Sensi Magazine Oklahoma - Sensi April Edition 2021 - 5 Year Anniversary Issue

ANNIVERSARY COLLECTOR’S EDITION

S PA R K O K L A H O M A APRIL 2021

JANE WEST’S VISION Smashing stigmas

CELEBRATING 5 YEARS AT THE CROSSROADS OF CANNABIS & CULTURE

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FIFTH ANNIVERSARY EDITION SENSI MAGAZINE APRIL 2021

sensimediagroup @sensimagazine @sensimag

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FEATURES

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Sensi Turns Five

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Jane Says

In honor of our wooden anniversary, we look back at the intersection of cannabis and culture.

Colorado entrepreneur and visionary Jane West will be leading the charge in the new world of normalization.

112 Stone’s Show

Reality TV icon Stone Slade talks about his new show, the No Reservations for the cannabis industry.

124 Eternal Blue Sky

Hemp is a cultural staple for Mongolia— but it remains illegal. One native entrepreneur hopes to change that.

146 A Better Crop

Patagonia partners with a Colorado farm to reignite America’s industrial hemp market.

156 Growers Unite

Cannabis farmers in Sebastopol revive the historic Hessel Farmers Grange.

166 Myco Moment

Designers are giving mushrooms the appreciation they deserve.

178 Minor Keys

One family fights for clarity for minors with medical cannabis cards.

186 Compassionate Cannabis

A network of California activists is here to support cannabis patients and a new bill designed to help them.

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C ont inued DEPARTMENTS

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PRODUCTS WE’RE LOVING Merch from The Mincing Mockingbird; Wunder infused seltzer; TerraVita ’shrooms capsules; The Pairist luxury pre-rolls; shippable strains; tasting experience; and more CANNA NEWS Cannabis’ newest coalition; Michigan Hash Bash turns 50; RAW’s first-ever Rolling Championship BOOKSHELF An aptly-named journal to use when you’re high; a beginner’s guide to growing your own cannabis; getting cultured with High Art JUKEBOX Defining a year by it’s No. 1 song; hits from Mason Jar Events’ lounge playlist FUN FACTS & MORE “Sensi” as defined by the internet’s favorite dictionary; tips for clean your glass pipes; products that have survived 100 years; Vegas weddings spike on uniquely numbered dates

40 THE LIFE POD PARTY Throw a bitching 4/20 bash for your besties.

JUSTICE Sensi Presents drops its first album to

benefit the Last Prisoner Project.

CANNA CARES Cannabis companies are giving back to their communities.

BUSINESS Industry tips from a female cannapreneur HOROSCOPE What the stars hold for you RECIPES Say cheers to five years with these celebratory dishes.

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ON THE COVER

Jane West is changing the face of the cannabis consumer and normalizing all the ways we partake of the plant.

PHOTO BY ANDREW BYDLON PHOTO EDITS BY JOSH CLARK HAIR + MAKEUP BY ANDERSON GONZALEZ

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EVENT HORIZONS Looking back at five years’ worth of smiling faces at signature Sensi events has us pumped to get the whole crew back together soon.

226 THE END Signing off, we honor National Poetry Month with one of our favorite poems from Walt Whitman.

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ADVISORY BOARD

COLORADO Agricor Laboratories Testing Lab Aspen Cannabis Insurance Insurance Services Canyon Cultivation Microdosing Cartology Corporation Cartridge Filling Equipment + Hardware Colorado Cannabis Company THC Coffee Concentrate Supply Co. Recreational Concentrates Emerald Construction Construction Green Edge Trimmers Trimmers Higher Grade Boutique Cannabis Hybrid Payroll Staffing & HR Benefits Jupiter Research Inhalation Hardware Lab Society Extraction Expert + Lab Supplies marQaha Sublinguals + Beverages Monte Fiore Farms Recreational Cultivation Northern Standard History of Cannabis PotGuide Cannabis Culture Source CO Wholesale Consulting Terrapin Care Station Recreational Dispensary Toast Mindful Consumption Uleva Hemp Products Wana Brands Edibles Witlon Inc. Payroll Processing SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA Accucanna LLC Desert Hot Springs: Dispensary EventHI Events Flourish Software Distribution Management Helmand Valley Growers Company Medical Infrastructure Specialist HUB International Insurance Hybrid Payroll / Ms. Mary Staffing Staffing & HR Benefits Ikänik Farms Cannabis Distribution Red Rock Fertility Fertility Doctor Wana Brands Edible Gummies Witlon Payroll

NEVADA Eden Water Technologies Water System Technologies Green Leaf Money Canna Business Finanacing GreenHouse Payment Solutions Payment Processing Ideal Business Partners Corporate Law & Finance Jupiter Research Inhalatation Hardware Matrix NV Premium Live Resin Red Rock Fertility Fertility Doctor Rokin Vapes Vape Technology This Stuff Is Good For You CBD Bath and Body NEW ENGLAND Corners Packaging Packaging Curaleaf Veterans Cannabis Project Flourish Software Seed to Sale Green Goddess Supply Personal Homegrown Biochamber GreenHouse Payment Solutions Payment Processing The Holistic Center Medical Marijuana Evaluations PotGuide Travel & Tourism Revolutionary Clinics Medical Dispensary Royal Gold Soil Tess Woods Public Relations Public Relations

MICHIGAN Aronoff Law (Craig Aronoff) Licensing Law Firm Cannabis Counsel Cannabis Law Firm Etz Chaim Attestations Great Lakes Natural Remedies Lakeshore: Provisioning Center Kush Design Studio Cannabis Facility Design & Build LC Solutions Michigan PLLC Accounting/CPA Services Michigan Creative Branding MRB Solutions Human Resources Northern Specialty Health Upper Peninsula: Provisioning Center Oh, Hello Branding Promotional Marketing Perry & Drummy Inc. Commercial Insurance Pure West Compassion Club Caregiver Connection & Network Rair Medical Flower Solutions by Dr. Dave West Michigan: Hemp CBD Helping Friendly Hemp Company Hemp Topicals NORTHERN CALIFORNIA 365 Recreational Cannabis Dispensary: Recreational, Santa Rosa Convergence Laboratories Cannabis Testing Laboratory Green Unicorn Farms CBD Hemp Flower Humboldt CCTV Smart Ag Tech Humboldt Patient Resource Center Dispensary: Humboldt Humboldt Vape Tech Vape Accessories Kushla Life Sciences Cannabis Formulation and Products Red Door Remedies Dispensary: Cloverdale Southern Humboldt Royal Cannabis Company Mixed Light Farming Sonoma Patient Group Dispensary: Santa Rosa Strictly Topical Inc./Sweet ReLeaf Pain Relief Topicals Superbad inc. Premium California Cannabis Uleva Hemp Products Vaper Tip Vape Supply & Consulting Wana Brands Edible Gummies

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EDITORIAL

Stephanie Wilson Co-Founder + Editor in Chief stephanie.wilson@sensimag.com Doug Schnitzspahn Executive Editor Helen Olsson Copy Chief Tracy Ross Managing Editor, Michigan Emilie-Noelle Provost Managing Editor, New England Debbie Hall Managing Editor, Nevada Jenny Willden Managing Editor, NorCal Dawn Garcia Managing Editor, Southern California Robyn Griggs Lawrence Editor at Large Mona Van Joseph Contributor, Horoscopes

EXECUTIVE

Ron Kolb Founder + CEO ron@sensimag.com Mike Mansbridge President Lou Ferris Vice President of Global Revenue Chris Foltz Vice President of Global Reach Jade Kolb Director of Project Management ADVERTISING

Nancy Reid Director, Team Building, Sensi East Joel Bergeson Director, Team Building, Sensi West PUBLISHING

DESIGN

Jamie Ezra Mark Creative Director jamie@emagency.com Rheya Tanner Art Director Wendy Mak Designer Josh Clark Designer

Jamie Cooper Market Director, Michigan Abi Wright Market Director, Nevada Richard Guerra Market Director, New England Nancy Birnbaum Market Director, NorCal Diana Ramos Market Director, Oklahoma Rob Ball Market Director, S. California

BRAND DEVELOPMENT

Richard Guerra Director of Global Reach Amanda Patrizi Deputy Director of Global Reach Tuva Hank Music Director, Sensi Presents Neil Willis Production Director MEDIA PARTNERS

Marijuana Business Daily Minority Cannabis Business Association National Cannabis Industry Association Students for Sensible Drug Policy

Angelique Kiss Market Director, S. California

MEDIA SALES

COLORADO Liana Cameris Media Sales Executive Tuva Hank Media Sales Executive Amanda Patrizi Media Sales Executive Tyler Tarr Media Sales Executive NEVADA Pam Hewitt Media Sales Executive NEW ENGLAND Jake Boynton Media Sales Executive MICHIGAN Kyle Miller Media Sales Executive Leah Stephens Media Sales Executive

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W

EDITOR’S NOTE

Magazine published monthly

by Sensi Media Group LLC.

© 2021 Sensi Media Group. All rights reserved.

Welcome to the 318th issue of Sensi magazine.

FIND US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

FAC E B O O K Like Sensi Media Group to infuse your newsfeed with more of our great cannabis lifestyle content.

TWITTER Follow @sensimag for need-to-know news and views from Sensi headquarters.

I N S TAG R A M Pretty things, pretty places, pretty awesome people: find it all on @sensimagazine

But it is also the first national issue, one that unites all of our regional and local editions into one massive publication that celebrates where we started, honors where we’ve been, and paints a picture of our predictions for the future.

It is all of these things because of something we’re launching now, five years in: The Sensi Vault, our living archive of every issue and every article published from our launch in Denver in 2016 until now. You’ll be able to order every issue—including this one—to print on demand via the Sensi website at sensimag.com.

If that doesn’t really seem that long ago, I’d be willing to bet you don’t work in cannabis, where the running joke is that time goes by in dog years. Is it because time flies when you’re having fun and we’re having a ton of it? That’s part of it.

We are all living in the moment now. “Never before has time been so agile,” Colum McCann noted in “The Cold Open” for Esquire magazine’s 1,000th issue in 2015. I recently bought a copy of the collector’s edition off eBay so I could study what they did.

It’s not the first copy of Esquire I’ve ordered off the internet. For a long time, Esquire was the magazine all other magazines aspired to be, thanks to the editor in chief David Granger, who helmed the men’s magazine from 1997 to 2016. During his tenure, Esquire was a finalist for 72 National Magazine Awards—the industry’s highest honors—and won 17.

Following Granger’s lead—he thought that the only reason a magazine such as Esquire should glance back is to be propelled forward, to admire what was but to create something new—we’re glancing back in admiration at some of the most important content we’ve published over the years, all of which will soon be available on sensimag.com.

What strikes me as I review our archives is the breadth of work in our portfolio. So much of it was news to the writer of any given piece (and to me as well). That’s the thing about cannabis: It’s new. It’s popular. And there aren’t a whole lot of places where people who are new to it or curious about it can learn the type of things that I wanted to learn as I got into this whole Sensi thing.

We’ve spent the last five years (six if you count pre-launch) learning a whole bunch.

And because we don’t expect you to have read through all 317 issues in our archives, we’re making a roadmap to help you discover the best, the brightest, the most interesting, and the most noteworthy pieces we’ve published. My name is Stephanie Wilson, and I’ll be you host for this tour of the world where cannabis meets culture.

That’s the thing about cannabis: It’s new. It’s popular. And there aren’t a whole lot of places where people who are new to it or curious about it can learn the type of things that I wanted to learn as I got into this whole Sensi thing.

Stephanie Wilson @stephwilll

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WISH LIST

Highly Creative Creative thinking is a competitive edge that separates the good from the great in all aspects of life, so get high and think about thinking. This guided journal is designed to engage your imagination to help uncover new ideas, build more productive habits, and inspire creative thoughts. Bonus: you’re supposed to use it while you’re high.

It’s not your basic stoner coloring book, although there are pages for coloring plus a set of colored pencils for you to use on them. Nor is it a puzzle book for stereotypical “stoners” too blazed to think thoughts at all.

Refreshingly free of clichés, the Original Creative Thinking Journal by Pilgrim Soul is packed with more than 50 engaging prompts that are neither incredibly boring or stupidly zany. It’s just cool, and made for people like you by someone who’s maybe a wee bit cooler than you are. If you like fun almost as much as you like thinking thoughts about things, you should get this book.

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you’ll find pages asking you to “Describe These People,” prompting you to imagine what kind of personality folks with the names Donald Lentsch, Tiffany Bridges, and August Gold have. The book asks you to make up and define new words and to complete abstract analogies (“Being in a relationship is like cleaning the bathroom. How So?”), write a Tinder bio for Oprah, and fill out the famed Proust Questionnaire. (What is your most marked characteristic?

What do you regard as the lowest depth of mystery?

Which words or phrases do you overuse most?) One exercise instructs you to go to a public place and invent a narrative for two strangers you encounter.

The people at Pilgrim Soul say the goal of the journal is to “get people to look at problems in entirely new ways, get out of their comfort zones, and tap into what makes them uniquely creative.” Get the book, get high, and spend a few hours losing yourself in the mental playground.

You’ve already seen everything on Netflix anyway. $29.95 / Pilgrimsoul.com

PHOTOS COURTESY OF PILGRIM SOUL

You like art, you like thoughts, you like pot: buy this book.

CONTRIBUTORS

Dawn Garcia, Debbie Hall, Tracy Ross, Jenny Willden

PHOTOS (FROM TOP) COURTESY OF WUNDER, THE MINCING MOCKINGBIRD

THE MINCING MOCKINGBIRD The Mincing Mockingbird is artist/writer/designer duo Kim Bagwill and Matt Adrian, the married couple responsible for the products on themincingmockingbird.com. Among them is the amazing postcard featured here and which our editor-in-chief has hanging on her wall. If you read it and find yourself wondering, Who is the “she?” referenced on the card, she is you and you totally need this postcard. Possibly the magnet, too.

Bagwill and Adrian is “she” too. “Since 2008 we’ve been having an almost criminal amount of fun creating things that delight us,” Bagwill writes on the company’s site, “and the recent relocation of our studio to the wilds of Joshua Tree has upped the inspiration level by an order of magnitude.”

Want to see even more of their criminally delightful creations? Check out their respective websites: mattadrian.com and kimbagwill.com.

Saint Magnet, $4.50

BY THE NUMBERS

50 YEARS

How long cannabis has been classified as a Schedule I drug, defined to have “a high potential for abuse” and “no currently accepted medical use in treatment.”

The current drug classification system was introduced by the Controlled Substances Act of 1970 and signed into law by President Nixon on May 1, 1971

89.6 PERCENT The overwhelming percentage of arrests related to marijuana made for possession only SOURCE: ACLU

$17.5 BILLION Legal cannabis sales across the US in 2020—a record-breaking year, up 46% from 2019 SOURCE: BDS Analytics

It’s a Wunder-ful World Satisfy those sparkling drink cravings with this low-dose cannabis sipper.

Seltzers and sparkling drinks are all the rage, but a new sessionable beverage called Wunder is taking California’s cannabis seltzer scene by storm. This low-dose, cannabis-infused beverage is a conscious alternative to alcohol and best served cold in the can or over ice. It’s precisely dosed with 2 mg of THC, 4 mg of CBD, and 2 mg of Delta-8 to enable you to feel present, relaxed, and clear headed—instead of fuzzy and foggy.

This all-natural drink is the first to include Delta-8, a cannabinoid known for promoting relaxation and presence of mind. Combined with a low-dose of THC and CBD, Wunder delivers a balanced, uplifting experience. Available in three flavors—Watermelon Wave, Lemon Ginger Lift, and Blood Orange Bliss— throughout the Bay Area and at select California dispensaries.

Wunder / findwunder.com

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THE BUZZ

3

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CLEAN PIPE DREAMS

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Give your glass a good spring cleaning.

Dirty glass make you cringe? You are not alone. Not only is it unsightly AF, a resin-caked pipe, bowl, or rig can ruin the taste of whatever you’re smoking. Which was fine when you were smoking the dirt weed of yore—it was gonna taste like dirt regardless—but you’re not just hitting that not-sticky-just-icky stuff anymore. In this modern age of legal weed, let’s agree to keep bowls clean, keep the terpenes tasting tasty, and keep your high a high-end experience.

Whether your a casual consumer whose glass pipe isn’t quite as pristine as it was when you impulse purchased it from the gas station or you’re a hard-core dabber whose glass rig looks like its insides have been coated with a maple syrup-like substance that’s hardened to plastic, it’s time to give your glass a good spring cleaning. The High Holiday is coming.

There are a few ways you can tackle this, and making your own pipe-cleaning solution from scratch is the easiest, cheapest solution, so start there. According to the experts at GRAV, leading makers of high-quality scientific-grade glass bongs and pipes, you’ll need three things: isopropyl alcohol (91% or 99%, back in stock after pandemic-induced scarcity), coarse kosher salt, and a Tupperware-style bowl with a lid that’s large enough to fit your

piece. Some additional not-necessary-but-nice-to-have items to consider: rubber gloves, a funnel, rubber stoppers such as GRAV cleaning plugs, and some q-tips or pipe cleaners.

Mix equal parts of the alcohol and salt in a bowl large enough to fit the piece you’d like to clean, put in your piece, and let it soak for an hour or more—up to a day to break up thick tar and resin. Then fill your bong or pipe with solution using a funnel, plug the openings with your fingers and shake it—carefully, away from any hard surfaces. The q-tips and/or pipe cleaners can help with any particularly stubborn spots. Rinse with cold water and voila! Clean glass. Most of the time.

If you’ve got a few years of a grime from a gram a day dab habit coating the inside of your multi-tiered percolator, and you’re laughing at the notion that cleaning it could be easy, note that I didn’t say you had to clean it, just that getting it clean is easy: hire a professional. The best ones will come to your house, pick up your piece, work their magic, and return your piece as good as new—and they’ll do it at a price that won’t empty your bank account. If you’ve got a particularly complex piece of glass with lots of curves, corners, and parts that would take you hours and hours to clean, bring in the experts.

Products 1. Higher Standards K.Haring Rig 2. Marley Natural Water Pipe 3. Higher Standards K. Haring Spoon Pipe 4. GRAV Wedge Bubbler 5. GRAV Small Wide Base Water Pipe

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THE BUZZ

POLITICALLY CORRECT

Joint Session

PHOTOS (FROM TOP) COURTESY OF RAW ROLLING PAPER WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS; BY IARYGIN ANDRII, ADOBE STOCK

A rolling competition takes the High Holiday to new even higher heights.

The best paper roller will converge in a virtual ring of competition when rolling paper giant RAW celebrates the April 4/20 high holiday with its first annual “Rolling Championship of the WORLD” competition.

