Global Drug Survey. She is also a regular attendee and contributor to EGA, from the mid-2000s.NICK KENTNICK KENT works as a secondary school teacher in the areas of languages and the humanities. He is currently completing his Masters through research at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, where he is undertaking a critical discourse analysis of school policies and resources as they relate to drug education, comparing both local and international examples. After completing the Grad. Dip in Teaching in 2015, Nick was perplexed at the lack of teacher training around student drug use and the silence of the education system on this issue, as well as the slow pace of drug reform more broadly. Inspired to learn more, and to advocate and research this area further, Nick helped found Students for Sensible Drug Policy Australia in 2016, setting up their second chapter at the University of Melbourne. Nick was instrumental in the UniMelb chapter's work in setting up a harm reduction program that would supply re-agent drug checking kits to students free of charge through the Student Union, and has travelled to numerous international conferences to represent this globally significant program. Nick draws upon his experience in nightclub and festival communities, as well as his experience volunteering with DanceWize as a Peer Educator and his policy and international experience with SSDP in both his teaching and his research.FIONA MEASHAMFiona Measham is co-founder & co-Director of ‘The Loop’. The Loop conducts forensic testing of drugs at UK festivals and nightclubs and provides associated welfare support. Fiona Measham was appointed Professor of Criminology in the School of Applied Social Sciences at Durham University in 2012. Fiona has conducted research for over two decades across a broad area of criminology and social policy, exploring changing trends in legal and illegal drugs; the night time economy and the socio-cultural context to consumption; gender; the regulation and policing of intoxication; electronic music scenes and club cultures; issues of deterrence, displacement and desistance; and broader policy implications. A key feature of her research has been the development of in-situmethods of data collection in pubs, clubs and festivals, a working environment with which she is familiar, having spent her early adulthood working in bars and clubs across several continents in various guises.BEN SESSADR BEN SESSA (MBBS BSc MRCPsych) is a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist working in adult addiction services and with custodial detained young people in a secure adolescent setting. He trained at UCL medical school, graduating in 1997. He is interested in the developmental trajectory from child maltreatment to adult mental health disorders. Dr Sessa is currently a senior research fellow at Bristol, Cardiff and Imperial College London Universities, where he is conducting the UK's first clinical studies with MDMA-assisted therapy for the treatment of PTSD and alcohol dependence syndrome. In the last ten years he has worked on several UK-based human pharmacology trials as study doctor or as a healthy subject administering and receiving test doses of LSD, psilocybin, MDMA and ketamine. He is the author of several dozen peer-reviewed articles in the mainstream medical press and has written two books exploring psychedelic medicine; The Psychedelic Renaissance (2012) and To Fathom Hell or Soar Angelic (2015). In speaking publicly at universities and medical conferences, Dr Sessa is outspoken on lobbying for change in the current system by which drugs are classified in the UK, believing a more progressive policy of regulation would reduce the harms of recreational drug use and provide increased opportunities for clinical psychedelic research. He is a co-founder and director of the UK's Breaking Convention conference.
This episode was produced as part of 3CR's Day of Disability discussions.The episode is dedicated to one of my (Nick Wallis)'s best friends Max Luca-Reddaway. When I first started doing the show at 3CR, he was still around but in hospital most of the time. I never expected him to be gone, but suspect deep down I knew what was happening and didn't want to acknwoledge it. I wanted to get him to listen to my show. We were like brothers to eachother and had an intimate, caring relationship.At the start of this episode, I chat with Max's mother, Gabi about some of the things we got up to and how severe disability can sometimes distract from genuine relationships.Liz Wright and Kate Pern then join the program to discuss chronic fatigue and the incessant and uneccesary harassment by security, among a variety of other problems associated with disabled access to venues.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news.SEGMENTJames Cook University (QLD - Townsville) SSDP President Glenn Lynch joins the show to talk SSDP and drug policy in Queensland on the leadup to their state election.SEGMENTPARTi (Peer Advocacy Responsive Training Initiative) representatives Kate Pern and Gaia join the show to discuss the new program, to be rolled out over the coming months.
Nick covers the week in drug news.SEGMENT(REPEAT from EP95) Dean Wright and Melissa Warner from the Australian Psychedelic Society caught up with Dr. Ben Sessa at the Psychedelic Science 2017 Conference in Oakland California.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news.MUSICGoosebumpz - CakeSEGMENTMiss Guidance from EGA joins the show to discuss the upcoming EGA 2017 Psychedelic Symposium.SEGMENTAdam Wilson, Drug Outreach Lawyer with Fitzroy Legal Service joins the program after winning the Yarra Drug & Health Forum worker of the year award to talk about his work, dispelling some of the myths about drugs and crime.