Expect big-name judges, including RAW CEO Josh Kesselman (a.k.a. “the guardian of rolling papers”), High Times editors, and a panel of experts including Cody Van Gogh, the Canadian creative joint artist behind the @roll_with_codyvangogh Instagram account.

Follow up at #worldrollingchampionship, with photos of contest entries, which can look like anything but have to be lightable, smokable, and sans tobacco. RAW’s rules also state that “all pieces must be constructed with rolling papers created in the birthplace of rolling papers—Alcoy, Spain.” RAW vegan rolling papers come from Alcoy, as do ones by brands like Juicy Jay, Elements, Pay Pay, and more, and you’re encouraged to get as creative as you can. According to RAW, “the concept of the submission should be as original and unique as possible.”

Top rolling aficionados, amateur smoking enthusiasts, and true glorified artists across the community are called to submit their “best in class” work via photo or video to @worldrollingchampionship by 4/18/2021 for a chance at winning five top prizes, including $2,000, a obnoxiously large supply of RAW rolling papers, and a trip to roll at RAW HQ with Kesselman himself.

Last month, the cannabis industry got a new advocate in the form of a first-of-its-kind coalition composed of a wide variety of national corporations and experts on everything from regulatory and enforcement structures to criminal justice reform.

The so-called Coalition for Cannabis Policy, Education, and Regulation intentionally formed during the first 100 days of Joe Biden’s presidency in the hopes of advancing a dialog that can inform federal cannabis legalization. After all, more states are moving toward recreational legalization, and members of Congress, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, are calling it a priority for the current congress.

Currently, the industry is booming—legal sales topped $20 billion last year, a 50 percent jump over 2019. “But a state-by-state patchwork approach to regulation exists, absent a federal framework that is guided by science, data, and consistent standards that exist for all other adultuse products,” says Andrew Freedman, executive director of the coalition.

The coalition hopes to “transcend ideology by bringing together issue experts to generate thoughtful discussion and analysis on various questions surrounding lawmakers as they consider federal cannabis legalization and regulation.”

More details and official rules: rawthentic.com/worldrolling/

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is

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all wom g n i all o love cannab

CONNECT WITH YOURSELF AND OTHERS IN CITIES AROUND THE GLOBE

TOKEATIVITY.COM/CONNECT

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THE BUZZ

VOX POPULI Question: What’s the most impactful change to California’s cannabis industry during the five years Sensi’s been publishing?

NIKKI LASTRETO AND LUNA STOWER of Business DevelopSWAMI CHAITANYA Manager ment, Aspire

Co-Founders, Swami Select Laytonville

Oakland

___________________

___________________

Proposition 64. It imposed strict rules and regulations upon us, all while allowing big companies to stack licenses before appointed deadlines. Sad but true, but it isn’t going to stop us!

Proposition 64. It changed compassion and home grow access for the worse.

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HIGH STYLE

Sensi editors share the cannabis accoutrement we’re currently coveting—”must-have” items for any aficionados with money to burn.

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A Rose by Any Other Name

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Products 1. Flower by Edie Parker Tabletop Lighter, $450 edieparkerflower.com 2. Jonathan Adler Botanist Ganja Urn, $495 neimanmarcus.com 3. Jacquie Aiche Sweet Leaf Denim Shirt, $1,330 jacquieaiche.com 4. 19-69 Chronic Eau de Parfum, $185, ssense.com 5. Jan Leslie Hand-Painted Cannabis Cufflinks, $450 saksfifthavenue.com 6. Rick Owens Black Bronze Lighter Holder, $870, SSENSE.com 7. Olympia Le-Tan “Pot” Book Clutch, $890 olympialetan.com 8. Shinola The Twenty After Four Detrola 43MM, $420 shinola.com 9. Jacquie Aiche Sweet Leaf Snakeskin Backpack, $6,250 jacquieaiche.com 10. Stubbs Wootton Weed Slippers, $750 stubbsandwootton.com 11. Saint Laurent Smoking Box Crossbody Bag, $695 therealreal.com 12. Hermés Robe du Soir Ashtray, $4,900 hermes.com 13. Barrineau Weed Clutch, $140 shopbarrineau.com

ROSE PHOTO BY NEW AFRICA, ADOBE STOCK

What exactly is “sensi” and does it smell sweet? Let’s see what Urban Dictionary has to say.

Sensi* Weed, Reefer, Herb, Ganja, Pot, Enysore, Trees, Grass, Smoke, Skink, Buddha, Bud, Rip, Blint, 420, Green, Regs, KBs, Kine Budd, Chron Chron, Dank, Marijuana, Mary Jane, Marrijihuana, Brownies, Headies, THC, Schwag, Hemp, Cannabis, Shi, Shit, Leaf, Bone, Joint, ’Erb, Twist…

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*The oldest definition of Sensi, posted by CrakZak August 21, 2003

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THE BUZZ

GROW HOUSE

The Cannabis Gardener

by Penny Barthel Penny Barthel is a nutritionist, recipe developer, gardener, and self-described plant nerd. She’s also a certified cannabis horticulturist as well as a published author, and she wants you to know that cannabis is as easy to grow as a tomato plant. In case you don’t want to take her on her word, she’s got a whole book that will show you how.

The Cannabis Gardner is a beautifully photographed primer on growing your own cannabis. It includes Barthel’s guidance on which strains to choose for your USDA growing zone, tips on harvesting flowers, and recipes for salves, tinctures, and edibles. If you live in a suitable climate and provide sun, water, and good soil—and you follow her advice—Barthel assures that you can grow vigorous, beautiful cannabis in pots, raised beds, or your own yard. Not only is cannabis an easy addition to your garden, it can also provide health and mood-lifting benefits.

The Cannabis Gardener teaches you how to choose which strains are right for you and how to cultivate the 28

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plants from seed to finished flower. Gorgeous full-color photographs capture each stage of the growing process and show how cannabis plants can be incorporated into your garden design as well as raised beds and containers. After you establish your plants in the garden and monitor them through the flowering stage, you’ll find tips on how to harvest, dry, cure, and store your “grow.” Also included are recipes for savoring your harvest, from salves, tisanes, and tinctures to cannabutter for baking and cooking delicious treats such as CBD gummies flavored with vanilla beans, cheddar crackers, and even cannabis chocolate sauce.

Her garden and kitchen pursuits flow directly from her education and life experience. Follow the certified cannabis horticulturist on Instagram @smallgardencannabis, and if you’re in the Bay Area, keep an eye out for her cannabis events known as Let’s Sesh Workshops. $23 / bookshop.org

PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE CANNABIS GARDENER

Study this beginner’s guide to growing vibrant, healthy plants in any region.

THE BUZZ

Year in Music

You can learn a lot about what was happening in history by listening to the number one songs of the time.

BY THE NUMBERS

TerraVita Shrooms capsules bomb the market.

$9.2

PHOTOS (FROM TOP) BY ERIC NOPANEN; COURTESY OF TERRA VITA SHROOMS

MILLION

Want to know a country’s zeitgeist on any given year? Listen to its annual chart-topper and apply some sociology to figure it out.

The number 1 tune of the 1960s was the instrumental “Theme from A Summer Place” from the movie A Summer Place, which won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1961. According to Spotify, the song has been played 3,813,563 times, largely by grandmothers with cataracts and tears in their eyes.

The smash-hit of the 1970s was “You Light Up My Life” from the movie of the same name. It was number 1 for 10 consecutive weeks in 1977 and has been played 13,769,274 times since, on Spotify, even though there are 13,769,274 better songs than it.

“Physical,” recorded by Olivia Newton-John (1981), spent 10 weeks at the number one spot (helping thong workout leotards take off). And the Mariah Carey-Boyz II Men hit “One Sweet Day” (1995) was the longest-running number one song in the Billboard chart’s history at the time, a record held for 23 years (we don’t actually know why).

The greatest songs of the 2000s are “We Belong Together” (2005) by Mariah Carey and “I Gotta Feeling” by The Black Eyed Peas (2009). Both songs remained on the top of the charts for 14 nonconsecutive weeks, because half of the population had good taste and music and the other half didn’t.

The past decade’s highlight is “Uptown Funk,” performed by Bruno Mars and released in 2015— because apparently the 2010s were still the 1970s.

BOOM (ER)!

A HIGH-MINDED PLAYLIST

Amount the federal government spent every single day to incarcerate people charged with drug-related offenses in 2015— more than $3.3 billion annually.

State governments spent an additional $7 billion.

SOURCE: American Progress

5 STAFFERS

Number of White House staffers the Biden administration fired because of past cannabis use—even if that use happened in states where the plant is legal.

3.64 TIMES

How more likely Black people are to be arrested for marijuana than white people on average.

In some states, Black people were six, eight, or almost 10 times more likely to be arrested.

Recently, TerraVita CBD company introduced a collection of products unlike any offered in the saturated wellness marketplace: Shrooms Capsules, 30 mg of broad-spectrum CBD with adaptogenic mushrooms to “bring balance to the mind and body.” The range includes more than 50 benefit-specific earth-friendly solutions for everyday problems like aches and pains, lack of energy and focus, stress and anxiety, and more. The products come in multiple forms, flavors, and dosages, creating a one-stop plant-medicine collection that combines adaptogens, herbs, functional mushrooms, vitamins, essential oils, terpen es, and other plant-based remedies with broad-spectrum CBD. Some Sensi team members tried the product, and their consensus is almost entirely positive. Feedback includes “I’m more energized than usual!” “My brain’s not foggy today, I love it,” and “I’m not even stressed about that deadline!” (Hopefully with more use, the last commenter will be next time…)

TerraVita Shrooms CBD Capsules, $54.99 ($30.24 if you subscribe to auto-delivery) terravitacbd.com

Created for a cannabis pairing dinner series by Mason Jar Events, this Mason Jar Lounge playlist sets the perfect tone for an elevated evening.

Find it and more like it on Spotify.

Part 1 • Who’s Got The Weed G. Love & Special Sauce • Trainspotting Primal Scream • Disco Devil Lee “Scratch” Perry • Stepping Razor Peter Tosh • Silk Medeski, Martin & Wood • Use Me Bill Withers • That’s the Way Led Zeppelin • Feel It All Around Washed Out • Flowin’ Prose Beastie Boys • Doctor Doctor Labi Siffre • Black Water The Doobie Brothers • Rosemary Lenny Kravitz • Freedom Jurassic 5 • Wild Horses The Sundays • Walk On the Wild Side Lou Reed • Do It Again Steely Dan • Kokomo Blues Mississippi Fred McDowell • Find My Baby Moby • Pickin’ Up the Pieces (Live from Denver) Widespread Panic • Little Wing Jimi Hendrix • Cold Rain and Snow— Live February 1978 Grateful Dead

SOURCE: ACLU

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Women working in cannabis deserve better, so

WE BUILT BETTER

JoIN Us

womenempoweredincannabis.com/join

THE BUZZ

HIGH HOLIDAY

PHOTOS (FROM LEFT) COURTESY OF MICHIGAN CANNABIS TRAIL, THE PAIRIST

A Michigan Hash Bash Turns 50 and Focuses Its Celebration on Social Justice Refreshed, online, and free to the public, Ann Arbor, Michigan’s Hash Bash is celebrating its 50th birthday with a focus on the need for federal legalization and repairing the harms inflicted by the drug war.

“Hash Bash is committed to the advocacy of federal cannabis legalization and to giving cannabis users and patients a voice,” said the event’s MC, Anqunette Sarfoh, a medical marijuana patient and former Fox News anchor. It sounds like good time with a mission.

The Hash Bash Livestream (a choice organizers made based on the appearance of a COVID-19 “variant of concern” into Michigan) will last several hours and begin at the traditional time of High Noon (yuk-yuk) on Saturday, April 3rd.

Several political leaders will speak, including Attorney General Dana Nessel, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Senator Jeff Irwin (D-Ann Arbor); a variety show will follow. Organizers say the event will focus on commemorating accomplishments major and minor and on the need for federal legalization and social justice.

The 2021 National Cannabis Festival is postponed for the second year in a row, but check sensimag.com for details about high holiday events happening around the nation all month long.

Pennsylvania Cannabis Festival / Kutztown, PA / April 17 & 18, 2021 Pennsylvania’s largest cannabis culture event has live music and art, 150-plus cannabis culture vendors, tasty morsels, “cannacentic” workshops, medical card certifications, hemp products, live flameworks, and more.

Perfect Pairings

Experience a curated high with these California-made pre-rolls.

Looking to counteract paranoia while boosting focus? Or kickstart creativity and jumpstart your romance? You need pre-rolls from The Pairist, a Northern California company that pairs herbs and strains based on their terpene profile for a unique taste and a specific high.

The Pairist sources its cannabis from Humboldt and Mendocino counties and partners them with herbs that amplify the flavor and effect of the cannabis strain. This flagship line offers four pairings: Sativa & Peppermint for alertness and mood elevation, Hybrid & Damiana for stress relief and as an aphrodisiac, Indica & Lavender for relaxation, and Rose Kush & Rose Petal for a head high. Available at select dispensaries in San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles, Humboldt, Pacifica, and Sonoma County.

The Pairest / thepairist.com

Check out penncannafest.com

420 Cannabis Music Festival / Lansing, MI / August 13 & 14, 2021 The first official Michigan marijuana smoke-friendly event celebrates the legalization of recreational cannabis in Michigan with live music, food trucks, and merchandise vendors while adhering to CDC and Michigan social distancing guidelines. eventbrite.com/e/420-cannabis-music-festival-2021-cannabis-festivaltickets-88583618989

National Cannabis Freedom Festival / Brooklyn, NY / April 19 & 20, 2021 The Educational Cannabis festival in New York is sponsored by minority group ButterMilk 420 Farms. Expect state officials, growers, industry professionals, and seminars along with music, vendors, exhibitors, and interactive video. nationalcannabisfreedomfestival.com

Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.”

—Arthur Ashe, tennis player and activist

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Congratulations to the 2020 Feast of Flowers

WINNERS! Light Dep: Sativa 1st place - Full Moon FarmSPK (Sour Patch Kids)

2nd place - hilltop RanchPineapple Upside Down Cake

3rd place - hygro Humboldt/ Don Carlos- Mother’s Milk

Light Dep: INDICA 1st place- Old Briceland

Cannabis Co.- Ice Cream Cake

2nd place- Hygro Humboldt/ Don Carlos- Wedding Cake

3rd place- Canna Country- #3 GH7

Light Dep: HYBRID 1st place- Xotic Flavorz- Mac 1 2nd place- SoHum Royal- Orange Cookies/High Octane

3rd place- Humboldt Redwood Healing- White Runtz

Full Term: SATIVA 1st place- Whitethorn Valley Farms- Night Owl 2nd place- Sunnabis- Surfin Bird 3rd place- Hogwash PharmsMountain Medicine CBD 1:1

Full Term: INDICA 1st place- Savage Farms- Savage Zittles 2nd place Huckleberry Hill Farms- Mom’s Weed 3rd place- Whitethorn Valley Farms- The Fool Full Term: HYBRID 1st place- Sunnabis- Green Dragon 2nd place- Full Moon FarmBlueberry Muffin Gelato

3rd place- SoHum Royal- Orangia

Concentrate: 1st place- Bizybee Farms- Gelato (live) 2nd place - Old Briceland Cannabis Co. Willy’s Kush Cake (live)

3rd place- Huckleberry Hill Farm- Mom’s Magic (live)

thanks to all judges & participants!

Together we raised

$15,000

for our southern humboldt volunteer fire departments!

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THE BUZZ

CENTURY RIDE Some things last forever.

One hundred years looks much longer when you break it down into days (36,500) months (1,200), or decades (10). But for something to survive a full century takes a lot more than third-grade math. According to thestacker.com, the following came into existence 100 years ago and survive all this time later. We’re not sure what this says except Baby Ruth, Wonder Bread, and Cheez-Its, you must have some serious preservatives.

Going to the Chapel

PHOTO (FROM TOP) BY ANA STUDIOS PHOTOGRAPHY, JASON LEUNG

Vows are no gimmicks in Las Vegas.

People still believe in love, and they are flocking to get married in Las Vegas, the Wedding Capital of the World. In fact, there was a 27 percent increase in marriage licenses issued this past Valentine’s Day from the previous year, according to Clark County Clerk Lynn Goya, who oversees the Marriage License Bureau, a division of the Clerk’s Office.

“One-of-a-kind dates like 4/3/21 are always immensely popular with more to come as we enter the last year of the decade with palindrome weeks,” says Goya.

Couples can expect a palindrome week in December 2021 lasting 10 consecutive days with a synchronicity of dates from 12/1/21 through 12/11/21. The final palindrome ends on Dec. 22, 2021 (12/22/21).

The Las Vegas Wedding Chamber of Commerce has been an aid to members and the industry throughout the pandemic.

“We work with the local chapels and venues and participated in creating a re-opening plan focusing on the health and safety of guests as well as our wedding professionals. Lead by our Government Affairs Chair, Maria Romano, we have also held calls with many public officials to help our peers better understand restrictions placed on our industry, relay questions, and find answers,” says Jason Whaley, President of the Las Vegas Wedding Chamber of Commerce and Owner of Smash Booth.

Even with COVID-19 cases easing up in Nevada, you can still have a micro-wedding, with less than 50 guests, or an intimate “minimony” with 10 or fewer guests.

Clark County Marriage Information / mlic.vegas Las Vegas Wedding Chamber of Commerce / weddingchamber.vegas

• The term robot, originally called R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots) • Baby Ruth candy bar • Lie detector machine • The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier • Chanel No. 5 perfume • Wonder Bread • Cheez-It crackers • Barrons magazine • The roller coaster • Insulin • White Castle burgers • Laughing Cow cheese • Wise Potato Chips • Lowes Home Improvement • United States Figure Skating Association The one thing that ties everything together is staying power.

A HIGH-MINDED PLAYLIST

Created for a cannabis pairing dinner series by Mason Jar Events, this Mason Jar Lounge playlist sets the perfect tone for an elevated evening.

Find it and more like it on Spotify.

Part 2 • Reckoner Radiohead • Lay, Lady, Lay Bob Dylan • Groove Holmes Beastie Boys • Uneventful Days Beck • What’s Going On Marvin Gay • When the Levee Breaks Led Zeppelin • Karmacoma Massive Attack • Jack-Ass Beck • I Got The… Labi Siffre • Oye Como Va Santana • Fade Into You Mazzy Star • 4 + 20 Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young • Breakdown Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers • Feeling Good Nina SImone • Never Gonna Forget Black Coffee with Diplo feat. Elderbrook • Oh My God A Tribe Called Quest • Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone The Temptations • Don’t Get Lost in Heaven Gorillaz • The Juice G. Love & Special Sauce

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THE BUZZ

READING ROOM

For Display Only Art can be confusing. Luckily, cannabis can help, according to High Art: The Definitive Guide to Getting Cultured With Cannabis, due out at the end of this month. As the authors Robert Lambrechts and Estanio Holtz note in “An Introduction of Sorts,” “There is a decent chance that at lease once in your life you’ve seen a piece of art and thought to yourself, ‘What the f*ck was the artist smoking when they created this?’ Now, finally, you have the answer.”

Except the book doesn’t actually provide you with any answers about what the artists behind the oil paintings, sculptures, and statues shown on its pages think. What it does instead is give you a little explanation about what the pieces are meant to convey, and recommends a cannabis pairing for each.

Van Gogh’s self-portrait series is paired with the red-headed stranger strain. Starry Night is matched with blue dream. Pairing ideas get more specific in some cases, but a downfall of the authors is they fail to mention which states those specific brands are sold in, an important detail since the federal government still considers cannabis illegal and doesn’t take kindly to federally illegal products 34

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passing state borders. Without the ability to ship across state lines, cannabis brands are forced to set up production in every state they want to operate.

Which is a long way of saying the readers of this book who aren’t in California will find it impossible to procure the recommended products at any dispensary near them.

All this said, the artwork is fun to look at and you’ll encounter a headline or two that will evoke a giggle.

Along with the suggested pairings, the authors include some info on cannabis-related topics like terpenes, cooking with cannabis, and other such things—the most compelling of which is an “infallible guide to a few fantastic ways for pairing weed with wine.”

The book also offers some useful information about terpenes, decarboxylation, and other such things—but none of it is info that can’t readily find somewhere else. Bottom line: The Definitive Guide will look good on your coffee table or displayed on your bong cart. Just be watchful of anyone reading it. If this happens, just say you were high when you bought it—the perfect explanation for anything.

Release: April 27, 2021 / $15.99

PHOTOS COURTESY OF HIGH ART: THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO GETTING CULTURED WITH CANNABIS

High Art: The Definitive Guide to Getting Cultured With Cannabis by Robert Lambrechts and Estanio Holtz is due out later this month.

THE BUZZ

PHOTO OF DIANA BRIER BY KYLE THOMSEN

VOX POPULI

Question: What anniversary are you celebrating this year (marriage, graduation, business, accomplishment)?

JAMES SWANSON

SHELLEY STEPANEK

JOE BUDA

JAY JOSEPH

DIANA BRIER

Principal at Screaming Images Las Vegas

Project Manager Las Vegas

___________________

President, Destination Services Association Las Vegas

Owner, Furever Memory and A Touch of Mystery Las Vegas

Owner and Director of Cheese at Valley Cheese & Wine Henderson

April is a huge month for Screaming Images since we’re celebrating our 19th anniversary as a company marking almost two decades of making visuals scream.

I am so happy to I am celebrating 13 years celebrate another with my other half and anniversary around the being the president of sun in April and I will the oldest tourist organi- definitely enjoy it more zation in Nevada for the this year going out. past 12 years.

___________________

___________________

I am celebrating two anniversaries this year.

I started my company A Touch of Mystery 35 years go and 21 happy years of marriage.

Valley Cheese & Wine will be celebrating the oneyear anniversary when my parents and I took over the shop as well as my father’s birthday.

___________________

Cool Cannabis Finds

___________________

SHIPPABLE STRAINS

From cocoa to KT tape—three new products you want to try.

Experience low-THC cannabis with a mailable sampler kit.

Khemia Cosmic Cocoa: Treat yourself with a chocolate drink boosted with 10 mg THC. Made by women cannabis experts focused on sustainable practices, each cocoa packet is vegan and gluten free with no added sugars. Just add your choice of milk and serve hot or cold.

Whether you’re canna-curious or want to share some love with a friend, you’ll enjoy this curated cannabis Discovery Kit from Cannaflower. Thanks to its low THC levels, it’s federally legal to mail and includes two 1-gram bags of whole flower and one 1-gram pre-roll for just $20.

A good sampler for new cannabis users with its light buzz, it’s also perfect for experienced users wanting a low-THC-strain midday pickme-up. Bonus: A $20 Cannaflower gift card is included for your next purchase—meaning you’ll pay just the cost of shipping for the box.

Price varies / khemiamfg.com

Element Apothec Belle Visage Face Serum: Soothe your skin with this serum made with broad-spectrum hemp phytocannabinoids (CBD + CBG), botanicals, and Sea Buckthorn Oil, Moringa Oil, and Abyssinian Oil. It helps brighten skin, reduce signs of aging, detoxify pores, and smooth fine lines. $100 / elementapothec.com

Top Topicals CBD K-tape: Stabilize muscles and boost injury healing with the world’s first CBD-infused Kinesiology Therapeutic Tape. Freeze-dried nanotechnology amplifies CBD’s potency to promote sustained relief in as little as 15 minutes.

Cannflower / cannaflower.com

$30 / toptopicals.com

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Shop and Sip at Khoury’s Fine Wine & Spirits!

Big enough to serve, small enough to care.

Here at Khoury’s we have a wide variety of hand-selected beers, a unique array of spirits, and a specially curated wine selection! With 20 rotating beer taps and wines by the glass, as well as any wine or beer from our shelves, you’re sure to find your newest obsession.

9915 S Eastern Ave #110, Las Vegas, NV 89183 (702) 435-9463 | Khourysfinewine.com

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THE BUZZ

BILITIES

TRAVEL WELL

BY STEPHANIE WILSON, EDITOR IN CHIEF

1 NEED ANOTHER HIT April 2020 was going to be awesome—it was 4/20 all month long! For years leading up to last year’s celebration, excitement built among weed enthusiasts and the cannabis industry alike. Everyone looked forward to a month-long celebration filled with large gatherings and small sessions where they’d puff, puff, pass, and spread some love around. But then COVID-19 hit and no one gathered for fear of getting puffed on. We all stayed home, we did our part, and we earned the right to pretend that whatever month it happens to be when we return to pre-COVID-19 normalcy is 4/20 all month. You in?

2 4:20 ON 4/20 As that date and time approaches, the likelihood of major news organizations publishing pun-filled pot headlines is up 420 percent.

3 PUNCHLINE PUNS While some consider puns to be the lowest form of humor, others think they are high art.

Meanwhile, others will still pipe up about the need to weed out half-baked wordplay.

4 JUST SAY NO, NOT FUNNY The high volume of stoner stereotypes and cannabis clichés popping up this month in puff pieces and serious news outlets alike—even in media outlets that should know better—send efforts to de-stigmatize cannabis up in smoke.

5 PUFF OR PASS? Should we all make a joint effort to keep off the grass jokes? Nah, that’d be a buzzkill—exceptionally harsh for the one-third of Americans living in states where sparking up can catch you a criminal record.

PHOTO COURTESY OF HERB BUENA

6 NEW RULE: If it makes you giggle, go with it.

“TURNS OUT REDNECKS LOVE TO SMOKE WEED. THAT’S THE THING ABOUT CANNABIS: IT REALLY BRIDGES SOCIO-ECONOMIC GAPS.” —Emerald Triangle cannabis grower Chip Baker in the November 2020 cover story in Politico, “How One of the Reddest States Became the Hottest Weed Market”

Just Like Wine Tasting— but with Cannabis

It’s Tour Time in California Wine Country Have a jones for a new tasting experience?

Head to Napa or Sonoma and hop on a cannabis tour from HerbaBuena. These private, elevated tastings are held at locations around wine country and can be tailored to fit your group. Founder Alicia Rose is a longtime wine industry consultant who specializes in creating unique experiences for specific interests, knowledge, or consumption levels.

The goal of a tasting is not inebriation, but instead a comfortable feeling of elevation based on your tolerance levels.

Tastings start and end with a high-grade CBD tincture, an antidote to the THC high, to keep everyone comfortable.

For those new to cannabis or interested in learning more about it, guided discussions on the health benefits of cannabinoids, the state of legality, and cannabis appellations are available. HerbaBuena also offers same-day delivery of curated cannabis products to Napa, Sonoma, and Marin counties.

HerbaBuena / herbabuena.com

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we are not girls

we are not tokens

we are not statistics

We are Altalunas, the women of cannabis. We are here to lead.

You're invited to join us. alta.lunas Costa Mesa, CA • Boston, MA • Washington, D.C. PHOTO CREDIT: Nathan Dumlao

Pod Party Here’s what you need to know to throw a bitching 4/20 bash for your besties.

PHOTO BY ANR PRODUCTION, ADOBE STOCK

TEXT ROBYN GRIGGS LAWRENCE

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PHOTO COURTESY OF BESITO

The light is there, at the end of this long tunnel, but we’re not yet—and it doesn’t look like we will be by 4/20.

Try to find a public celebration, and you’ll run into messages saying the event is in limbo (FlyHi 420 Festival in Denver), scheduled to be rescheduled (National Cannabis Festival in D.C.,

announcing a new date on June 1), or outright canceled (Sweetwater420 Festival in Atlanta).

Last year, we were just starting to figure out how to celebrate things on Zoom when 4/20 rolled around. This year, heavy with Zoom fatigue, it’s hard to consider anything on that platform a celebration.

This is the year to gather safely with our pods for an intimate (but not too intimate) session.

But we know. It’s been so long since you threw a party, it feels like you’ve forgotten how.

And we got you. This guide to hosting a bitching 4/20 bash for your besties—whether a wakeand-bake brunch, a high

happy hour, or a fivecourse dinner—has everything you need to know.

Invitations After a year of digital everything, sending real paper invitations via USPS (which needs your support right now) is a thoughtful touch.

Etsy has a great collection of handmade seed paper invitations that your guests can plant in their gardens this spring to remind them that on 4/20/21, things were beginning to begin again.

Give your friends an email to RSVP, and when they do, send them a questionnaire about their experience and tolerance levels—even if you’re certain you know them— especially if you’re planning an infused meal.

Creative Cooking A lot of people have given up smoking until we reach the other side of this pandemic. That’s a good reason to make this the year you try your hand at infusing food or beverages with cannabis. Depending on the weather, a picnic would be right on point.

To some, this might sound scary. What if you dose yourself or your guests into oblivion?

You’re right to have this healthy respect for the plant’s effects. But with

This 4/20 calls for an intimate gathering with your pod to celebrate new beginnings.

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Growers • Manufacturers • Dispensaries • Labs We partner with you to find coverage for your specific needs.

Do you have the right Cannabis Insurance Policy to protect your business?

Essential Policies Include: • Commercial General Liability Insurance • Commercial Property Insurance • Cyber Liability Insurance • Directors & Officers Insurance • Employment Practices Liability • Product Recall Insurance • Product Liability Insurance • Professional Liability Insurance • Workers Compensation & more policies to fit your needs

Insuring Colorado Businesses for more than 25 years.

720.441.0216 www.aspencannabisinsurance.com Aspen Cannabis Insurance is a specialty division of Aspen Insurance Agency, a full-service insurance brokerage.

Learn more at www.aspeninsuranceagency.com.

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THE LIFE

PHOTO COURTESY OF BESITO

This is the year to celebrate 4/20 with cannabis-infused food and beverages.

today’s testing and technology, it’s pretty easy to keep track of how many milligrams of THC you’re feeding to your friends.

When you make oil and butter infusions and tinctures using cannabis flower or concentrates that have been tested for THC and CBD content, you can easily check the cannabinoid content of the final product using online calculators.

Try the one at jeffthe420chefcalculator.com.

No matter how heavyweight you think your friends are (or they claim to be), keep the THC milligram count of any meal you serve to 10. Infuse dressings, sauces, and relishes rather than the dish itself so people can dole out more or less based on their preferences and still enjoy the meal.

Cooking with cannabis that has at least a 1:1 ratio of THC to CBD is also a

That means you want to create a space that’s soft and nurturing yet stimulating and inspiring at the same time. It’s not as hard as it sounds.

Lighting is everything.

Keep it low and festive.

Turn off any harsh overhead lights and replace bright white bulbs with soothing pink or blue ones (which are easy to find online). Bring in a little magic with fairy lights and natural candles, maybe with an Set & Setting almond scent to compleFirst described by Timo- ment the terpenes found thy Leary in his book The in cannabis-infused food.

Music is also key to Psychedelic Experience, “set” is your mental state the event’s tempo. Make at the time you consume a playlist appropriate cannabis, and “setting” is for your guests and your event and long enough your physical and social to last throughout the environment. You can’t soiree. Make sure to test control everything, but it beforehand. If you’re when you’re hosting a cannabis-centered party, serving a meal, choose it’s your job to make sure softer, down-tempo inthe setting helps everystrumental music for one have a lovely set. when people are eating. great way to ensure your guests don’t end up drooling on the sofa. CBD mitigates some of THC’s negative effects and is heavy on the relaxation vibe.

You can also “cheat” by using pre-made tinctures, oils, and butters, as well as cannabis chocolates, beverages, and water-soluble additives.

With dosing information on the labels, these products make it a breeze to create accurate servings.

People love to listen to and share their own favorite tunes, so make sure to leave space for them on your playlist.

You can also create safe spaces for people.

Have a lounge space where guests can relax with soft pillows and blankets, sip hot tea, and wipe their foreheads with cold lemon and lavender scented towels.

In the bathroom, dim the lighting, light a fragrant candle, and fill a basket with things that make cannabis consumers happy, like single-serving eye drops, lip balms, hand sanitizers, and lotions.

Finally, keep decorations simple, tasteful, and earth-friendly. No plastic pot leaf tablecloths or mylar 420 balloons—basically, nothing that will end up in the landfill on 4/21. But we didn’t have to tell you that.

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THE LIFE

PHOTO COURTESY OF BESITO

An outdoor picnic is the over-indulgers come perfect setting for a lowback down to earth. key April soiree.

These kits include water with electrolytes, CBD tinctures or Undoo softgels (a mixture of CBD and vitamin E that promises to “unhaze the blaze”), homeopathic rescue remedies, chamomile essential oil, and ground-up pepper (which is said to mitigate anxiety and paranoia).

Keep it Booze-Free You could serve alcohol, but it will be a whole different (and better) event without it. Consuming cannabis and alcohol can exacerbate the negative effects of both. Plus, after a year of quarantinis and Zoom happy hours, your guests might welcome a booze-free gathering.

Start with a mocktail hour featuring nonal-

coholic drinks spiked with Stillwater Ripple or another water-soluble THC or CBD product.

Throughout the event, make sure everyone’s glasses are constantly filled with herbal sparkling water or another alcohol-free beverage.

Prepare for the Worst After the year we just had, will we ever not prepare for the worst?

The worst thing that could happen at your 4/20 party is that someone consumes too much cannabis and thinks they’re going to die.

They’re not—it’s impossible—but that’s tough to explain in the moment.

You can be prepared with what our friends at Irie Weddings & Events in Colorado call an “Oh, Shit Kit.” It’s a collection of remedies to help

Expect the Best Of all the things you can do to prepare for your 4/20 party, the most important one is to relax.

If you’re stressed, your guests will be stressed.

It won’t be a fun party.

This year, 4/20 falls on a Tuesday—no one’s favorite day of the week.

If you’re planning a full-on brunch or dinner, you might want to celebrate the weekend before or after.

For a Tuesday party, consider having the pod over for mocktails and appetizers or herbal tea and dessert. Keep it simple. You could even make it a potluck, as long as you don’t call it a “pot” luck.

No matter what you choose to do, you have absolutely nothing to worry about. There couldn’t be a better year to throw a party. People are happy to be anywhere that isn’t Zoom.

MENU • Coffee with Cinnamon, Orange, Chocolate, and CBD • 420 Canbucha Mocktail • Popovers with CannaMatcha Glaze • Salmon Nicoise with Cannabis Vinaigrette • Buttermilk Panna Cotta with THC-Infused Strawberry-Rhubarb Compote Find the recipes for this high-holiday menu at sensimag.com.

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THE LIFE MUSIC

The

Soundtrack for Social Justice Our new record label, Sensi Presents, officially launches this month with a mission to help liberate those—mostly people of color—who are still unjustly incarcerated for cannabis offenses.

Download it on 4/20 and hear Last Prisoner Project founders Steve and Andrew DeAngelo talk about the music and the work that still needs to be done.

TEXT DOUG SCHNITZSPAHN

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THE LIFE MUSIC

Want to really feel good on 4/20? We suggest you spend $22 to download Releaf, Sensi Presents new compilation album.

Yes, the beats and melodies here that move effortlessly between roots and hip-hop will get you growing no matter how you are enjoying the day—but half that purchase will go directly to an organization working to right the great wrong that underlies the cannabis industry. As more and more states push towards legalization in the U.S., over 40,000 people still sit in jail for offenses associated with marijuana and more continue to suffer with cannabis convictions on their records—an inordinate number of them people of color. Founded by “The Godfather of Cannabis,” Steve DeAngelo, the nonprofit Last Prisoner Project (LPP) seeks to ensure all those in jail are set free.

Half the proceeds of the sale of Releaf, which features 26 carefully curated tracks from artists dedicated to the cause, will go to LPP. Better still the special edition launching on 4/20 is interspersed with commentary from Steve and his brother Andrew, who sits on the board of LPP and has been a tireless activist for legal

cannabis for years. “We are going to take all of the energy that we’ve all collected as a tribe and we are going to use it to get our brothers and our sisters still locked up in prison for this plant out,” Andrew says to open the album.

“It’s the soundtrack for social justice,” says Tuva Hank, Sensi Presents music director who put the album together. The bands are fully on board. And the most compelling aspect of the project, which is the first that Sensi’s new record label will release, is that all of the musicians themselves are behind the mission. “I’m a firm believer in social justice.

I want to do my part to help others in need,” says Devara White of

It is one of the great injustices of the cannabis industry that so many white people are now finding financial success while Black and brown people continue to languish in jail and are left out of the legal economy.

ThunderBeat, who kicks off Releaf with its opening trance dance track.

“I hope that with this album project there is more awareness about this issue. I also hope that people will donate funds needed to the LPP legal team to help the countless thousands who are in prison.”

“The Last Prisoner Project is a crucial movement to address years of injustices,” says Jah Kings frontman Alexander Kofi Washington, who grounds the album with the track “Family.”