The Enpsychedelia team present a Radiothon special, with guests and lots of talking points about the past year in drug law and policy discussions.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news.MUSICSEGMENTDr. Stephen Bright of Psychedelic Research In Science and Medicine (PRISM) spoke at the Florey Brain Institute at the University of Melbourne. The Lecture was part of a fundraising initiative for the "Global Psychedelic Dinner" and formed part of a larger project led by MAPS to bring awareness and funds to psychedelic research. The lecture below formed part of the Melbourne fundraiser evening.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news. MUSICTemple Step Project - Our Honey TempleSEGMENTAustralian Injecting and Illicit Drug Users League (AIVL) CEO Melanie Walker join the program to discuss a recent announcement by the Commonwealth government to test 5000 welfare recipients for drug use. MUSICMr. Bill - Soon Is Monday (Erik Parker) SEGMENTAsh talks about his experience on the streets of South Yarra over the weekend, watching on as Victoria Police's 'Operation Safenight' plays out on those looking to enjoy a night out in one of Melbourne's most popular night districts.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news.SEGMENT Judy from Victoria Street Drug Solutions group joins the program to share with us a resident's perspective on the on-going injecting drug use issue in the Abbotsford / Richmond area. The Vic Street Drug Solutions group is seeking to raise awareness about the issue and about the need for a Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC) in the area to properly manage the issue.Find them on FacebookSEGMENTNev from the High Alert campaign joins the program to talk to us about why this campaign has cropped up. The campaign launches on Thursday the 11th of May.Until August 2017, Victorian Police are conducting nightclub raids across Melbourne under the name Operation Safenight.There will be no warning before they search a venue, and this will include checking patrons with sniffer dogs in the line before they have entered, posing as undercover buyers, patrolling club toilets, as well as inspecting vehicles used to arrive at the nightclub. Read more about OperationSafenight.Find them on FacebookMUSICWhitebear - MORSEGMENTAnnie Madden from Harm Reduction Australia joins the program on International Harm Reduction Day 2017 (#IHRD) to talk about what harm reduction is, why it is a simple approach to understanding the harms associated with drug use and why applying it across many of our drug problems can help move these on-going issues toward humane outcomes that will benefit the community.
Nick talks about recent news and campaigns.MUSICOrcha - Crescent (feat. Liahona)Melbourne Violinist ORCHA is releasing a debut EP at the Gasometer Hotel on May 14th. SEGMENTAsh Blackwell joins the program from the Australian Libertarian Society Friedman Conference 2017 in Sydney, talking to us about the panel he hosted on drug law and policy reform. MUSICPreston Skate Massive - Chemical RecognitionPreston Skate Massive are performing at the May Australian Psychedelic Society event at Sooki Lounge in Belgrave. SEGMENTDr. Olivia Carter (School of Psychology, The University of Melbourne) spoke at a psychedelic dinner and academic event in 2016.The Melbourne scientific and psychedelic communities were brought together to help the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) and the Australia-based, Psychedelic Research in Science and Medicine (PRISM) raise funds for research into MDMA-assisted psychotherapy to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).The dinner was held at the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne. Australia’s leading neuroscience research institute.During Dr. Carter’s PhD she conducted a series of experiments in Switzerland looking at the effects of psilocybin (active ingredient of ‘magic mushrooms’) on healthy volunteers. Olivia now works as a ARC Future Fellow and Senior lecturer at the University of Melbourne in the School of Psychological Sciences.The full talk can be seen at the Entheogenesis Australis (EGA) YouTube channel:MORE: SSDP Australia write-upEnpsychedelia write-up
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news.SEGMENT(TWO PART - PART ONE) Dean Wright and Melissa Warner from the Australian Psychedelic Society are at the 2017 Psychedelic Science conference in Oakland California. At the conference, they caught up with Dr. Ben Sessa, a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist working in adult addiction and senior research fellow at Bristol, Cardiff and Imperial College London Universities, where he is currently taking time off clinical medical practice to study towards a PhD in MDMA Psychotherapy.Dr. Ben Sessa is one of the speakers at December's Entheogenesis Australis - EGA psychedelic symposium. Tickets are on sale now at http://www.entheogenesis.org/ticketsMUSICWhitebear - Inanimate IncarnateSEGMENT(TWO PART - PART TWO) Dean Wright and Melissa Warner from the Australian Psychedelic Society are at the 2017 Psychedelic Science conference in Oakland California. At the conference, they caught up with Dr. Ben Sessa, a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist working in adult addiction and senior research fellow at Bristol, Cardiff and Imperial College London Universities, where he is currently taking time off clinical medical practice to study towards a PhD in MDMA Psychotherapy.Dr. Ben Sessa is one of the speakers at December's Entheogenesis Australis - EGA psychedelic symposium. Tickets are on sale now at http://www.entheogenesis.org/tickets