It is one of the great injustices of the cannabis industry that so many white people are now fi nding fi nancial success while Black and brown people continue to languish in jail

ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: Tracks That Stick With Us Jah Kings, “Family” AshEl SeaSunz, “Lady Justice” Dub FX, “Fire Every Day” (David Starfire remix) Truth Now, “Plan of Attack” Drishti Beats, “Journey (CloZee Remix)” Chances R Good, “Elder Brothers”

TOP: David Starfire LEFT: Jah Kings

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THE LIFE

BUY THE ALBUM

Sensi Releaf Available April 20 / $22 50% of proceeds benefit the Last Prisoner Project sensimag.com/presents

MUSIC

and are left out of the legal economy. “Growing up in the inner city of Gary, Indiana, it was impossible not to see clearly how the war on drugs was used to target minorities and impoverished communities, while keeping the prisons fi lled,” says Washington. “I have family that got caught up in that system—just trying to survive and put food on the table—because of the lack of economic opportunities in the city. Now, here we are, with most of the country having legalized —Alexander Kofi Washington, Jah Kings medical marijuana, yet tens of thousands are still imprisoned just for marijuana ‘offenses.’”

“We know why it’s happening, but we also know that it’s not right. The hope is that everyone will do their part to reverse the damage that’s been done.”

According to the 2020 American Civil Liberties Union report A Tale of Two Countries: Racially Targeted Arrests in the Era of Marijuana Reform, Black Americans are 3.73 times more likely than white Americans to be arrested for marijuana, despite equal usage rates. In general, there were 8.2 million marijuana arrests between 2001 and 2010 and 88% of them were simply for possession. The system ruins lives and communities.

For its part LPP has a threefold mission to fi x the damage: get people out of prison, expunge their records, and help them reenter into soci-

ety. The work requires lawyers though, and it’s costly and time consuming. This album can help raise both money and awareness.

“We know why it’s happening, but we also know that it’s not right,” says Kofi. “The hope is that everyone will do their part to reverse the damage that’s been done, and that the cannabis industry will open up economic opportunities for underserved communities. We call to all our human relatives and we say, ‘Come on people, now is our time! We gotta stand up for what we know is right and demand this of the legislators at every level.’”

ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: Standout Lyrics “And I got this feeling that we are here for healing, every moment revealing that our love is the medicine” —Sierra Marin, “Love Is the Medicine”

“A liberated woman sings from her soul. A liberated man lets go of control.”

—Tangled Roots feat. Tubby Love & Amber Lily, “Freedom”

“Why is there innocent people locked up for life while some people can’t say nothing nice.”

—Supaman, “Why”

“We’re going to co-create communities of light.”

—Jah Kings, “Family”

Alexander Kofi Washington in Colorado's San Luis Valley

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THE LIFE GIVING BACK

Canna Cares These cannabis companies are choosing people over profits by giving back in their local communities and beyond.

Did you know that the cannabis industry is one of the most community-conscious business sectors in the United States?

When you’re purchasing this powerful plant, we suggest you support companies that put some of that money where it mat50

F I F T H A N N I V E R S A RY E D I T I O N

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ters most: back into the local community.

We say Sensi is “where cannabis and culture meet,” and as a company, our Seven Pillars of Culture inform everything we do. A Giving Spirit is a vital pillar that helps us grow, and we believe in

advocating for and promoting businesses that align with this mission.

We seek to shift the culture and support others who believe in helping others and giving back— rather than focusing solely on increasing their bottom line.

So whether you’re buying a new vape pen or some CBD seltzers, choose companies that value people over profits.

From donating meals to providing compassionate cannabis care, these charitable cannabis companies and nonprofit organiza-

PHOTO BY SHANNON PRICE, ADOBE STOCK

TEXT JENNY WILLDEN

THE LIFE GIVING BACK

FROM TOP: COURTESY OF PERFECT UNION, COURTESY OF RHYTHM CBD SELTZERS

tions, which are all based in California, help make cannabis and hemp a force for good in their neighborhood and beyond.

Perfect Union When it comes to giving back to the local community, Sacramento-based Perfect Union is no ordinary cannabis shop. It treats communities surrounding its dispensaries as family and strives to support different organizations each month. From collecting toys for the UC Davis Children’s Hospitals Annual Toy Drive to hosting puppy adoption days for local shelters, Perfect Union goes beyond cannabis organizations to make a difference in all facets of its community.

“Perfect Union’s ability COVID-19 pandemic, to affect positive change but many still happen with public officials and at venues across the community leaders is second to none in the can- city. Each month, Pernabis industry,” says Ryan fect Union hosts a free breakfast in SacramenMiller, a Perfect Union to’s Friendship Park for partner and founder of Operation EVAC (Educat- those in need, though it’s currently a drop-off ing Veterans About Cannabis). “Where others give program due to social distancing concerns. lip service, Perfect Union Team members also walks the walk to create serve a monthly breaklasting partnerships and fast at the Wellspring monetary investments– Women’s Center, which even dedicated staff volprovides nutrition and unteer days–to deliver safety net resources to tangible benefits in the communities they serve.” women and children in the Sacramento area.

These dedicated staff Perfect Union’s comvolunteer days have munity outreach coorchanged during the

dinator also partnered with Weed for Warriors and the Bureau of Cannabis Control to donate cannabis products to veterans seeking holistic rehabilitation. perfect-union.com Rhythm CBD Seltzers After discovering the benefits of hemp while play-

ing music with his band in the Bay Area, Rhythm founder Ian Monat launched this CBD seltzer brand during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. The brand is called Rhythm to pay homage to the company’s musical origins, and its all-natural seltzers are infused with hemp extract and natural flavors. When Monat began looking for a cause for Rhythm to support and donate to, it only made sense to make it musical.

“We interviewed a number of music education charities, and A P R I L 2021

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THE LIFE

PHOTO COURTESY OF BERKELEY PATIENTS GROUP

GIVING BACK

we really liked Save the Music’s mission and emphasis on live music education,” says Monat. “They are actually donating instruments to classrooms, supporting teachers, and have provided over 2,000 schools with grants.”

Save the Music Foundation is a BBB-accredited charity based in New York and dedicated to restoring instrumental music education in America’s schools—a mission Monat can really get behind. Currently, the partnership is unofficial, as the threshold for official partnership is a high bar for Rhythm’s currently small size. As the company grows, they hope to achieve official partner status.

Rhythm currently donates to Save the Music in three ways: a direct annual donation, a donation button on its site, and through apparel sales. Fifty percent of apparel profits are donated to Save the Music, giving Rhythm fans plenty of reasons to buy branded shirts, beanies, yoga pants, or joggers. drinkrhythm.com Berkeley Patients Group As the nation’s oldest medical dispensary, Bay Area-based Berkeley Patients Group has a long

A donation from BPG helps fund Supernova Women, a beneficiary in its $1 Million for Good Initiative.

history of doing good and giving back. In addition to fighting for legalization and advocating for medical marijuana patients through grassroots organization and legal action, BPG also gives through a locally focused corporate giving program.

“BPG was founded to provide a service for the stigmatized and suffering patients at the height of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. That ethos and the principles of corporate social responsibility are embedded into our company’s DNA,” says Sabrina Fendrick, BPG chief public affairs officer. “Our commitment to the community is reflected in every aspect of BPG’s operation.”

In honor of its 20th anniversary, BPG is fo-

cusing on making cannabis a force for good in the local community with its $1 Million for Good initiative. This includes monetary donations, marketing support, and volunteer hours benefiting 10 Bay Area nonprofits that provide services and education to residents.

“This program is a natural extension of our philanthropic work throughout the last two decades. As a local institution, we wanted to support local nonprofits that are helping our patients and neighbors.

Now, more than ever, we need to uplift those who need it most,” says Lauren Watson, BPG’s director of marketing and social impact.

Nonprofits receiving support and funding

through BPG’s $1 Million for Good initiative include: Battle Brothers Foundation, a group focused on ensuring veterans access to medicinal cannabis; Berkeley Free Clinic, which provides free essential health services; Berkeley Humane, a shelter that saves homeless pets; Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency (BOSS), a group tackling the root causes of poverty and homelessness; Kingmakers of Oakland, an organization ensuring the success of Black male youth through education and community; La Peña Cultural Center, a Latin-focused community hub promoting social justice and arts participation; Pacific Center, the oldest LGBTQIA+ center in the Bay Area; A P R I L 2021

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Shelter Project Director Lindsay Friedman

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Supernova Women, a group empowering POC to become self-sufficient shareholders in the cannabis economy; and Women’s Cancer Resource Center, which helps women with cancer improve their quality of life.

This April, sales of selected products from supporting brands will benefit Planting Justice, a group that builds edible gardens and creates green jobs in the food justice movement. You can also help by making a donation to the nonprofit of your choice when ordering from BPG online. mybpg.com

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Jetty Extracts Jetty Extracts started crafting cannabis extracts in California back in 2013 and is still committed to making products free of pesticides, chemicals, and fillers.

But in 2014, the company branched beyond business to charitable work with the Shelter Project. Its mission was simple: get free cannabis to cancer patients.

“It was our way of giving back to the patients who worked so hard fighting for the medical market and, ultimately, paving the way for the recreational market we all enjoy today,” says

Jonathan Forstot, Jetty Extracts’ chief marketing officer. “Since then, the program has helped over 1,000 folks in California get free medicine.”

The Shelter Project began by providing cannabis to a small group of low-income individuals battling cancer to mitigate treatment side effects like anxiety, insomnia, and loss of appetite. But as the program gained momentum, Jetty Extracts peaked at sending over 1,000 patients care packages packed with smokeable vape cartridges and food-grade oils.

Unfortunately, the passage of Proposition 64 made it impossible for Jetty Extracts to donate any oils and forced them to close the program. But a few years later, Jetty was on the front lines to get the Compassionate Care Act (Senate Bill 34) passed into California state law.

“The bill makes it legal to donate precious plant oils to those who are in need, and we are now back up and running,” says Forstot. “As the laws have changed and shifted over time, we have had to adapt in nearly all aspects of the program; from

PHOTO COURTESY OF JETTY EXTRACTS

GIVING BACK

THE LIFE

MORE INFO

This is just a small sampling of cannabis companies that are giving back locally and nationally.

Find stories of more charitable cannabis businesses online at sensimag.com.

PHOTOS (FROM TOP) COURTESY OF SWEETLEAF COLLECTIVE, THE LEGION OF BLOOM

what products we were able to offer, number of participants, even the computer program we use to create care package orders.”

The pandemic caused them to pivot again, reimagining the Shelter Project under new regulations in SB34.

“Our primary goal remains the same; to be able to take on more patients and eventually extend to serve the entire state. While these times of quarantine have had their challenges, both mentally and physically, we have been moving forward with intent to support and sustain more patients throughout the state,” says Forstot. jettyextracts.com

GIVING BACK

family or individual for every Bloom Farms product purchased. The company’s donated two million meals since 2015 and continues to be a force for fighting hunger in California. getbloomfarms.com

donate, labs who test it for compliance, and dispensaries and delivery services who get it to those in need. All partners donate their time and services.

If you live in California, support Sweet Leaf’s mission by purchasing a compassion lighter through select dispensaries and delivery services. Each lighter sold pays the cost of dispensing 3.5 grams of compassionate cannabis. sweetleafcollective.org

flies recorded in California—the lowest number on record.

Monarch butterfly populations have declined rapidly as habitats have been lost due to climate change, pesticide exposure, and invasive species. Legion of Bloom is teaming up with the California Association of Resource Conservation Districts (CARCD) to do its part to save the butterflies by funding Monarch butterfly habitat restoration projects across The Legion of Bloom California.

Sweetleaf Collective Northern CaliforThe company is doThe Sweetleaf Collecnia-based Legion of nating a portion of sales tive differs from others Bloom creates quality from its Monarch .5in this feature because cannabis products with gram or 1-gram vape it doesn’t sell cannabis no chemicals, pesticides, cartridges to restore products. It’s instead a or additives. It’s comthese habitats and help donation-based charity mitted to supporting Monarch butterflies organization focused on and sustaining the plan- flourish. giving away free medical et by using energy effiBloom Farms thelegionofbloom.com cannabis to HIV/AIDS Specializing in natucient facilities and new ral, organically grown and cancer patients. The plastic-free packaging. hemp products, Califor- Collective launched in But Legion of Bloom nia-based Bloom Farms 1996 in San Francisco, is now making a new is all about simple, clean the birthplace of medicommitment to planet relief. Bloom Farms cal marijuana, and now Earth by helping to save sells cannabis tinctures, provides free medical an endangered species: vapors, topicals, and cannabis to more than the Monarch butterfly. chocolates—all held to 150 low-income, termiThe Monarch, Legion’s the same high quality nally ill patients, veteraward-winning vape standards. ans, and seniors. In the pen, was inspired by this Beyond its top-notch past two decades, Swee- butterfly, which once products, one of the tleaf has given away roamed all over Calicompany’s core values more than $2 million fornia. The Center for is giving back locally. worth of compassionate Biological Diversity says Blooms Farms’ 1-forcannabis products. the western Monarch 1 Give Back program Sweetleaf does this by population has dropped pledges to donate one working with cultivators by 99.9% in 2021, with meal to a food-insecure who have cannabis to fewer than 2,000 butterA P R I L 2021

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The hype for Atlas Seed’s cannabis genetics grows with limited-edition varieties.

A

tlas Seed is a Northern California farm-based genetics company specializing in curated day neutral

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(or auto-flowering) cannabis seed varieties with desirable growing traits. The hand-selected genetics, which include specific potency, mold resistance, and

vigor, are vital for farmers growing in less-than-ideal climates.

Well-suited to outdoor cultivation, day neutral cannabis produces flowers regardless of light cycles, allowing for successive harvests throughout the season. Atlas Seed’s team tests and develops these traits into custom cannabis varieties available to mediumto large-scale farmers. Many are even selling out before they officially launch.

Take FogDog, a new cannabis variety developed for mold resistance and the ability to thrive in foggy central weather. Two of Atlas Seed’s main breeding, growing, and nursery locations are located in the foggy towns of Half Moon Bay and Sebastopol,

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ATLAS SEED

Curated Cannabis Takes the Industry

By Storm

P R O M OT I O N A L F E AT U R E AT L A S S E E D

California, and the strain is actually named for the windsurfing crew who grew up in Half Moon Bay with Ryan Power, Atlas Seed owner and CEO. Creating and curating these special strains starts with a lot of research and development. “We have over 50+ simultaneous R&D projects being managed right now (and continuously throughout the year) to develop and select strains with the qualities for which we are looking,” says William Hancock, Atlas Seed director of sales.

“We then deploy strains we’ve developed in the field to test their viability in outdoor growing conditions.”

Beyond its fog-resilience, FogDog’s lineage is primarily a Candy Cane

“We are licensing our strains to nurseries, farms, and multi-state operators, but we are especially interested in working with nurseries that want to codevelop and sell new and existing strains for the cannabis market.”

—William Hancock, Atlas Seed director of sales

cross with indica dominant OG strains.

“It’s fruit- and sugar-forward with a hint of fuel,” says Hancock. “It boasts excellent consistency in the field, with uniform lateral branching, comfortable internodal spacing, and an overall compact size.” FogDog is also Atlas Seed’s second-fastest finishing strain outdoors, finishing in between 60–65 days. And if you’re planning for denser plantings, FogDog is Atlas Seed’s best available option in the 20,000- to 25,000-per-acre range. It can be grown for extraction or finished flowers alike.

Atlas Seed was founded with the idea to maintain competitive pricing. If you’re looking to buy in on the company’s limited-release varieties, work with Atlas Seed’s licensed nursery partners in California and the mid-Atlantic to order delivered plant starts with quantities beginning at 1,000 seedlings.

“We are licensing our strains to nurseries, farms, and multi-state operators, but we are especially interested in working with nurseries that want to co-develop and sell new and existing strains for the cannabis market,” says Hancock.

Atlas Seed Field-scale Cannabis and Hemp Seed Company in Northern California. atlasseed.com A P R I L 2021

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THE LIFE BUSINESS

Paradigm Shifter An entrepreneur shares business-building lessons learned from female leadership.

TEXT C.H. MARX

When women lead, communities thrive.

That’s not news to female founders, entrepreneurs, and executives, nor is it a truth that’s exclusive to the cannabis industry. What is news, however, is that the balance of power is still in play in cannabis.

Although the numbers of women in leadership have dwindled since 2015, when nearly 40 percent of cannabis executives were women, the ratio is higher than in other high-growth industries such as tech.

For the industry, 2021 will be a pivotal year.

As the US emerges from a global pandemic 58

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—still reeling from economic contraction—the cannabis industry is in an enviable position to profitably grow, according to Cara Raffele, founder and CEO of Altalunas.

Her company, a management consulting and brand-building practice, launched this year to support female founders and provide a platform for women-focused companies to launch and scale.

Raffele believes that it’s not only good business to ensure female founders and executives get access to qualified business resources, professional advisers, and capital, it’s also a winning formula for the

THE LIFE BUSINESS

health of our national recovery—economically and socially.

Scan the headlines of companies led by women founders and CEOs, and you’ll see a story of structured innovation, intelligent empathy, and fiscal prowess. Raffele shares these three pillars of female leadership to help entrepreneurs map out a formula for success in the cannabis space.

Innovate by Design Launching and scaling a company is no time for indecision or pursuing too many ideas simultaneously. As a leader, you know you must remain flexible to pivot to new opportunities and away from danger zones.

This is what Raffele calls “innovation by design.”

Entrepreneurs are visionaries, often seeing a destination that others consider unreachable or even impossible.

They should lead with boundary-busting abundance, though also with some restraint.

“Very often, the struggle early-stage or hyper-growth companies face is not a lack of opportunity or prospects, it’s a lack of discipline,” Raffele says. Sure, there may be a million ways to make money, but not all avenues are worthy of your focus. To help you

Fortune 1000 drive three times the returns as S&P 500 enterprises that are run predominantly by men. “We need this kind of multiples in the cannabis space, and women are the ones who can make it happen,” Raffele says. This industry is Tap your Emotional based on a culture of Intelligence celebrating the plant and Although Raffele disits power. misses most gender But to excel, female -based assumptions about how women work, executives must be as comfortable with numshe does agree that women are natural com- bers as they are about municators and connec- the reasons they lead. tors. “Our empathy adds “Inevitably, you’ll need to the emotional intelli- to present your pitch to investors, and this gence required to lead, is where we can shine,” so embrace it and hone Raffele says. “And if a your EQ as a vital busimale-dominated venture ness-building skill.”

However, Raffele does capitalist firm doesn’t caution that every leader understand your concept, move on. At some needs to reflect on the point, we need to accept concepts of boundaries and delegation. “Just be- that if one door remains cause you’re the founder, stubbornly closed, it’s because the ones holding or better at a particular it shut won’t ever be the skill than a team mempartner you need. Seek ber, that doesn’t mean out female-led angel inyou should be coming vesting groups, family to their rescue when officers, and progressive issues arise. Ask more VCs who know their inquestions and provide vestment will go farther fewer answers; allow with you.” your team to learn and, One fi nal point that yes, even fail from time to time. That’s when the Raffele stresses with her Altalunas clients: “Your real magic of transformational growth occurs. time and energy is the most precious commodity. Don’t waste it. EsMake Friends with tablish your priorities, Money set boundaries, and One study found that seek balance.” women CEOs in the hone your ideas, Raffele suggests working with an outside adviser who understands your vision but who is not married to a certain way of doing business or limited by being too close to an issue.

Entrepreneurs are visionaries, often seeing a destination that others consider unreachable or even impossible.

They should lead with boundarybusting abundance, though also with some restraint.

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SET YOUR GOALS

HIGH FOR 2021 With custom branded cannabis products and marketing solutions, we can help achieve your goals this year. Stand out from your competitors and continue to grow your business with Oh Hello Branding Group.

WANT TO LEARN MORE? https://ohhellobranding.com/contact/

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THE LIFE

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mona Van Joseph is a professionally licensed intuitive reader in Las Vegas since 2002.

Author, radio host, and columnist, she created the Dice Wisdom app and is available for phone and in-person sessions. mona.vegas

HOROSCOPE

APRIL HOROSCOPE What do the stars hold for you?

TEXT MONA VAN JOSEPH

MAR. 21–APR. 19

ARIES

Allow people and events to reveal themselves to you this month. It is not your responsibility to fix things; instead, be the person who tells the other person that he or she knows what to do.

Embrace serenity.

toward you if you will let them. However, once an offer presents itself, do not hesitate to act. Make no assumptions moving forward—ask the question.

JUNE 21–JULY 22

CANCER

One of the things you do really well is to assess a situaAPR. 20–MAY 20 tion and see where the powTAURUS er is. Use that power to your There’s an energy you’re benefit. You are about to be holding onto connected with presented with a beneficial work (or former work) that arrangement. needs to be addressed, forgiven, and released. You JULY 23–AUG. 22 were in that situation for a LEO reason. Discover its purpose You have more feathers in and let it go. your quiver than you show.

You are not typically a showMAY 21–JUNE 20 off, however, this would be GEMINI the time to let people know There are more about the other skills you opportunities coming possess. Take charge.

AUG. 23–SEPT. 22

VIRGO

Control your tendency to react this month. Stay in control of your emotions, so you can get more done. Accept all suggestions and input.

Be receptive; what you want also wants you.

SEPT. 23–OCT. 22

LIBRA

Happy “open your heart to love” month! New friends and potential partnerships will present themselves in an uncanny way. You are getting deep into what is most important to you without needing someone else’s blessing to act.

OCT. 23–NOV. 21

SCORPIO

There’s an enormous benefit to the energies around you,

especially if you inventory them and place them where they will assist you in moving forward. Ultimate political awareness will help you get what you want.

sense of peace, acceptance, and harmony. Let that person spin in place until he or she comes to a stopping point.

tions this month. Do not let a mercurial person upset your

time to consider what you really and truly want.

AIRES, IT IS NOT YOUR JAN. 20–FEB. 18 RESPONSIBILITY AQUARIUS TO FIX THINGS; NOV. 22–DEC. 21 It’s time to step back and enSAGITTARIUS joy your life for a change.

INSTEAD, BE Your heart is so big that you Take a vacation from worryTHE PERSON will take on responsibilities ing about the future. Make that actually belong to some- that phone call and schedule WHO TELLS one else. You tend to fortime with the people who get that people owe you.

So, make you laugh.

OTHERS THAT while it’s nice to be helpful THEY KNOW and kind, it’s also time to al- FEB. 19–MAR. 20 low rewards to come to you. PISCES WHAT TO You’ve done everything corDO. EMBRACE DEC. 22–JAN. 19 rectly. You have honored your CAPRICORN obligation to karma without SERENITY. Control your stress and emo- losing your balance. Now it’s

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THE LIFE RECIPES

Soups, Sweets, Sips

Sensi pulls out all the stops with these four boozed and infused ways to celebrate. with food and drink.

Food is how we commemorate our achievements too. So we’ve compiled a few unique tastes and toasts that are infused with our favorite plant to elevate our

celebrations.

Award-winning Italian-born chef Sebastian Carosi contributes delectable infused ramen and panna cotta recipes, while Sensi Nevada’s managing editor Deb-

bie Hall brings us two cocktail recipes crafted by authentic Las Vegas establishments.

Cannabis-Infused Ramen Looking for an easy, nutritious meal? You’ll love

PHOTO BY GREGORY LEE, ADOBE STOCK

Whether it’s a slice of cake on birthdays or (ahem) anniversaries, or a glass of bubbly to revel in your latest successes— whoever you are, wherever you’re from, we bet you celebrate your occasions

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THE LIFE

CHEF RECOMMENDS

PHOTO COURTESY OF SEBASTIAN CAROSI

Sebastian Carosi recommends using the strain Larry Cake (Gelato x Wedding Cake) by Freddy’s Fuego. @chef_sebastian_carosi

this ramen made with fresh, wild ingredients and Identity’s CBD Bone Broth Powder. This bone broth is available with or without CBD and features increased bioavailability thanks to an innovative process that extracts beneficial ingredients from poultry bones.

“As an award-winning pioneer in the farm-tofork movement and a cannabis revolutionary, I’m always looking to push the envelope with wild foods,” Carosi says. “When I was growing up, my Italian immigrant family taught me how to find food everywhere we went.

Whether foraging for wild mushrooms, clams, oysters, dandelion greens, or nettles, I’ve always enjoyed getting outdoors and finding my food. I encourage others to forage for wild ingredients; the true reward comes when you get home and start the process of preparing your bounty.

“When cooking wild edibles, I usually stay on the simple side of things, like this recipe for a quick, easy bowl of ramen. If you’re not up for foraging—or you’re just plain scared of handling stinging plants— swap out the nettles for spinach and the shiitakes for any of your favorite mushrooms. Enjoy your ramen—and don’t make it too pho-king hot.”

RECIPES

Wild Nettle and Mushroom Ramen Servings: 2 / Recipe by Sebastian Carosi

INGREDIENTS

2 farm fresh eggs Two 3-ounce packs dried 9 tablespoons Identity CBD ramen noodles Ginger Bone Broth Powder ½ cup green onions, 3 cups water finely chopped 1 tablespoon chili paste 2 teaspoons cannabis1 tablespoon cannabisinfused sesame oil* infused soy or tamari* 2 teaspoons chili oil 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, INSTRUCTIONS finely chopped Broth

Toppings

10 medium shiitake mushrooms 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided 2 tablespoons water 1 tablespoon cannabisinfused soy or tamari* 4 ounces wild stinging nettles or spinach

• Remove from heat, splash with soy, and set aside.

• In another sauté pan over medium-high heat, heat remaining oil until almost smoking. Add nettles and water, and wilt, stirring occasionally, for 1 minute. Remove from heat, drain, and set Prepare aside.

• In large saucepan over • Bring a small saucepan of medium heat, combine water (enough to cover broth ingredients and eggs) to a boil. Add eggs simmer 10 to 15 minutes. and simmer for 7 minutes.

Set aside.

• Remove pan from heat • In one sauté pan over and plunge eggs into icemedium heat, heat 1 cold water for 5 minutes. tablespoon oil. Add shiitakes and sauté 2 to 3 Carefully peel eggs and minutes on each side. set aside.

• Finally, cook the noodles according to the package directions (but toss away that nasty flavor packet).

Combine and Serve

• Divide cooked noodles into 2 large ramen bowls.

To each bowl, add 5 marinated shiitakes, 2 ounces of wilted nettles, and a split soft-set egg.

Fill each bowl with broth.

• Top each with chopped green onions and a drizzle of sesame and chili oil.

N OT E S

*The soy/tamari and sesame oil can be infused in the MB2e MagicalButter Machine.

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WECO .BLUE

WECO can assist in establishing compliant bank accounts through strategic relationships.

WECO provides our clients a central location for employee management.

From time sheet entry and invoice collection to direct deposit, WECO manages the process accurately and timely.

WECO manages workers compensation, unemployment claims, benefits and more.

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THE LIFE

PHOTO COURTESY OF SEBASTIAN CAROSI

RECIPES

Cannabis-Infused Panna Cotta If you’re looking for a dessert that looks, tastes, and sounds fancy but is actually quick and easy to make, consider panna cotta. “As an Italy-trained chef with Italian heritage, I often tell stories of the country’s gastronomic delights, but this one is the sweetest of all,” Carosi says.

“I first encountered panna cotta in the Piedmont region of Northern Italy. At its essence, this simple treat is a dairy pudding thickened with gelatin. Panna cotta is remarkably creamy, rich, smooth, and melts in your mouth without a trace of lumpiness or grittiness. The earliest known versions were made with ultra-thick cream and thickened with fish bones, but today gelatin is enough to set it and forget it.

“We’re enhancing this classic by adding Identity CBD Coconut Creamer, a plant-based powder with organically farmed, THC-free hemp from Oregon. This recipe brings me back to my Italian roots and reminds me of days spent in Piedmont eating panna cotta and hunting truffles. Like my panna cotta memories, your first bite is sure to be an unforgettable experience.”

Coconut Panna Cotta Servings: 5–6 / Recipe by Sebastian Carosi

INGREDIENTS Panna Cotta

a small whisk and let stand 5 2 tablespoons cold water minutes to dissolve. (This is 3 teaspoons gelatin powder called “blooming” the gelatin.)

2 cups heavy whipping cream • In a small saucepan over ½ cup sugar medium heat, combine ¼ vanilla bean (split & scraped) cream, sugar, vanilla bean, 2 teaspoons cannabisand vanilla. Whisk until infused vanilla extract* sugar dissolves and mixture 1 cup full-fat canned coconut milk is hot but not boiling (about 2 packages Identity CBD 5 minutes).

Coconut Creamer • Remove from heat and whisk in bloomed gelatin.

Agave Nectar Glaze Stir until fully dissolved.

1 teaspoon gelatin powder • Stir in coconut milk and 3 tablespoons water, creamer, and pour through divided a fine wire mesh strainer ½ cup agave nectar into a large container.

• Pour mixture evenly into 5 INSTRUCTIONS For Panna Cotta or 6 ramekins or mason jars.

• In a small bowl, sprinkle • Chill in refrigerator uncovered gelatin over water. Mix with until set (overnight is best).

For Glaze

• Bloom gelatin in 1 tablespoon of water.

• In a small pan over medium heat, warm agave nectar and remaining water. Add gelatin and stir to dissolve.

• Remove from heat and set aside for 10–15 minutes.

• Pour on top of each panna cotta and return to fridge.

Chill for at least 4 hours.

• Enjoy with your favorite fruit and a sprig of mint.

N OT E S

*All cannabis-infused products can be made in the MB2e MagicalButter Machine botanical extractor.

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A Trusted Voice of the Industry Every weekday J and Paul bring you the latest news and info on the cannabis industry locally and globally.

Tune in to hear from industry leaders and take advantage of The Daily Dose deals on our webpage.

Broadcast live on Gnarly 101.3 FM Monday-Friday, 6-7am and 6-7pm

For more information or to listen LIVE, visit our website www.TheDailyDoseTalkShow.com 66

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THE LIFE RECIPES

Two Vegas-Style Cocktails Toasting with a special cocktail is the perfect way to come together and celebrate accomplishments and anniversaries. Whether it’s a twist on a classic drink or a new sensation, try one of these delectable drinks to commemorate the milestone of the day. After the past year, who doesn’t want to go back in time?

The Vegas Room brings back the magic of the intimate supper club, pairing nostalgia for the past with the modern elegance and sophistication of today.

David James Robinson, the restaurant’s chef and owner, has mixed together this delightful drink to pay homage to Vegas and all who raise their glasses.

The Vegas Room Cocktail FROM TOP: COURTESY OF THE VEGAS ROOM, SLICE OF VEGAS PIZZA

Servings: 6

ING REDIENTS

1 large cucumber 12 ounces vodka 6 ounces ginger ale 6 ice cubes

6 fresh mint sprigs 6 lime wedges 6 drops vanilla extract 6 rounds of cucumber for garnish

INSTRUCTIONS

• Prepare vodka in advance • Squeeze and drop in a by slicing cucumber into wedge of lime and a drop rounds and sealing it in a of vanilla extract into each container with vodka. Let sit glass. for three days, then strain. • Pour in 1 ounce of ginger ale • In each of 6 rocks glasses, and 2 ounces of cucumberadd one ice cube and a infused vodka into each sprig of fresh mint. Muddle glass. Garnish with a and smash the mint. cucumber round on the rim.

Slice of Vegas Pizza, meanwhile, in addition to its classic Italian fare and hand-tossed New York–style pizza, hosts a full bar with a thoughtfully curated selection of local and craft beers, wine by the glass or bottle, and creative cocktails like its Italian Creamsicle.

The Italian Creamsicle Servings: 1

INGREDIENTS

1½ ounces Malibu rum ½ ounce banana liqueur ½ ounce cream 1½ ounces pineapple juice 1½ ounces orange juice 1 orange slice 1 cherry

INSTRUCTIONS

• Fill a pint glass with ice.

Add all ingredients and stir.

• Create a fruit flag garnish by threading an orange slice and a cherry onto a toothpick.

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In honor of our wooden anniversary, we look back on the intersection of cannabis and culture.

TEXT SENSI EDITOR IN CHIEF STEPHANIE WILSON

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WHAT’S IN A NAME?

The term “sensi” (pronounced SEN’-see) combines two similar sounding words: • Sinsemilla, noun: a marijuana that has a particularly high concentration of psychoactive agents. It comes from the Spanish terms sin (“without”) and semilla (“seed”). Sinsemilla is not a particular strain or anything of the like. The term is used to describe seedless cannabis flowers that come from unfertilized cannabis plants.

• Sensei, noun: a teacher or instructor Sensi combines the two—we’re here to teach our readers about the plant and to show them how it can be a beneficial part of any wellness-driven lifestyle.

ORIGIN STORY

For as long as cannabis and humans have coexisted, humans have been consuming cannabis.

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The adult-use cannabis industry is the first in history to come into existence with an existing customer base of enthusiastic, lifelong fans of cannabis who had been willing to break the law to consume its products. Many of them didn’t know a whole lot about the

plant and its effects. They liked it despite the stoner clichés we’ve all been fed. They were curious about cannabis and the new industry and wanted to learn more, but they didn’t know where to find reliable info. And they came to the table with no affinity or loyalty to any particular brand.

High Times and a handful of other magazines had been covering cannabis and the industry for a counterculture audience, but a void existed for a magazine made for a mainstream audience that covered cannabis as a normal,

beneficial addition to any wellness-driven lifestyle.

Meanwhile, newly established cannabis brands entering into the country’s first recreational cannabis marketplace were looking for ways to reach enthusiastic cannabis-curious consumers. Established mainstream media outlets limited or restricted some advertisements, laws and regulations prevented others. These new cannabis brands had money to spend and a receptive audience eager for information—but there was no existing way to connect the two.

Sensi is all about connection.

It has been since the start. The brand’s co-founder and CEO Ron Kolb had the idea for Sensi during a trip to Denver in 2015, the early days of Colorado’s legal cannabis experiment. He worked in magazines, so naturally he picked up all the publications he came across on his self-guided tour of the state’s recreational dispensaries.

As he flipped through the various titles, he realized that they all were geared toward someone like him—a proud cannabis consumer who had more than a base

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familiarity with the plant and the elevating products that came from it. Which is great—there was obviously a strong market for these type of outlets—but he knew that there was a huge audience of cannabis-curious consumers out there who didn’t see themselves reflected in any of the existing titles. So, Ron decided to make a new one for them.

He moved to Colorado a few months later in the summer of 2015, about 18 months after Colorado opened its recreational cannabis marketplace. I had just moved to Colorado myself, landing in Denver after a dozen or so years living in Miami. I had been thinking about moving for a few years but couldn’t decide

I was drawn not to the legal weed but to the open-minded people who voted to legalize weed in the first place.

where I wanted to go next. Denver popped onto my radar when I was browsing job openings in media and came across an ad that mentioned Denver had more days of sunshine every year than Miami Beach where my office was at the time. That night, I wrote in my journal, “I think I want to move to Denver. Here’s what I know about it: 1) It’s in the Rocky Mountains.

[Editor’s note: it is not.] 2) It’s got 300+ days of sunshine a year.

[Not quite true.] 3) Weed’s legal there, but that doesn’t really matter to me.” [So. Very. Wrong.]

Little did I know.

It didn’t take long for me to change my tune. Before I even hopped into my Fiat and headed West, I was telling people who asked, “Why Denver?” or insinuated that I was uprooting my life just to get high that I was drawn not to the legal weed but to the open-minded people who voted to legalize weed in the first place.

A few months later, I pulled into Denver with next to no dollars and zero plan in place for my “summer of funemployment.”

I had enough savings to get me through a few months, and I planned on starting to work in the fall when the temperatures started to drop.

I kinda sorta began my job search on a rainy day in August.

Well, I opened my computer to begin my job search on a rainy day in August, but before I even launched the web browser, I picked up my phone and opened Instagram, because: procrastination. I saw that I’d just been followed by @sensimagazine. I read the profile and saw that Sensi was a “new pro-cannabis city lifestyle (Continued on page 76)

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BEHIND THE SCENES Here’s a glimpse inside our editorial handbook, which helps editors and writers shape Sensi’s content.

In print, online, in person, and on the go, Sensi is all about connection— connecting cannabis-curious consumers with information, connecting cannabis brands with new customers, connecting companies within the cannabis industry with one another, and connecting the cannabis industry with the local community.

Sensi is where cannabis meets culture.

Inspired by leading lifestyle magazines like Esquire, New York, Rolling Stone, Elle, and Cosmopolitan, Sensi was born outside the counterculture. Sensi reinvented the cannabis lifestyle category for a mainstream audience with an ultra-fresh mix of compelling topics that

connect with an engaged audience beyond the reach of most traditional cannabis titles.

Taking inspiration from fashion, the arts, pop culture—from the zeitgeist— Sensi offers a fresh take on mainstream topics, examining the world around us through our high-fashion weed goggles. We aim to infuse personality into the mundane while elevating the conversation about cannabis as a welcome, healthy addition to any wellness-driven lifestyle.

How? An example: Instead of an article about how to grow pot (because it’s been done a thousand times over,

there are whole sections of bookstores dedicated to the topic), Sensi shows you how to incorporate cannabis plants into your home decor, with tips from interior designers, landscape architects, and feng shui experts.