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news.MUSICClancye Milne - The River Song with Paper FlowersSEGMENTAsh and Nick discuss part one of an anonymous underground pill testing blog, published at the Enpsychedelia website.I’ve found the festival scene in Australia to be one of the most life enhancing and positive communities in my life. In the dancing, the conversation, the play, the music and of most of all in the community, love and connection. I’ve found inspiration to live authentically and embrace my true self. In this crazy world of beautiful freaks I’ve found the support and compassion to grow and express myself fully. In the intimate space created in this abstract and alternative world, I’ve worked through difficult times and supported others through their journeys. Sometimes I go for the introspection, sometimes for the knowledge or the intimacy. Other times I just like to get loose and party with my crew. Drugs are sometimes part of enhancing this experience, whether it’s through deepening a sense of intimacy or just shaking some ass. READ MORE...MUSICKaya Project - One Hundred Lights (Grouch in Dub remix)SEGMENTComedians Dominique and Miles join the program to talk about their comedy shows as part of 59 Free Comedy for the Melbourne International Comedy Festival
SEGMENTMiss Guidance from the Nimbin HEMP Embassy joins the program to talk about her recent trip along with HEMP Embassy president Michael Balderstone to the United States and Canada, to see how their medical and recreational cannabis markets are operating.SEGMENTComedian Anthony Jeannot joins the program to talk about his show for Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2017 'Just Like Buddha'. We also gave away five double passes to Anthony's show. You can read a review written by Chris Mac from SSDP Australia and see some clips from the show at the Enpsychedelia website.MUSICStaunch - Alpha Mode [Feat. Kash]SEGMENTMelbourne University SSDP chapter president Nick Kent recently returned from a whirlwind trip to the US for the SSDP International Conference. SSDP Australia President Penny Hill also chats with us about what the organisation is up to internationally.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news.SEGMENTDr. Stephen Bright joins the program to discuss some of the issues AOD Media Watch have been keeping their eye on. Dr. Bright and a number of contributors to the project have written pieces to combat some of the poor reporting by media, as well as developing guidelines for journalists to look at for more ethical reporting on drug stories. How journalists can helpSeek informed comment – always seek the right expert to provide input into a story, particularly when a source is making a claim of imminent threat to public safety, advocating for ‘hardline’ approaches or targeting already stigmatised groups with negative commentary. Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) Media Watch is happy to help journalists connect with a range of experts and there are many.Be wary of simplistic arguments – the issues contributing to Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) use are complex and interrelated. Simple ‘solutions’ are typically based on a lack of information about the issues and evidence on effective responses.Recognise the humanity of your subjects – stigma flourishes where people are encouraged to see people who use Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) as somehow different (or inferior) to the rest of the community. Only a small proportion of people experience extreme adverse effects from drugs, but when the community only see these extreme stories stigma develops. Even people who use drugs take on these messages and this has been found to be a barrier to such people accessing AOD treatment in addition to other healthcare services. Encourage your audience to recognise the humanity of those experiencing AOD dependence instead.Avoid use of stigmatising language – this includes selection of headlines. Write with an awareness that people who use (especially illicit) drugs face prejudice and discrimination that makes it harder for then to seek help. The potential benefits of many well-written articles have been undermined by stigmatising headlines. Avoid the use of derogatory terms such as addict, junkie, drug abuse, drug abuser, and use ‘person first’ language as much as possible (eg ‘people who use drugs’ rather than ‘drug users’) because this reduces stigma. Try to develop headlines that can still grab attention without relying on stereotypes that perpetuate .Consider alternative ways to tell a story – personal narratives are usually seen as essential for telling a story, but the potential implications for people who share their story can be severe and long-lasting. Given the stigmatisation of people who use AOD, it takes courage for people to identify themselves publicly through media coverage.Provide a reasonable timeframe – fear of being splashed over the front page or the nightly news is a major barrier to potential involvement of people with lived experience of AOD use in your story. Seeking a same-day response provides people with no time to consider the implications of being involved in your story or seek clarification of what will be involved. The more lead time (and opportunities for sources to ask questions) you provide, the better.Respect your sources – when you do have someone willing to share their story, provide them with an opportunity to review the content of your story before publication. Given the potential personal impacts for them, they should have the right to know what will be published and to correct anything that is factually incorrect or taken out of context. Alternatively, you might like to use one of the prerecorded interviews that fits with your story from Lives of Substances as a way to avoid exploiting people who use drugs. Other things to consider:Ask is drug use relevant to the storyVerify and confirm claims that drugs were involved in violent crimes or incidents before reportingEmphasise that treatment is available and works where possibleBe sensitive when using photographsDon’t show graphic video of drug useMixing up decriminalisation and legalisationUnderstanding harm reductionUnderstanding research/causation/effectiveness etc when reporting researchMUSICThe Seven Ups - Drinking WaterSEGMENTMatt Riley from the Free Cannabis Community Victoria joins the program to talk about the regular picnics in Flagstaff Gardens, plans to setup a cannabis community centre in Melbourne's inner north and the upcoming 420 picnic on April 20th.
Nick, Ash and Penny discuss the week in news. MUSICAnimatronix: Elisane - Unstable (remix)SEGMENTPsychedelic science with Dr. Dean Wright of the Australian Psychedelic Society.SEGMENTProf. Thomas Roberts speaks briefly about psychedelics, religion and the mystical experience. Thomas is one of the keynote speakers at 2017's EGA Conference. Tickets on sale now. SEGMENTSSDP Australia president Penny Hill speaks about her recent trip to the Commission on Narcotic Drugs in Vienna for the United Nations.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news.MUSICBig Fucking Robots - Machine ControlSEGMENTEnpsychedelia speak with Yarra City Councillor Stephen Jolly about the upcoming Community mobilisation: safe injecting facility and pill testing event in Abbotsford. Mr. Jolly wants to see action on the drug issues (injecting and pill testing) at the forefront of public consciousness right now.SEGMENTEnpsychedelia speak with ACT Green MP Shane Rattenbury about the recently launched #KeepCanberraSafe campaign. A campaign to see pill testing happening in Australia's capital territory.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news.MUSICSmoovi - Fuzzy PanicSEGMENTDean Rossiter of La Trobe Bundoora's chapter of SSDP talks about their O-Week experiences and his passions for drug law reform.MUSICCheshire - GuantanameraSEGMENTEvents and goodbyes and whatnot.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news.MUSICSUN:MONX - In The TreesSEGMENTLocal issues with:Yarra Drug and Health Forum Executive Director Greg DenhamDancewize Co-ordinator Steph Tzanetis Unharm Director Will TregoningCheck out Festival Friends for tips on how to be a good mate at a festival.
Nick and Ash discuss the past couple of weeks in news, especially focusing on recent incidents such as the mutliple reported hospitalisations following Electric Parade at Sidney Myer Music Bowl, reported to be related to GHB, GBL or 1-4B.INTERVIEWMeriana Dinkova is a licensed marriage and family therapist from California who also works with people on navigating altered spaces. Meriana chats with Nick about common problems people run into and the tendency for 'virusware' to infect our thought patterns and lead us astray. VICTORIAN INQUIRY INTO DRUG LAW REFORMSubmissions due Friday 17th March 2017We’ve been talking about this inquiry since November 2015, when the Australian Sex Party’s Fiona Patten MP pushed for a broad ranging inquiry into the state’s drug laws. Inquiries like this are conducted to give you, the citizen, a chance to comment on legislative issues. It is also a chance for academics and professional organisations to provide their expertise to often complex issues, with the goal of creating better policy outcomes in the future.Making a submission doesn’t have to be hard or complex. If you’re reading this and don’t know what you could add, remember that every voice counts, even if you only have something minor to add. Many people make one page submissions to inquiry focusing only on their personal knowledge. These submissions are an important part of the overall process as they add a level of common realism to the discussion, which is often lacking, especially when the right-wing tabloid media (grumble, grumble, Herald Sun, Channel 7 News) try to define and direct the discussion and propose their own legislative outcomes.Visit the Enpsychedelia website for an outline on a few issues that we have been covering since the show began on 3CR in 2015. MAKE YOUR VOICE COUNT!PSYCHEDELIC SOCIETY FEBRUARY EVENTMUSICKalacoma - KaleidoscoperKalacoma are a five piece trip-hop/electronica band writing music which draws on their love of vintage tone and the avant-garde. By fusing electronic and acoustic elements, they layer intricate rhythms and filmic soundscapes with soaring melodic vocals, weaving diverse influences into something hard to pin down but seamless in its execution.Temple Step ProjectTemple Step Project’s intention is to bring the vibration of sacred ceremony to the dance floor via sacred bass music. Dubstep and Glitch Hop meets Middle Eastern and Shamanic, Spiritual Music. Stomping beats and whomping bass meet acoustic instrumental melodies, chants and overtones. Progressive synthesizers merge seamlessly with flutes, violins and oud. The Temple Step Project brings a unique blend of future tech music with an uplifting and healing vibration, a sense of the sacred and a depth like nothing before it.