Originally the producer of a series of hyperlocal print-only publications serving targeted markets across the country, Sensi has evolved to be the only digital-first media brand providing important coverage of the cannabis industry’s unique highly segmented markets from a local angle alongside compelling nationally relevant features.

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magazine launching in Denver/ Boulder in 2016.”

I was like, “Oh, hey now! I launch magazines for a living— maybe they need an editor.” This was before Instagram introduced direct messaging, so I went looking for a Sensi magazine website but turned up nothing. I tracked down an account on Twitter and sent a message saying something along the lines of “I don’t know

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if you already have an editor, but if you don’t, I think I’m supposed to be it.”

Ron got back to me within minutes. He was looking for an editor. We met the next day, and he shared his vision for a series of hyperlocal city lifestyle magazines with a pro-cannabis stance in markets around the country, starting with Denver/Boulder.

He didn’t know it yet, but he

had me at “magazines”—the medium I’ve been pretty obsessed with since my mom got me a subscription to Sassy back in the early ’90s. A week later, I told him I was in. And we set out to launch a pro-cannabis lifestyle magazine with a target audience of people basically a lot like me: curious not just about cannabis but about how to connect with the open-minded people in my new community who had voted to legalize it.

I was a bit of a pothead in high school (when the sports I played weren’t in season) and in college, but I didn’t know much if anything about what I was consuming. I didn’t know there were multiple kinds, a.k.a. strains—hell, I barely knew it was supposed to be green. We smoked a lot of dirt weed, a lot of brick weed. Every so often, fluffy green nugs would make their way to Amherst where we’d marvel at the “kind bud.”

I moved to Miami after college, and pot just isn’t that city’s drug of choice, and because my ADHD doc performed random drug tests and warned that popping hot for THC would prevent her from writing my Adderall prescription, I didn’t seek it out.

Once I signed on for the launch, I began my research not by going to a dispensary. Instead, I went to the library and checked out every book with “marijuana” or “cannabis” in the title. There were lots of grow bibles and scientific titles but little that would be of use launching the type of magazine we had in mind. Sensi was going to be a cannabis lifestyle magazine—a genre for which there was no mold to follow, for cannabis

Ron didn’t know it yet, but he had me at “magazines,” the medium I’ve been pretty obsessed with since my mom got me a subscription to Sassy back in the ’90s. A week later, I told him I was in.

lifestyle magazines did not yet exist. Not the kind we were envisioning at least.

During those first few months, our launch editorial team—Rob Feeman as chief content officer, Leland Rucker as senior editor, and me—met twice a week for a few hours to hash out the magazine’s mission statement, editorial breakdown, department names, and style. Rob and Leland’s interests fell almost entirely on the cannabis side of Sensi’s intended “cannabis lifestyle” equation, and I had to push hard to ensure we were covering more than just marijuana. “What’s the lifestyle angle?” became my catchphrase, and A P R I L 2021

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Sensi cofounders Tae Darnell, Stephanie Wilson, and Rob Kolb were so excited to see Sensi's name up on the marquis for the first-ever Sensi Night in August 2016.

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it wasn’t long before we found the right balance and tone.

We released our first edition eight months later during an event on April 16, 2016—a Friday night of what was supposed to be a weekend-long 4/20 celebration.

(Technically, the issue is dated May 2016, but we’ve always considered April our launch date.)

As team Sensi gathered in the venue before the doors opened, we were nervous—not sure if anyone would show up, not sure if they would like the magazine if they did.

People did show up—a lot of people. The line stretched down the block for most of the night. And by the smiles we saw

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Our new cannabis lifestyle magazine connected with its audience, with the community.

throughout the evening, they seemed to like what we had made too.

Our new cannabis lifestyle magazine connected with its audience, with the community. It also proved to be a catalyst for the emergence of a strong community of local cannabis consumers composed of people of all ages, races, and demographics—lifelong members of the counterculture alongside cannabis-curious seniors trying cannabis for the first time. It was the first night of many that showed the power Sensi has to bring the cannabis community together, and that has become our mission: Sensi is all about connection.

WHO IS SHE? This excerpt from our playbook illustrates how we define the elusive Sensi voice.

We’re trend-setting, not trendy. We don’t talk down to you; we let you in on our secrets.

We know there’s no such thing as a dull topic, just dull writing. We go beyond the basics, because we’re in-depth adults.

We let other adults in on what’s worth knowing.

We’re vintage shoppers and thrift-store treasure hunters who curate our lives and our homes with goods we find around town. We shop local.

We invest in quality. But we don’t feel guilty when Amazon brings us what we need, when we “Prime it” like it’s a verb.

We’ve got badass homes; we’ve got an established style.

We’re the life of the party, yet we can hold intelligent debates about current topics.

We’re well-traveled; we appreciate art and culture. We read books, listen to podcasts, subscribe to print magazines, and stream Netflix.

We cut the cord to TV so long ago that seeing commercials evokes feelings of nostalgia.

We vote, we’re active in our communities, we volunteer.

We’re liberal. Pro-choice. Feminist. We defend what’s right.

We’re flawed. We’re kind to strangers. We love animals. We

tip well. We’re good friends.

We may or may not have children. We enjoy fine food, fine wine, fine cannabis. We believe that acquired tastes are the ones that matter most. We’ve been known to be extra extra.

We also know the value of exuding an understated elegance.

We’re complex. We’re invested in keeping our fingers on the pulse of our community. We strive to be its progressive moral compass. We are not the counterculture.

We are the culture.

We are Sensi.

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GONE TO POT

As the spread of COVID-19 sets off a global crisis, the cannabis industry faces its biggest challenge since legalization. Go ahead and bogart that joint, my friend.

TEXT LELAND RUCKER

FROM THE CUTTING ROOM FLOOR This piece by our founding senior editor Leland Rucker was expected to run in the April 2020 edition of Sensi Denver/ Boulder, which never went to print. Reading it, you can feel the fear that engulfed us all in the early days of the pandemic just one (long) year ago.

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W

elcome to the new “new normal.” What that’s like as you read this is, as of now, undetermined. At this moment, I’m reading headlines about long lines gathering for the reopening of Amsterdam’s cafes, while Boston’s busiest dispensary has halted recreational sales and Michigan has decided to allow curbside cannabis pickup. In Colorado, the powers-that-be are deciding whether cannabis is an “essential” industry and shops will be allowed to remain open.

It’s a new “new normal” because I’m writing this after the weekend that COVID-19 entered and completely took over the national consciousness. Schools and businesses have been shuttered, public meetings and gatherings restricted, sports events and concert tours canceled and postponed, but the

try—business owners, dispensaries, legislators—have any idea what’s going on or what their future holds. Nancy Whiteman, owner of Wana Brands, summed it up: “I could tell you what we’re doing today, but it might be totally different tomorrow.”

Hopefully, by the time you read this, it won’t seem so bleak, and we will have worked our way beyond hoarding toilet paper and pasta. Despite the impression that all dispensaries and grows are money-making, millionaire machines, they are just like any other business, subject to whims and caprice and living month-to-month.

Like many Americans, they don’t have stacks of money to prepare for things like this.

There are some possibilities.

Perhaps those who have chafed against any kind of cannabis de-

to meet, greet, gather, hug, find allies, and size up competitors, are gone for the short term, and not just for the cannabis industry. Who knows when they will return? Legal cannabis has always been a social thing. Passing the joint is a rite of passage, parties and gatherings are where we meet, and we may be witnessing the end of that one, as well as a lot of other ceremonies.

One of the things that has impressed me about covering the beginnings of legal cannabis is the special kind of camaraderie, honesty, and intimacy that comes with being in a newly legal industry.

Most of us still have to pinch ourselves occasionally to make sure legality is real. Over the years I’ve listened to so many stories, heard so many dreams, and that spirit of generosity has permeated the pe-

Passing the joint is a rite of passage, and we may be witnessing the end of that ritual.

enormity of it all is still dawning on us. People are scared, confused much as we were in the first days after 9/11. It’s still early. By the time you read this, we might be on lockdown or the country might be coming back closer to normal. If that will even be possible.

What is real today might not be in a matter of hours. And that’s a problem. Nobody in the indus-

livery—they’ve been doing it in Canada for years—will relent, as Michigan has, and decide it’s prudent to allow businesses to deliver cannabis product. On the other hand, the issue of social consumption is probably not the best issue to be pushing right now.

Certain things are indisputable.

Conventions and trade shows and Sensi parties, which allow people

riod. As the industry grows, consolidates, and matures, that spirit might not be as evident as it once was. This might be the chance to rekindle that essence—it might be the one thing that gets us through this. Ultimately, unforeseeable events like these offer us the chance to rethink, recalibrate, and, hopefully, pull together as the new “new normal” takes over.

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ORIGIN STORIES: A LOOK BACK AT YEAR ONE In 2016, in our inaugural issue, we named pioneers in the cannabis space.

Five years out, we still (almost) stand by our list.

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We knew we wanted our first cover story to be about the people paving the way for cannabis to become just another lifestyle choice.

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“Not necessarily the most important people in the industry, not just the top names, just a collection of people who are making a difference in the state’s more reasonable way to approach cannabis,” as then senior editor Leland Rucker wrote. In hindsight, I find myself cringing at the wishywashy nature of those carefully chosen words, but I know why we did it. The editorial team for the launch consisted of two people brand-new to Colorado and two others who had been covering the industry in some capacity for a few years but not for a magazine with a mission like ours.

We met for a few hours twice a week in our office in Denver’s Green Labs, a cannabis coworking space—the precursor for Denver’s Cultivated Synergy space— to discuss and debate who to add to the list, who to cut, whether

we were hitting the right balance between activists and entrepreneurs, between lawyers and lobbyists, between community builders and disruptors. We were almost paralyzed by fear that we could get this list oh-so-wrong and kill Sensi’s chances for success before we even got out of the gate.

And then we met Kim Sidwell, a Denver-based photographer who has focused her work on the cannabis community since 2009.

Kim Sidwell has been documenting the birth of this industry not from the periphery, but within it.

(Continued on page 84)

Evolving Taglines 2015: Chronicling the New Normal

Our defining descriptive phrase has gone through a progression.

as mainstream as a glass of wine. Things were progressing nicely, as was the spread Co-founder Ron Kolb came up of cannabis legalization across with this one before I got inthe nation. volved. It’s not a bad tagline, 2016–2020: The New Normal Cue COVID-19. Not long after but I didn’t love “chronicling.”

Sensi sought to cover cannabis “coronavirus” and “PPE” enIt’s a cute play on the word as part of the New Normal: a tered the modern lexicon, “The chronic, but a) we weren’t welcome, healthy addition to New Normal” was being used launching a mag that I ever any wellness-driven lifestyle. by pundits, reporters, and anticipated would use that Our media kit described Sensi as headline writers to describe term; and b) it’s a harsh-soundthe ever-changing ways of life ing word and didn’t match the “an elevated showcase of ‘the type of magazine we were en- new normal’ as cannabis makes we’ve all experienced this past visioning. “Chronicling the New its way into the mainstream in year. “The New Normal” will the post-prohibition era.” be forever linked in people’s Normal” was out.

Yes, “The New Normal” is a minds with a global pandemic. generic tagline. That was the 2015: Shift the Culture 2021: Where Cannabis point—to remove the stigma This Rob Kolb original is a Meets Culture that still surrounds cannabis great tagline, but we decidA digital-first media brand, by showcasing it as comed to kill it once we dug into Sensi is where cannabis meets market research and realized pletely normal. Our goal: get culture. to a place where a joint is Culture magazine was a leading title in the cannabis space and had lifestyle magazine tendencies. So, we dropped this one too.

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Through her company Cannabis Camera, Sidwell had been documenting the historic milestones and moments that define the modern post-prohibition era in Colorado. She knew everyone and their backstories, she knew about the work they did and the impact they had, and she helped guide our selections of the “24 Pioneers Making a Difference in Colorado.”

We should have included Kim Sidwell and made that number 25.

And since there’s no such thing as the magazine police, and we can do whatever our little hearts desire, we’re rewriting history and adding the woman whose camera has captured the milestone moments that define this modern era to our list of the people shaping the new landscape in the first state to legalize cannabis.

Sidwell has been documenting the birth of this industry not from Kim Sidwell, Cannabis Camera

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the periphery but from within it—a perspective no other documentary-style photographer has done, and her archives are filled with moments that history will remember in vivid detail—thousands of photographs from hundreds of events over the years, so many of them capturing history in the making.

You should see them, and you should hear the stories behind them. And starting this month on sensimag.com, you’ll be able to through a new series that explores select moments in cannabis history as captured by Sidwell.

Once you see these images, you’ll agree that she has earned a spot on Sensi’s list of Colorado cannabis pioneers. (Her name did appear in the original article in the photographer credit, so let’s just agree to pretend she’s been there all along.)

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Cannabis Pioneers

Making a Difference in Colorado 2016 Edition, Revised

1. Wanda James 2. Teri Robnett 3. Jane West 4. Shawn Coleman 5. Mason Tvert 6. Ricardo Baca 7. Mike Elliot 8. Art Way 9. Tripp Keber 10. Brian Vicente 11. Christian Sederberg 12. Miguel Lopez 13. Larisa Bolivar 14. Chris Woods 15. Rachelle Gillette 16. Hyler Fortier 17. Hunter Garth 18. Tyler Dahm 19. Aaron Smith 20. Jessica Billingsley 21. Amy Poinsett 22. Ean Seeb 23. Kayvan Khalatbari 24. Jonathan Singer 25. Kim Sidwell

NOTABLES & QUOTABLES We learned a lot from our first year making magazines. Here are the highlights from Volume One (2016–2017).

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“A LOT OF PEOPL E THINK THIS PLANT IS JUST M ADE TO GET YOU HIGH, AND IT’S BAD FOR YOU. BUT IT HAS SO MANY USES, AND IT CA N DO SO MANY THINGS. IT SHOULD BE AVAILABLE TO E VERYBODY, AND EVERYONE SHOULD HAVE THE CHOICE TO USE IT.” —Coltyn Turner ,M in “Coltyn Turn edical Cannabis Advocate, er Speaks Out”

“We hope in some small way to remove some of the stigma that surrounds the use of cannabis and show that, essentially, it is just another lifestyle choice, one of dozens or perhaps hundreds we make every day.”

—Former Chief Content Officer Rob Feeman

“While cannabis is still considered outside the medical establishment, it can help [baby boomers] deal with certain agerelated problems: chronic pain, anxiety, stress, insomnia, nausea, muscle tension, arthritis, loss of appetite, glaucoma, and memory and brain function.”

—Leland Rucker, Senior Editor in “Seniors in the Age of Cannabis”

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“LIKE GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICHES AND CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP, CANNABIS AND DINING GO HAND IN HAND. CANNABIS DOES NOT MAKE FOOD TASTE BETTER. IT MAKES YOU A BETTER TASTER.” —Former Dining Editor John Lehndorff in “Beyond the Munchies”

June

JUNE 2016 FESTIVAL SEASON

TREATS OF THE TIME Snoop Dogg’s Leafs by Snoop edible line included a chocolate bar with Pop Rocks ... which would have been much more fun to eat once you were feeling the effects from eating the chocolate bar. Quite the dilemma.

Infused bacon brittle by Mountain Medicine was the very best edible on the market for a brief period of time. But then the state introduced new edible regulations requiring edibles to have uniform serving sizes with a max 10 mg THC, with each serving clearly labeled with the state’s THC warning label. The very nature of any type of brittle (peanut, bacon, or otherwise) prevents uniform servings, so now bacon brittle isn’t being served at all.

August PLAYING GAMES WITH BRAINS Former NFL players speak out about the league’s stance against athlete’s using cannabis, despite its promise as a potential to help brains heal from traumatic brain injuries caused by concussions.

July “I can’t believe it took us three issues to put a chihuahua on the cover.”

—Jennifer Tyson, former design director

COMING TO COLORADO FOR THE CANNA Leland Rucker reports on the rise of cannabis tourism—and the tourism board’s denial of the plant’s positive impact on the travel economy.

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September CANNABIS AS MUSE Is there really a connection between using cannabis and being creative, and if so, what is it?

Does it actually stimulate people to be more inspired, imaginative, inventive, or artistic? Hard to tell. But we try.

THE POT HEART ROUND THE WORLD Colorado’s Role in International Legalization

November “DISPENSARIES TODAY ARE LOOKING MORE LIKE THE APPLE STORE AND LESS LIKE YE OLDE HEAD SHOP. AND CANNABIS PRODUCTS INSIDE THOSE STORES—BUDS, SHATTER, EDIBLES, AND A TON OF OTHER THC-INFUSED PRODUCTS—ARE BEING SOLD AS MOOD ENHANCERS RATHER THAN JUST ANOTHER WAY TO GET HIGH.” —Leland Rucker in “Marketing Moods”

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“Hemp (Cannabis sativa), one of humankind’s first domestically cultivated plants, has been used to make clothing since at least 8000 BC. One of the world’s strongest and most durable textile fibers, hemp is also one of the most sustainable. One acre of hemp produces as much fiber as two to three acres of cotton, and hemp can be grown without the herbicides, fungicides, and pesticides that cotton and other textiles require.”

—Robyn Griggs Lawrence in “Hemptress,” the first feature from our current editor at large

December

OUTTAKE: LELAND EXPLAINS CANNABINOIDS, TAKE ONE

“The cannabis plant includes many chemical compounds called cannabinoids. Cannabinoids affect the endocannabinoid system, a group of receptors in human and animal brains involved in processes like appetite, pain sensation, mood, and memory.

“The best-known cannabinoid is THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, which is associated with the high that many users seek.

Another cannabinoid is CBD, or cannabidiol, which is generally associated with the medicinal

qualities people are finding in the cannabis plant. CBD alone won’t get anyone high. The cannabidiol for CBD products is derived from the hemp plant. Hemp, by definition, has no more than 0.3 percent THC, whereas most recreational marijuana in Colorado is 16 percent THC or higher. Though some vets and nutritionists prefer products with a 20:1 CBD:THC concentration, all the people I spoke to for this piece give their pets hemp-based products with little or no THC.”

PUPPY POT: THE PROMISE OF CBD FOR PETS

January

HIGHLY RESOLVED Get that old rehashed image of the lazy stoner out of your head. Believe it or not, cannabis can get a real go-getter up and running.