This week we hear from Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) Australia, including a number of members from new chapters at Universities across Melbourne.MUSICGriff - Missing Pageshttps://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/users/10137&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=falseGrouch - Soul Providerhttps://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/users/780483&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false
Back from the dusty, sun-drenched pop-up village that is Rainbow Serpent Festival, where the battles for sensible drug policy continue. This episode of Enpsychedelia brings a variety of guests in the studio, on the phone and via Skype to chat about pill testing, Victoria's drug inquiry, post-Rainbow discussion and some psychedelic dreamings.During the past fortnight, Port Phillip City Council voted to support trials of pill testing, following the death and hospitalisation of several people on Chapel Street in Melbourne, potentially caused by unknown novel psychoactive substances (NPS).Guests:US artist, musician and futurist Michael Garfield.Dr. Monica Barratt, Drug Policy Modelling Program at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre.Melissa Warner and Dr. Dean Wright of The Australian Psychedelic SocietyMember of the (Victoria) Legislative Council and President of the Australian Sex Party Fiona PattenPort Phillip City Council, Gateway Ward councillor and member of the Victorian Greens Ogy Simic
INTERVIEWS:Sam from SSDP SwinburneandTim, Communications Officer for SSDP Australia talking about their statement on pill testing.SEGMENT:SSDP Webinar with Dr. Monica Barratt and Will Tregoning of UnharmMUSIC:Papa ChangoSubterranean trance-like movements of afro-beat mashed-up with psychedelic guitar lines and scatterings of broken brass is the order and Papa Chango delivers like no other. Unique in this thriving Melbourne scene they take it to the gritty edge, melding banging technique with playful exuberance. This Melbourne based 9-piece brings audiences to a sweat on packed dance-floors, evoking a hidden spirit within.FacebookBluetongue - Bending the Narrative EP - RetrospectDriven by staunch, funky bass lines, the Bluetongue sound is a deep, eclectic blend of glitchy, percussive stabs, dark, foreboding soundscapes and textured, melodic counterparts, with other habitual elements from a wide range of electronica and different musical styles, meticulously infused within the mix.FacebookGoosbumpz - Zenith EP - ZenithFacebook
Nick and Ash discuss the week in news.MUSICHugo the Poet - Goodbye Internet!SEGMENTRobbie Swan discusses Australia's counter culture. Robbie is a long time campaigner for civil liberties and has many interesting stories from the meeting point of Canberra and alternative cultures.SEGMENTRak Razam - Full Spectrum Consciousness, from the Entheogenesis Australis conference series on YouTube
Nick, Ash and Penny discuss the week in news.SEGMENTGreg Denham hosts the Support! Don't Punish event in Footscray.
3CR's Radiothon special! This episode was a special, all live Radiothon show. You can donate to 3CR any time and help keep us on the airwaves.Nick, Ash and Penny discuss the week in drug news and are then joined by the panel of drug experts.PANELGreg DenhamExecutive OfficerYarra Drug and Health ForumDr. Stephen Bright - Clinical PsychologistVice-PresidentPsychedelic Research In Science and Medicine (PRISM)Dr. Monica Barratt Post-Doctoral FellowNational Drug and Alcohol Research CentreAdam WilsonDrug Outreach LawyerFitzroy Legal ServiceMUSICKalacoma - Kaleidoscoper http://www.fitzroy-legal.org.au/
Nick, Ash and Penny discuss the week in drug news.MUSICInterpulse - Revolution of Consciousness (feat. Russell Brand)INTERVIEWGreg Kasarik, founder of Community of Infinite Colour and self-described mystic joins the program to discuss the principles which he has founded his psychedelic religion upon. We discover that Greg is a drug-taking, atheist church leader. This is the 21st century, after all. For more information on Greg's ideas and the Community of Infinite Colour, visit his website.MUSICAnimatronix - Ina-TekINTERVIEW CONT.OUTROSupport Don't Punish is coming up on Sunday June 26th and this year's Melbourne event will be held on Saturday June 25th in Footscray. If you're in town, make sure to come along and see what we're up to! Enpsychedelia and 3CR will be there, recording the whole event for broadcast on Sunday's show.Have a listen to our Community Service Announcement for the event here:
Nick, Ash and Penny discuss the news of the week.MUSICDysphemic - TeleportCheck out the new Avengers EPMUSICAble8 - Leader feat. Elf Tranzporter and SyreneyiscreamyCheck out the new Program.02 EPSEGMENTWith the 2016 Australian federal election looming (Saturday July 2nd), we've been catching up with a number of political parties. Today we are joined by:Australian Sex Party candidate for Melbourne Lewis Freedman-HarrisonDrug Law Reform Party candidate for Melbourne Matt RileyLiberal Democrats Senate candidate for Queensland and national party president Gabe BuckleyDrug Law Reform Party candidate for Wills Ash BlackwellWe discuss the policies surrounding drugs of the various minor political parties and hear their thoughts on key issues surrounding drug policy.
After covering the week in drug news, Enpsychedelia focuses on medical cannabis.INTERVIEW #1Tony Bower is the man behind Mullaways Medical Cannabis, an Australian company that makes cannabis tinctures for medicinal purposes. The medicine he makes is still illegal, but the results mean that Tony will keep doing what he's doing for as long as he can.INTERVIEW #2Fiona Patten created the Australian Sex Party in 2009 to fight for Australians' civil liberties. She was elected to the Legislative Council of Victorian Parliament in late 2014 and has been working hard in many areas, including drug law reform. Fiona joins Enpsychedelia to talk about the recent moves by the Victorian Government to legalise medical cannabis.INTERVIEW #3Cassie Batten joins Enpsychedelia to tell us about her experience with medical cannabis, her three year old son Cooper and the law.Medicinal cannabis: Melbourne parents claim hospital withdrew son's treatment due to 'legal pressure' (ABC 5th October 2014)
Nick and Ash discuss the week's news in drugs.MUSICStickybuds vs. Mista Savona - Clean Air feat. Burro BantonSEGMENTMelbourne artists Andy Thomas and Steve Willis (The LightWizard) join Enpsychedelia to talk about their art and the future of blurs boundaries between the technological and natural.Find out more about Andy Thomas.Find out more about the LightWizard.
Nick brings you this weeks drugs news.MUSICCircuit Bent - Sexy/Heavy - Battlesushi (remix)SEGMENTA New Understanding: The Science of Psilocybin is a movie about the science of the key psychoactive chemical in psilocybin.MUSICKalacoma - The ContenderINTERVIEWDr. Albert Garcia Romeu joins Enpsychedelia to talk about his research into psychedelics at Johns Hopkins University in the US, specifically focusing on his research into psilocybin being used for nicotine addiction.MUSICThe Wednesday Experiment - Slithering Beast
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news.MUSICTemple Step Project - New GenerationsINTERVIEW 1Former DanceWize co-ordinator Dan joins the show to talk of his time with DanceWize as he finishes up and moves to new endeavours.MUSICVida Sunshine feat. Troanthon Swift - ChangedINTERVIEW 2Julian Palmer, author or Articulations On the Utilisations and Meanings of Psychedelics joins the program from Estonia to talk about his travels and thoughts on psychedelics.
Ash joins the show live from one of Free Cannabis Victoria's regular 420 picnics in Melbourne.SEGMENTThe magic mushroom is not one mushroom. There are a wide variety of mushrooms which contain psilocybin, a chemical which invokes a powerful psychedelic experience in the consumer. This segment covers the history and science of psilocybin and was a lead up to our event at the Fitzroy Beer Garden for the 920 Coalition global day of action.Check out our write up of the event, including pictures by clicking on the picture below.
Nick and Ash discuss the week's news, including a segment on the battle around medical cannabis with Lucy Haslam from the Canberra Times.MUSICSEGMENTAn excerpt from the Entheogenesis Australis (EGA) 10 year anniversary conference, featuring Michael Bock presenting - Australasia: An Entheogenic WonderlandMUSICMelbourne's Able8SEGMENTAn excerpt from experiential journalist Rak Razam's In A Perfect World podcast. Rak interviews author, discoverer of changa and psychedelic globe trotter Julian Palmer.
Nick and Ash discuss the week's news.MUSICSEGMENT2015 PVC Debate: Marijuna- Is now the time to legalise?AdjudicatorMagistrate Charlie RozencwajgModeratorProfessor Leon Piterman AMTeam 1Mr Greg Denham, National Advocacy Manager, Australian Drug Foundation Professor Dan Lubman, Director, Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre, Eastern Health and Professor of Addiction Studies, Monash UniversityMr Andrew Elder, Monash Association of Debaters Team 2Professor Jayashri Kulkarni, Director Monash Alfred Psychiatry research centre Professor Stuart Reece, Dalgarno Institute Drug and Alcohol Resource Team Ms Beatrice Paull, Monash Association of DebatersSEGMENTJohann Hari, author of Chasing the Scream joins the program to discuss the failed war on drugs and his new book. Test your drug war knowledge by taking the quiz, How much do you really know about the drug war?