BEST OF THE ISSUE: SATIVA THE SUPERFOOD

“Parts of the Cannabis sativa plant are already available as a prepackaged superfood in nearly every grocery store. Hemp seeds, which are nonpsychoactive, won’t give anyone a buzz and they’re packed with omega-3 fatty acids, the same nutritional stuff found in avocados and fish oil. The seeds contain proteins, vitamins, and amino acids, too, which every person needs. The cannabis plant proper—its leaves and buds—offers more nutrition than the seeds. Raw juice and plant material are packed with cannabinoids, terpenes, flavonoids, and other nerdysounding stuff that confers a ton of health benefits: anti-inflammation, anticancer, antitumor, antioxidant, and possibly even antiaging properties.”

—Randy Robinson, former contributing editor

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ROCKY MOUNTAIN RESEARCH HIGHS AND LOWS University of Colorado scientists fight federal regulations to study how cannabis interacts with humans.

EXTRA EXTRA! This is where Sensi editors got their cannabis industry news in 2017 • vice.com • Leaf Science (defunct, last post: August 20, 2019) • “Smell the Truth” blog on SF Gate (defunct, last post: May 13, 2019) • The Cannabist for the Denver Post • Leafly • Drug Policy Alliance • Marijuana Policy Project • Marijuana Business Daily • NORML blog

“To conduct government-approved medical studies of marijuana, researchers not only have to receive approval from federal agencies including the DEA and FDA, they can only use marijuana that comes from the outdoor farm at the Marijuana Research Project at the University of Mississippi in Oxford. The stuff that comes from that farm is more like a moldy version of the brick weed of yesteryear than anything you can pick up at a legal dispensary today. That means different cannabinoids, different potency, no diversity, and it’s forcing the researchers to study strains that won’t show data about what the real world is using. Why don’t the researchers just go to a dispensary nearby and pick up some samples they could use in the studies? …

Doing so would put the university at risk for losing federal funding for research, education, outreach, and capital projects.”

—Leland Rucker

February

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HOT TIP Related to Something We Learned Making This Particular Mag: Do you ever find yourself a wee bit too high and wanting to come down?

Oof—we’ve all been there; it’s not fun ... until it’s fun again. If you’re with someone, tell them how you’re feeling.

For me, the simple act of articulating an uncomfortable feeling or thought stuck swirling around in my high head is enough to shake it loose. Edibles hit me hard and often come with a side of paranoia. I’ve learned I can tamp it down just by telling whoever I’m with, “Hey, I’m feeling weird. Am I acting weird? Is asking that weird? Is it weird to ask if asking something is weird? Wait, what was I saying?” And then the giggles come and chase the bad feelings away, and we all live happily ever after.

Or we still feel too high. It happens. If it happens to you, eating a teaspoon or two of black pepper may help. No science behind it, but anecdotal evidence abounds in Reddit forums and other such places.

Can’t hurt, and it might help undo whatever you consumed has done to your headspace. Another thing that might help undo it? Undoo softgels, an all-natural cannabis-free capsule that helps to “unhaze the blaze.” It works, I’ll vouch for it.

April FROM CORPORATE TO CANNABIS

March

An emerging market is drawing executives from companies like Target, overstock.com, and other corporate giants into the cannabis industry. These corporate refugees are eager to apply their new skills to the new world of legal cannabis.

COVER ALL-STAR This special themed issue focused on the cannabis cousin known as hemp—a version of Cannabis sativa with less than 0.3 percent THC by dry weight. It won’t get you high, and it doesn’t have that illicit appeal. It’s basically pot’s less sexy cousin. But it doesn’t have to be.

Hemp can be sexy as hell. It can be strong as concrete and soft as cotton. It’s so much more than the itchy T-shirts sold at the same store

GROWING LIKE A WEED: SENSI LAUNCHES May 2017 Southern Colorado January 2018 Los Angeles, California Orange County, California San Diego, California March 2018 Las Vegas, Nevada April 2018 Boston, Massachusetts

as the Grateful Dead stickers and Hacky Sacks are sold. It doesn’t smell like patchouli. We thought it could use a bit of an image makeover to help people recognize its beauty, so we did like any good teen rom-com would do and put it in a sexy dress and hid its glasses.

For this cover, our design director Jennifer drew inspiration from Belgian artist René Magritte. (Think: bowler hats, green apples, cloudy blue skies in the background.) During his surrealist phase, he created a

series called “The Treachery of Images,” where he painted common items from every day—for example, a pipe, accompanied by words that say “this is not a pipe”—a play on language and meaning. Essentially, even though the painting depicted a pipe, it was not a pipe. It was a painting of a pipe.

What this cover model holds is not a joint. Ce n’est pas un joint, nor is that a cloud of smoke. It’s hemp in her hand, its hemp in the air, it’s hemp because hemp is everywhere—or at least it should be.

February 2019 Emerald Triangle, California October 2019 Coachella Valley, California Detroit, Michigan November 2019 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania North Bay, California January 2020 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania February 2020 Tampa Bay, Florida April 2020 Metro Maryland January 2021 Oklahoma

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Pets, December 2016, October 2019 Plastics, June 2018 Podcasts, April 2018 Politics, October 2018, 2020 Psychedelic Wellness, August 2018, October 2019, February 2021 Public Consumption, May 2016, May 2018 Racial Issues, March 2020, January 2021 Science, Studies, Research, February 2017 Seniors, May 2016 R E A D I N G R O O M : C A N N A B I S A N D ______________________

Want to know more about cannabis and [insert topic from list below here]? We’ve got you covered. We run a mix of local and national content in each issue of Sensi. Find an expanded version of this list and links to the articles it references from our flagship Denver/Boulder edition on sensimag.com.

Etiquette, April 2019

History, December 2017, Events—Hosting, April 2019 January 2019, February 2019, April 2019 Exercise, January 2017, Home Decor, June 2017 February 2020 Hosting + Consumption, Food + Dining, December 2017 February 2018 Football/NFL, August 2016 Iconography, Fan Leaf March 2018 Gift Guide, December Beer + Hops, October 2018 Craft Cannabis, October 2017 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, Legalization, October 2016, May 2017, January 2020 2020, February 2021 California Creativity, September 2016 Hemp, March 2017, June Luxury Brands, Appellations, October Depression, October 2018 December 2019 2018, October 2019, 2019 Marketing, September 2017 Cannabinoids December Dreams + THC, June 2017 February 2019 2017, February 2020, Drug Policy, October 2018 Hidden Diseases, Music, July 2019, March 2021 March 2020 August 2019 Opioids, August 2018 Edibles, July 2019 Careers, November High Tech, January 2017, Organic Designation, Endocannabinoid System, 2017, October 2021 2018 June 2018 August 2017 Humboldt County, Higher Education, Outdoor Farms, October 2017 Entourage Effect, March October 2017 September 2019 2018, August 2018 Parenting, August 2018 Legalization, March 2018 4:20 (a.k.a. High Holiday), CBD April 2016, 2017, 2018, Basics, March 2018, 2019 April 2019 Beauty, March 2020 Activism, April 2018, May in the Midwest, 2018 December 2017 Arrest Record/Expungement, for Pets, December January 2019 2016, April 2019 Art, February 2020 Cooking, December 2017

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Sex, February 2019, 2021 Spirituality, December 2017 Stoner Culture, November 2018 Strain Names, March 2019 Style / Fashion, September 2016, November 2018, October 2019 Suppositories, November 2019 Sustainability, October 2017 Tax + Revenue, August 2016 Teen Use, November 2018 Terpenes, January 2018 Topicals August 2016 Travel + Tourism, July 2016, May 2018, Jamaica, July 2019 Spain, May 2019 Vaping, October 2019 Veterans, August 2018 Weddings, March 2018 Wine Industry, July 2017

EARNED IT An overview of the awards and nominations Sensi magazine and its staff have received in its first five years.

Best Overall

Design

Nominations

2016

Florida Magazine Association (FMA), 2020

Cannabis Business Awards

Best Photo Illustration, FMA Charlie Awards

2016: Publication of the Year

Top Colorado Cannabis Industry Leaders Power List, Leafbuyer Ron Kolb, Sensi Media CEO + Founder 2017

Publication of the Year, Cannabis Business Awards Sensi magazine 2018

Publication of the Year, Cannabis Business Awards Sensi magazine 2019

Publication of the Year, Cannabis Business Awards Sensi magazine

Industry MVP, Cannabis Business Awards

2016–2019: Most Influential

Media Source Sensi Pittsburgh, “All that Jazz” (Gold) Sensi Denver/Boulder, “Sounds Like Summer” (Silver)

Best Typography, FMA Charlie Awards Sensi Denver/Boulder, “A Walk on the Wild Side” (Gold)

2018–2020: Cannabis MVP, Ron Kolb 2018+2020: Cannabis MVP, Stephanie Wilson

Best Cover, FMA Charlie Awards

2020, Leading Brand of the Year

Sensi Denver/Boulder, “Blep” (Silver) Sensi Denver/Boulder, “May Flowers” (Bronze)

2019: Best News/Information Source

Best Redesign, FMA Charlie Awards Sensi magazine (Silver)

Best Department, FMA Charlie Awards

New England Cannabis Community Awards

2019: Top Cannabis Event California Cannabis Awards

2019, Publication of the Year Las Vegas Cannabis Awards

Best Cannabis Publication/Magazine

Sensi magazine, “The Buzz” (Bronze)

Abi Wright, Sensi Nevada founding publisher 2020

America’s Best Startup Employers, Forbes Sensi Media Group (#156)

Top Women in Media Award Honoree, Folio: Stephanie Wilson, Sensi Media Co-founder + Editor in Chief

Best Information/News Source, New England Cannabis Community Awards Sensi Boston

Cannabis Education: Best Class, Las Vegas Cannabis Awards Sensi Night Las Vegas (2nd Place)

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THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO MAKES SENSI GREAT! There were so many milestones achieved in our first five years in business that we couldn’t fit them all here.

We’ll be sharing more history-in-the-making moments all month long on sensimag.com.

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ANE SAYS In the post-COVID-19 afterworld, cannabis will become socially accepted and customers—many of them women and moms—will seek upscale brands that normalize the varied ways we partake of the plant.

Colorado entrepreneur and visionary Jane West will be leading the charge in this brave new world.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDREW BYDLON HAIR + MAKEUP BY ANDERSON GONZALEZ

TEXT STEPHANIE WILSON

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o picture this: it’s a warm evening in the waning days of summer, and you’re in California Wine Country on your first trip in the post-COVD-19 world—the afterworld, an open world, a healthy world, a world filled with laughter and joy and experiences and friends. A world after freaking Zoom. You’re elated to be here, out of your home and away on this magical trip to Sonoma Valley. You’re attending a farm-to-table pairing dinner at Sonoma Hills Farm, a 40-acre craft farm and culinary garden within the Petaluma Gap, one of the world’s most renowned regions for wine terroir.

But you’re not here for the wine. You’re here for the weed.

You’re here to get high, during an elegant evening imagined by Jane West, a woman media outlets like to call “the Martha Stewart of marijuana”—or “weed,” “cannabis” or “pot,” depending on the outlet doing the calling. And over the last seven years, lots of outlets have come calling on Jane: Inc., Fortune, Newsweek, InStyle, Marie Claire, to name a few. That’s not to mention all the marijuana mags compelled to profile the high-minded entrepreneur from Denver who stepped into the national media spotlight to become the photogenic face of the legal cannabis industry during its earliest days in Colorado back in 2014.

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events for an (unnamed) national corporation. Jane West is her alter ego, born from the same motivation that’s led the trailblazing character to become more than just a name but an entire cannabis lifestyle brand at the forefront of a $20.5 billion global industry that’s expected to reach over $90.4 billion by 2026. Both Jane West the person and Jane West the brand have helped accelerate that growth.

Somewhat ironically, that growth is spurred in part by celebrities like Martha Stewart who are now clamoring to get branded CBD products to market.

Jane West has an established, sought-after CBD line too, and a home goods collection. While Stewart shuns THC and getting “high,” West is a proud daily cannabis consumer. She has a THC line that includes mini joints, flower packs, and pre-packed bowls available in 13 states and across Canada. Plus, there’s the Jane West travel collection of sleek and discreet accessories and the high-end Jane West glassware line with GRAV Labs. Not to mention, Jane West is launching a whole new line of cannabis accessories (ashtrays, rolling trays, grinders, bubblers, and more) in North America and Europe later this year. Martha Stewart’s got nothing on West’s lifestyle brand.

With cannabis legalization spreading faster than a 2020 pandemic these days (like, in a good way) you might say that Jane West is the Jane West of Weed™.

What spurred this growth? Jane West just wanted to go to an event where she could smoke some pot.

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Fighting for freedom is Join the revolution at norml.org

Sparking It Up “I’ve always considered myself the customer in everything I do in the cannabis space,” West says.

It’s March 2021, and we’re at her home in Denver discussing her travel column “High From Here,” launching in Sensi next month (May 2021). “When we were at the dawn of legalization in 2014, I wanted to cater to customers like me,” she says. “Women were declaring, ‘I really want to go to a party where I can smoke some pot!’ But that didn’t exist.” So she launched Edible Events and held —Jane West consumption-friendly cannabis events at a Denver art gallery, a move that garnered national media attention that propelled West into the spotlight...where she was

“I WANT WOMEN WHO ARE 25 NOW TO WANT BONGS ON THEIR GIFT REGISTRY WHEN THEY’RE 35.’”

in clear view of the higher-ups at her corporate job. Two days after being featured on CNBC’s evening news with Brian Williams, West was informed she would need to resign.

West is excited as she tells the story. No doubt some of her excitement stems from being around humans outside of her family and those in their pandemic pod. It’s been a year since she last attended an event. The last was High Style, a fashion show in Denver for Project Runway All-Star Korto Momolu’s collection for Women Grow, an organization West founded a few months after those corporate paychecks stopped coming to help other entrepreneurial women succeed in the brand-new cannabis

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space. So she’s obviously eager to get back out into the world, to be part of the community—almost as eager as she is for cannabis to get out there and be a part of communities everywhere.

“We know that cannabis can be safely incorporated into our communities,” West says. “Social use is going to be at the forefront of the next wave of cannabis legalization.” She draws attention to the number of empty storefronts and businesses the pandemic has left in communities around the country and to the fact that the majority of the country now has notable cannabis legalization on the books, with more to come.

With all that there will be a growing number of people who want to get out of their homes (and small apartments) to consume this newly legal product, as well as a desire to interact with others. The table is set for a thriving, centered community to emerge.

The first step to this utopian future? Normalization. And while some cities have made strides in the right direction, there’s still a ways to go.

“The entire reason I became so famous in 2014 was that I was a mom of two willing to be on tele—Jane West vision and say, ‘I use marijuana, and that’s okay.’ That got me on the five-o’clock news with Brian Williams,” West recalls. “But the reason I did it was so important, I really did have kids, and, at the time, nobody talked about smoking pot at all. Nobody talked about using edibles at all.” The people who did discuss it, she says, were not women and they didn’t have kids, but West says that has changed.

“BRANDS HAVE BEEN CATERING TO A VERY DEFINED LIMITED AESTHETIC THAT WE’VE ALL JUST ACCEPTED— BUT CANNABIS IS FOR EVERYONE …

WHAT HASN’T CAUGHT UP WITH NORMALIZATION IS THE ACCESSORIES AND THE PRODUCTS AND THE CONSUMPTION METHODOLOGY.’”

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“Now on playgrounds and in the school yard, parents are openly talking within earshot of kids.

Of course, I hear it more inevitably,” she says, which makes sense since it’s part of a conversation Jane West literally started. “Moms are out there talking about what edibles they’re buying. It’s been one of the biggest changes I’ve observed: moms are talking about cannabis on the playground.

That’s normalization.”

Keep Heading West Jane West is always thinking five years ahead. The running joke among those who work in cannabis is that the industry operates in dog years, each 365-day cycle the equivalent of seven times that.

In this federally illegal industry, so very much can happen in five years. Five years ago, cannabis was fully legal in only four states: Colorado, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska. As of March 2020, it was legal in 15. In April, New York made it 16; then New Mexico joined the fray. The thing is, people in every state have been consuming cannabis for as long as the states have existed, just as humans have been consuming it for as long as humans and cannabis have existed. People love the plant—always have, always will, no matter what type of propaganda they are fed. What stigmatization has manage to stifle is the evolution of cannabis as an industry. It’s stunted its growth in what may best be described as an adolescent phase, a period marked by awkward lewd jokes (see: stoner comedies), lack of awareness and style (see: clear glass bongs in unwieldy shapes caked in resin

MORE INFO

The Jane West Brand is fueled in part by a crowdfunding campaign run through the tech-startup site republic.co, which offers an equity stake to anyone who invests

West Ware Due out this fall, the new Jane West line of smoking accessories in partnership with High Tide includes minimalist-inspired grinders and rolling trays as well as semi-transparent textured glass bubblers (available in three colors), pipes, and ashtrays.

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When their service ends, ours begins.

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and hidden from view), and an inability to speak to girls (see: the majority of products on dispensary shelves).

Neither cannabis companies nor the ancillary providers can be faulted for creating products that appeal to an existing demographic of consumers who readily and happily hand over their dollars to them as if it’s normal. Because it is. “What hasn’t caught up with normalization are the accessories and the products and the consumption methodology,” West says. “I’m still behind the scenes in so many meetings where people are wanting these really high doses [of THC], looking at it like THC percentages are the most important factor in decision making. And they’re catering to an audience of the moment, but they’re not looking ahead to the future.”

West on the other hand is try—Jane West ing to shape that future into a

“[CANNABIS] BRANDS HAVE BEEN CATERING TO A VERY DEFINED, LIMITED AESTHETIC THAT WE’VE ALL JUST ACCEPTED, WHEN REALLY WHAT WE WANT IS SOMETHING THAT FITS WELL INTO OUR LIFESTYLES AND OUR HOMES.’”

style that suits her, that vibes with her personal tastes as well as the aesthetics of the Jane West persona. Because when Jane West was born seven years ago, her stylish sensibilities were not being met by anything on the market. “When I started Edible Events, I was looking for five bongs that were all the same to put on a bar, but I didn’t want them to be obvious,” she says.

“I wanted them to be functional and beautiful, but I could not find what I was looking for.

Some of the more artful pieces I found were handmade, so if you broke one, you couldn’t replace it. These were things that were challenging me as the consumer. I wanted to solve those challenges, so I created a glass line.”

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FOOTER INFO

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when they’re 35,” West says. She’s looking to the future again and working to create it, in this case through a new eponymous line of cannabis accessories created in partnership with the manufacturing division of High Tide, the same publicly traded Canadian company behind Snoop Dogg’s line.

“Cannabis is for everyone,” she says. “But brands have been catering to a very defined, limited aesthetic that we’ve all just accepted, when really what we want is something that fits well into our lifestyles and our homes.”