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news. Addiction special. EGA 2010 conference speaker Jasen discusses the use of iboga/ibogaine in treating addiction. Yarra Drug and Health Forum Executive Officer Greg Denham talks to us about the upcoming International Overdose Awareness Day and author of The Biology of Desire, Marc Lewis PhD joins the show to talk about alternative models for understanding addiction. MUSICMelbourne trip-hop/electronica band Kalacoma with Waves. Listen here. SEGMENTEGA Presents: Jasen - Iboga/Ibogaine in the Use of Addiction.SEGMENTYarra Drug and Health Forum Executive Officer Greg Denham joins the program to discuss International Overdose Awareness Day.SEGMENTNeuroscientist and Professor of developmental psychology Marc Lewis PhD joins the program to discuss the nature of addiction. Marc recently published a book, The Biology of Desire: Why Addiction Is Not A Disease and was in Australia presenting for the writer's festival and Festival of Dangerous Ideas.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news, with a special focus on a Channel 7 News report, seriously over-stating the potential danger of nitrous oxide (nangs) when used recreationally. We're pretty sure that Channel 7 News claims that "experts" warn of "possible brain damage" for every single drug they report on, whether the drug is even real or not. We guess it's on the drug story template form in the book of lazy journalism. Check out the full write-up of this story at the Enpsychedelia website.MUSICRap News - IMMIGRANTS! Feat. Donald Trump & Tony AbbottSEGMENTEventsMUSICTom Cosm - Tipsy GitzSEGMENTEntheogenesis Australis Conference piece:Beatriz Labate - Ayahuasca Shamanism in the Amazon and Beyond This presentation will offer an overview of the book “Ayahuasca Shamanism in the Amazon and Beyond”, co-edited by Beatriz Caiuby Labate and Clancy Cavnar, and published through Oxford University Press in 2014. The book discusses how Amerindian epistemology and ontology related to certain indigenous shamanic rituals of the Amazon spread to Western societies, and how indigenous, mestizo, and cosmopolitan cultures have dialogued with and transformed these forest traditions. The collection also focuses on how shamanic rituals have been spreading and developing in post-traditional urban contexts throughout the world. Special attention is given to ayahuasca, a psychoactive drink usually composed of two plants, the vine Banisteriopsis caapi and leaves of the Psychotria viridis bush. Ayahuasca use has spread beyond its Amazonian origin and instigated a variety of legal and cultural responses in the countries it has spread to. The chapters address some of the ways these responses have influenced ritual design and performance in traditional and non-traditional contexts. The book analyzes how displaced indigenous people and rubber tappers are engaged in creative reinvention of rituals, and how these rituals help build ethnic alliances and cultural and political strategies for their marginalized position. It also explores modernity’s fascination with “tradition” and the “other.” This phenomenon is directly tied to important classic and contemporary issues in anthropology. One of them is the relationship between the expansion of ecotourism and ethnic tourism, recent indigenous cultural revivals, and the emergence of new ethnic identities. Another focus of this book is on trends in the commodification of indigenous cultures in post-colonial contexts, and the combination of shamanism with a network of health and spiritually related services. Finally, the book addresses the topic of identity hybridization in global societies. The previously unpublished ethnographies and analysis collected in these chapters add to the understanding of the role of ritual in mediating the encounter between indigenous traditions and modern societies.SEGMENTRak Razam - In A Perfect World Podcast snippet. Rak speaks with Martin Ball in Episode 97 of his podcast.Join experiential journalist Rak Razam and author, visionary artist, musician, podcaster and entheogenic explorer Martin Ball, Ph.D., as they engage in a far-reaching discussion about entheogens, DMT, “radical nonduality” and the Mind of GOD.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news.MUSICMelbourne glitch-hoppy, dub steppish heavy bass lads Boifrenz, with Kong.SEGMENTDr. David Caldicott is an emergency consultant working at Calvary Hospital in Canberra and has been advocating for harm reduction policies to be implemented around drug users for well over a decade. Dr. Daldicott speaks with Enpsychedelia about a variety of issues, from the need for pill testing at festivals and other events where drug use happens, to the rise of Novel Psychoactive Substances (NPS), new drugs that have a very short history of human use and hardly any information on the risks... or the benefits.
First, a dedication to my friend Max Luca-Reddaway, who passed away on the 23rd of July 2015. This is for him:You want a physicist to speak at your funeral. You want the physicist to talk to your grieving family about the conservation of energy, so they will understand that your energy has not died. You want the physicist to remind your sobbing mother about the first law of thermodynamics; that no energy gets created in the universe, and none is destroyed. You want your mother to know that all your energy, every vibration, every Btu of heat, every wave of every particle that was her beloved child remains with her in this world. You want the physicist to tell your weeping father that amid energies of the cosmos, you gave as good as you got.And at one point you'd hope that the physicist would step down from the pulpit and walk to your brokenhearted spouse there in the pew and tell him that all the photons that ever bounced off your face, all the particles whose paths were interrupted by your smile, by the touch of your hair, hundreds of trillions of particles, have raced off like children, their ways forever changed by you. And as your widow rocks in the arms of a loving family, may the physicist let her know that all the photons that bounced from you were gathered in the particle detectors that are her eyes, that those photons created within her constellations of electromagnetically charged neurons whose energy will go on forever.And the physicist will remind the congregation of how much of all our energy is given off as heat. There may be a few fanning themselves with their programs as he says it. And he will tell them that the warmth that flowed through you in life is still here, still part of all that we are, even as we who mourn continue the heat of our own lives.And you'll want the physicist to explain to those who loved you that they need not have faith; indeed, they should not have faith. Let them know that they can measure, that scientists have measured precisely the conservation of energy and found it accurate, verifiable and consistent across space and time. You can hope your family will examine the evidence and satisfy themselves that the science is sound and that they'll be comforted to know your energy's still around. According to the law of the conservation of energy, not a bit of you is gone; you're just less orderly. Amen.MUSICDaheen - AnthropoceneSEGMENTFiona Patten of the Australian Sex Party discusses Portugal's decriminalised drug policy, after a visit there back in 2012. This segment comes from episode 9 of the first season of Enpsychedelia which was a podcast in 2012.
Nick and Ash discuss the week in drug news.MUSICDysphemic - Psychedelic BreakfastElf Tranzporter - Blessed Up (feat. Vida Sunshyne)Ethereal Lotus Fleet by Elf TranzporterOpiuo - SlipINTERVIEWDr. Monica Barratt joins Enpsychedelia to talk about her recent journey to Portugal, to present at the Club Health conference in Lisbon. Dr. Barratt is a researcher who focuses in particular on darknet markets, especially those which deal with currently illicit substances.In A Perfect World (podcast)Rak Razam is an experiential journalist who has traveled around the world, exploring issues around psychedelics, especially the esoteric and archaic revival. Only a small snippet of Rak's full program was played on the show. Make sure you click the link to listen to his full podcast.Nick and Ash round out the program with further discussion on some of the news items and other drug policy issues.In A Perfect World (podcast)Rak Razam is an experiential journalist who has traveled around the world, exploring issues around psychedelics, especially the esoteric and archaic revival. Only a small snippet of Rak's full program was played on the show. Make sure you click the link to listen to his full podcast.- See more at: http://www.3cr.org.au/enpsychedelia/episode-201507121400/ep2-dancewizes-steph-tzanetis-and-prof-david-penington#sthash.hDq58bdC.dpufIn A Perfect World (podcast)Rak Razam is an experiential journalist who has traveled around the world, exploring issues around psychedelics, especially the esoteric and archaic revival. Only a small snippet of Rak's full program was played on the show. Make sure you click the link to listen to his full podcast.- See more at: http://www.3cr.org.au/enpsychedelia/episode-201507121400/ep2-dancewizes-steph-tzanetis-and-prof-david-penington#sthash.hDq58bdC.dpuf
Nick and Ash discuss the news from the week.Interview #1Steph Tzanetis is the co-ordinator of DanceWize, a peer-based harm reduction program for festivals around Victoria. Steph recently visited Lisbon, Portugal to attend the Club Health conference, focused on harm reduction for the night life. We talked to Steph about her time in Lisbon and what she learned while in a country that has one of the most progressive drug policies in the world.In A Perfect World (podcast)Rak Razam is an experiential journalist who has traveled around the world, exploring issues around psychedelics, especially the esoteric and archaic revival. Only a small snippet of Rak's full program was played on the show. Make sure you click the link to listen to his full podcast.Interview #2Professor David Penington is one of Australia's leading intellectuals and public health experts. Professor Penington joins the show to discuss a recent article on the possibility of legalising MDMA to be sold through pharmacies.Call to make ecstasy legal and sell it at pharmacies - The Age 05/07/2015
This is the first episode of Enpsychedelia on 3CR. Nick, Ash and Greg cover news in the first segment.INTERVIEW #1Jane and Nadia from Harm Reduction Victoria (HRV) join the program to talk about their roles at HRV, how they became involved with harm reduction and their hopes for the future.INTERVIEW #2Andrew McMillen is the author of Talking Smack and joined Enpsychedelia to discuss his book and how it was received across Australia more broadly.Of all the creative industries, the most distinct link between drug use and creativity lies within music. The two elements seem to be intertwined, inseparable; that mythical phrase “sex, drugs and rock and roll” has been bandied about with a wink and a grin for decades. But is it all smoke and mirrors, or does that cliché ring true for some of our best-known performers?In this fascinating book, journalist Andrew McMillen talks with Australian musicians about their thoughts on – and experiences with – illicit, prescription and legal drugs. Through a series of in-depth and intimate interviews, he tells the stories of those who have bitten into the forbidden fruit and avoided choking.Finally on the show, we discuss a range of topics around reforming drug policy in Australia. Greg Kasarik is online here.