That void—and the opportunity to fill it—motivates her. “Glassware really is the best way to consume cannabis. You can clean it to perfection, it heats really well, and it provides a superior tasting experience.”

Her first glass line—a collaboration with GRAV Labs out of Austin—came to market at a time and place she decided she wanted to define her vision. “I wanted to show the world that there was another way [smoking devices] could look,” she says. “It was so well received, but it was also exquisite in certain ways that made it unaffordable. I wanted to create something accessible and available to everyone.”

With prices about half that of the GRAV line, the new statement-making glassware line was inspired by the ’20s of the past and the ’20s to come. Unlike the previous line, West designed it with transparent, textured glass because, she says, “my customers love being able to see the smoke and see the density of the smoke.”

But most importantly, West wanted the glass to be captivating.

Her new line also features a textured patterned glass that helps it fit into a home’s existing aesthetic and also keeps it from looking dirty after just one use. West took inspiration from everywhere for the new line, not relying on an existing mold or expectation of existing smoking accessories.

“There were no shapes, no glass, no designs or concepts we’re trying to rely on. And by doing that— normalizing it—with these patterns, they’re just rocks glasses.

I really do walk through Crate & Barrel and think, if they can make it, I can make it.”

She’s built her brand around that mantra—literally. The Jane West brand is fueled in part by a crowdfunding campaign run through the tech-startup site Republic.co, which offers an equity stake to anyone who invests. The initial Republic raise closed $500,000+ from more than 2,500 investors in 42 countries. On Republic, the company has closed $500,000+ from more than 2,500 investors in 42 countries. Prior to diving into crowdfunding, West raised $1.3M from 22 investors—80 percent of whom are women and people of color. As of this writing, the current round has raised 300% of its minimum goal from 454 investors with a $25 minimum investment. The round closes on April 25, 2021, so there’s still time for you to claim your own stake in the Jane West brand.

Investing in cannabis can be intimidating, no doubt, but a low-risk opportunity like this one makes it accessible—helps to normalize it for a wider audience than otherwise would be exposed to cannabis in this arena. Which is right on point for Jane West.

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P R O M OT I O N A L F E AT U R E HAPPY HOUR MEDICINALS

Stigma free, always With a full line of branded apparel, artwork, and consumption goods, Happy Hour Medicinals is so much more than just an Oklahoma cannabis brand.

It’s a lifestyle.

“O

K” is one of the most frequently used and recognized words in the world. Ubiquitous and universally understood, OK even has its own hand symbol that’s also recognized around the world. But there’s been some unfortunate publicity surrounding the otherwise positive gesture. In response, and as a group that prides itself on doing the right thing,

the Happy Hour Medicinals team has developed a new logo launching on 4/20. It’s another, apt hand gesture and there’s no way any culture can cancel its peaceful fortitude.

In the state of Oklahoma—where the medical marijuana market is booming—the OK hand is more than just a logo for the crew at Happy Hour Medicinals. And for the Tulsa-based brand, it’s a symbol for a stigma-free

lifestyle. It has universal appeal that stretches well beyond the borders of the OK state. An architect by trade, Happy Hour Medicinals founding partner and brand director Tobin Green is self-professed branding geek, with a deep understanding of the power of design to have a big cultural impact.

He’s channeled that passion into the creation of a line of lifestyle goods and gear under the Happy Hour Medicinals high-design-minded umbrella.

On Happy Hour Medicinals’ lifestyle website, you’ll find a range of products— from rolling papers and lighters to art poster prints and street art packs bearing the smoking OK hand symbol. “The line entails everything—not just one hat or one t-shirt with a cheesy logo thing,” Green says. “So far we’ve got 15 different hats, we’ve got a bunch of different shirts, hoodies, some seasonal stuff. We want to change it up constantly.”

Taking inspiration from artists like Shepard Fairy and his Obey brand, Green set out to bridge the gap between the old-school, stereotypical, cliché stoner culture and something that’s more evolved. “We’re not turning our back on hippie culture or stoner culture—that’s what this whole industry was built upon, and it’s awesome. But it’s been done a million times. There’s room in this space for a new narrative.”

Happy Hour Medicinals wants to show the world that the cannabis friendly lifestyle can indeed be “stigma free, always.” Say that out loud with a smile and a nod, and, no matter where you are on this planet, your message is understood: alright, alright, alright.

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ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF STONE SLADE

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S

tone Slade was born for this. Literally. The reality TV star’s first breath, at a hospital in Guadalajara in 1971, was laced with cannabis smoke from a hit his father shotgunned in his newborn face—a rite of passage that seemed completely normal among the big, crazy family of rock stars, drug smugglers, and assorted other characters Slade grew up with.

Slade’s dad, whom he describes on Instagram as an “OG Legacy market player,” toured with the Grateful Dead and was a member

of the Pleasure Crew (your guess is as good as Slade’s as to what that means—but we’re talking the Dead here, so make it your best guess). Slade spent his first 10 years hanging out on tour buses and running around arenas before his family settled in Austin and started hanging out on Willie Nelson’s ranch.

Slade describes his childhood as “something between Almost Famous and a light episode of Narcos.” Everyone smoked weed—they

called it “whistle” so an unwitting kid wouldn’t accidentally out them to a teacher or another parent— and Slade was often a designated joint passer. As a teenager, he dipped into his dad’s stash.

“Cannabis is as American as apple pie,” Slade says. “Those weren’t criminals who were smoking around me; those were my parents, dear friends, people I saw every day.”

Then, when he was a junior in high school, his dad didn’t come home one night. Slade’s father had gone to help a friend buy a pound of weed and got caught in a DEA sting. “Of all the way more crazy things he was involved with, this is what got him,” Slade says.

“He was gone for five years—the end of my high school years.”

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A CANNABIS ROAD TRIP Slade’s lifelong love for cannabis and extremely personal reasons for pushing legalization are the impetus for Hittin’ the High Road with Stone Slade & Sensi Magazine (hittinthehighroad.com), a show he is hosting and co-producing with Justin Netti. Best known for his role on A&E’s Modern Dads se116

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ries, Slade is bringing his content creation skills and on-screen cred to a show designed to demystify and destigmatize cannabis and the cannabis industry.

The show concept came to Slade as he and his wife were waiting in line at a Los Angeles dispensary on 4/20. He was thinking about the current state of cannabis TV. “I like what’s out there, but I feel like I like it because I’m a stoner,” Slade says.

“We all know there’s a much larger contingent of people who just might not stay tuned for the goofiness in most of the stoner shows out there.”

Hittin’ the High Road will follow Slade as he embarks on a can-

nabis road trip across America, meeting with the people behind the industry, from dispensary owners to medical patients to farmers, for lighthearted yet serious No Reservations-esque segments. The show is meant to appeal to a broader spectrum of viewers, from connoisseurs to the canna-curious.

“So many people are about to enter this journey,” Slade says, referring to the flood of new cannabis patients and consumers stepping into the market as more and more states legalize. Hittin’ the High Road will make it easier for first timers and consumers who have been away from cannabis for a long time. “The first time

I walked into a dispensary, I felt so weird,” Slade says, “like I was doing something wrong.”

With such a great concept, his extensive network of industry contacts, and what seemed like perfect timing, Slade figured he’d have the show on the air in no time. He couldn’t believe it when the mainstream networks shut him down again and again, even after he showed them how his concept was different, better, educational. No one picked up on his vision.

“It’s still taboo, really,” he says.

“Until cannabis loses that Schedule I designation, we’re not going to see a big flood of normalcy in television.”

CANNABIS FOR LIFE In 2013, just as Slade was dadding it up with his daughter Danica on Modern Dads, his own father was diagnosed with liver cancer. The only thing that could ease his father’s pain, aside from hard-core, stupor-inducing pharmaceuticals, were Bhang chocolate bars smuggled in from Colorado.

Slade’s father passed on November 1, Day of the Dead. If that weren’t symbolic enough, he died at an oddly apropos time.

“We were mourning him,” Slade says, “but when the guy read out the time of death at 4:20 p.m., we couldn’t help but just laugh.”

Under his father’s influence, Slade adds, he has embraced cannabis for his entire life.

“I spent the majority of my life as a casual user,” he says, “then the legal end came in when I lost Dad for those five years and the medical side when we lost him for good in 2013.”

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TEXT ROBYN GRIGGS LAWRENCE

PHOTO BY VILLAS CHANNEL PRODUCTIONS

FLORIDA

With the Women’s Initiative for a Safe and Equitable Florida, the mothers who pushed for medical marijuana are paving the way for full legalization— and they will not be silenced.

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n the battle to make medical marijuana legal in Florida, the mommy lobby threw its considerable political clout behind Amendment 2, which helped the bill get passed in 2016.

Five years later, these women have become marginalized in the industry they made possible, says Moriah Barnhart, who was on the front lines of those legalization efforts. In 2014, Barnhart founded the nonprofit CannaMoms to advocate for medical marijuana after it was the only thing that provided relief for her two-year-old daughter, who had been diagnosed with brain cancer.

“Women and moms talking about our critically ill children were the reason our neighbors voted on our behalf, and now all these women have been brushed aside,” Barnhart says. “We’re in the spotlight, patted on the back, and beloved— but very rarely are we in actual leadership positions. Most titles

are token titles. It’s heartbreaking because women ran the show to get this passed and then were given no leadership positions.”

Barnhart’s had enough, and she’s not alone.

This month, she and three other cannabis industry heavy lifters launched the Women’s Initiative for a Safe and Equitable Florida (WISE FL), a campaign to improve public attitudes toward cannabis and set the stage for full legalization in the state. The plan is to develop a strong, respected presence in the cannabis community, setting the group up to be an influential voice in a future ballot initiative effort for adult-use.

The Florida Legislature is not likely to pass legislation legalizing adult use any time soon, so WISE FL is paving the way for what promises to be an expensive campaign.

Barnhart and her team—all experts in cannabis-related advocacy, messaging, and media relations—aim to

become “Florida’s professional face of cannabis policy reform in media and political circles.”

“All of these women are mothers, and all (excluding me) are attorneys,” Barnhart says. “They’ve been doing this a long time with no spotlight because it’s the right thing to do. The spotlight is so torn in Florida, and all these men behind the scenes are trying to grab it—even if they know the public doesn’t like them. Men are always given the credit for our work.”

Rounding out the WISE FL founding team is Sally Kent Peebles, a Vicente Sederberg LLC partner who has been advocating for cannabis in Florida since 2014; Ivette Gonzalez Petkovich, founder of Petkovich Law Firm and a former prosecutor with the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office; and Tamieka Range, founder of Range Law Firm, adjunct professor at Florida A&M University College of Law, and a founder of Minorities A P R I L 2021

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4 Medical Marijuana, which got diversity language added to Florida’s medical marijuana program during the 2016-17 legislative session.

WISE FL is working closely with VS Strategies, the Vicente Sederberg division that oversaw the Amendment 64 campaign legalizing adult use in Colorado, to build a coalition of grassroots supporters and state and local leaders through constant outreach, networking, and community events.

A huge part of the group’s mission is to answer the question that cannabis advocates constantly face about legalization: But what about the children? “We’re just trying to get ahead of that,” Barnhart says.

“We’re explaining why we’re asking to end the war on drugs, starting with cannabis prohibition.”

Florida’s medical marijuana program has benefitted hundreds of thousands of patients, WISE FL says, but continuing to criminalize cannabis use means non-patients must secure cannabis from an unsafe underground market and that people of color—particularly young people—are disproportionately targeted by law enforcement, resulting in racially disparate arrests and long-term consequences.

WISE FL will highlight how eliminating the underground cannabis market would not only protect the state’s young people but would also free up law enforcement to focus on more serious crimes, including violence against women, and educate Floridians about therapeutic uses of cannabis that are not protected under

medical marijuana laws, including stress relief and improved sleep.

The group has already been working behind the scenes to prepare for the launch, commissioning a poll that found more than 90 percent of Floridians approve of medical marijuana and 60 percent approve of adult use. “We need a little more of a push,” Barnhart says, and she believes women are the ones to do it.

“Everyone’s sick of the men, looking the same and sounding the same with their bland messaging,” Barnhart says. “They’re not catching people’s eye, and no one’s picking it up. We need to do what the canna-moms did for medical marijuana on an entirely different level, with a much broader perspective and education.”

“WE NEED A LITTLE MORE OF A PUSH. WE NEED TO DO WHAT THE CANNA-MOMS DID FOR MEDICAL MARIJUANA ON AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT LEVEL.”

PHOTO BY VILLAS CHANNEL PRODUCTIONS

—Moriah Barnhart, WISE FL

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Mongolia's dry steppe is tough on agricultural crops, so farmers must truck in water to irrigate industrial hemp fields.

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Hemp has been a key component in the ancient shamanistic rituals of the sparsely populated nation of Mongolia—but it remains illegal. One native entrepreneur has been given the opportunity to make a change for the better.

TEXT & IMAGES MAREN KRINGS

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ight has fallen in Mongolian taiga near the Russian boarder, thousands of miles from the capital city of Ulaanbaatar. We wait around the bonfire for the ceremonial drum to dry out after a sudden rain storm has soaked it. The spirits will not come until the drum regains its proper sound. The touchier (translator) sits to the left of the shaman, ready to translate the language of the spirits.

When the drum finally dries, the shaman puts on the ceremonial coat and mask, shielding his vision of the mundane world.

Vodka, nicotine, and the beating drum are preparing him to receive the spirits. One thing is missing from this traditional ritual: cannabis.

Mongolia is home to native wild hemp, and has a history of using it for shamanic rituals dating back to the 13th century, when Genghis Khan started worshipping Tenger-

LEFT: A cross of Mongolian wild cannabis and European industrial hemp, the newly bred Hemp Mongolia strain has .0.3% THC, in line with international standards and imparting no psychoactive effects.

RIGHT: Anar Artur checks the plants often to see if the crossed variety is resilient enough to survive the Steppe climate.

OPPOSITE PAGE: Mongolia is one of the poorest countries in the world, but Ulanbaataar sports an invigorating mix of modern architecture, traditional temples from the Dschinghis Khan Empire, and a growing ger (or traditional felted tent) district.

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ism, a form of shamanism unique to the region. When disasters strike today, many Mongolians still consult a shaman to restore balance between the physical and the spiritual world.

Mongolia’s long and complex history has created a deeply rooted cultural crisis, which is enhanced by the increasing global ecological crisis. Both are having serious impacts on the lives of Mongolia’s nomads—not the least of which is the government’s outlawing of cannabis.

Though it is now illegal in Mongolia, and has therefore been replaced by alcohol and cigarettes, it was once key to the ceremony I now witness. But thanks to the work of one forward-thinking Mongolian entrepreneur, the plant could help solve the problems of a country beset by the ill effects of climate change.

Anar Artur, founder of Hemp Mongolia, hopes to use hemp

to help his nation transition from a nomadic lifestyle to urban bliss, while tackling the air pollution crisis of Ulaanbaatar, the world’s dirtiest city. Hemp Mongolia received government permission to become the first—and only—hemp-growing site in the country, with plans to use its CBD as a treatment for respiratory diseases and its hemp as a building material for better insulation to reduce coal emissions. The company also hopes to build up a breeding program under governmental supervision.

Artur believes the search for identity as manifested in the rise of New Age Shamanism will reconnect the nation with the good spirits. Reestablishing harmony between humanity and the environment might lead the country back to an “eternal blue sky” (mönkh khökh tengeri), which, after all, gave the country its name.

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Of the four power plants within the city limits of Ulanbaataar, one has been shut down and two run on low-grade subbituminous coal.

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During the Naadam Festival, The Culture Department of the National University installs a cultural village to inform not just international tourists but also young Mongolians who have become alienated from traditional costumes and cultural practices.

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Throughout its history of war with neighboring nations, Mongolia’s native Tengrism has mixed with Buddhism and Christianity to create unique forms of all three religions.

Under Communist rule, all religious practice was prohibited, however.

Secrecy surrounding Tengrism remains to this day.

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Kama’s job is to guard the plants throughout the entire growing cycle.

To do so, he lives according to nomadic tradition, in a felted ger (the Mongolian word for yurt).

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When the famed horse races come to Khui Doloon Khudag during the national holiday, the racing equines, media coverage, cars, and general traffic drive up dust like a sand storm on the steppe.

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Some herder families say they miss the sense of community and support they had during the days of the Mongolian People’s Republic—despite repression and a lack of personal freedom— since many now live in poverty and lack access to healthcare, education, and electricity.

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Inside the traditional ger, Anar and Kama play on an Xbox.

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Northwestern Mongolia suffers doubly from global warming—since weather patterns have changed so much, nomads' traditional knowledge and ability to predict the weather are failing.

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Wild cannabis grows just a few hours drive from Hemp Mongolia's test site. It usually contains higher levels of THC–it's how the plant protects itself from UV radiation, extreme weather and predators.

Hemp Mongolia hopes to introduce this new, adapted variety of industrial hemp to remove pollutants and replenish soils for the recovery of depleted agricultural land.

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Clean water, gasoline, and food are rare commodities on the Mongolian steppe. Most of the vast country has no rroad system or stores. Photographer Maren Krings says she always carries a Grayl Geopress with her to filter any water supply— even muddy holes holes frequented by wild horses.

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Hemp Mongolia may be emerging as a winner in the market economy introduced to the country in the 1990s, but the rural population has lost ground water and vast landscapes to exploitative natural resource mining by foreign corporations.

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Half of Mongolia’s population lives in the ever-expanding urban space of the capital, Ulanbaataar.

Skyscrapers are built rapidly with the help of foreign investors— but once funding stops the buildings are often abandoned half-finished.

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ABOUT THE PHOTOGRAPHER

Maren Krings is a German documentary photographer focusing on the social and environmental impact of the climate crisis. A graduate of Savannah College of Art and Design, her work has been published in Stern, The Outdoor Journal, SUSTON, Happinez, Outdoor, Runner’s World, and other international media. For the last four years, she has documented the worldwide rediscovery of industrial hemp, photographing more than 200 projects, interviewing more than 80 industry experts traveling 26 countries. Currently, she is working on a book about hemp‘s potential to mitigate the ecological crisis.

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Complete our Grower Intake Form and receive a free 15 min consultation regarding your project.

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Outdoor brand Patagonia is partnering with a Colorado farm to bring industrial hemp crops back to the United States and ensure agricultural practices improve in the process.

PHOTO BY ANDREW BURR, COURTESY PATAGONIA

TEXT DOUG SCHNITZSPAHN

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“but Polis’ office said they were willing to find enough acres in the state to do a test plot for the upcoming season.”

Starting any operation from scratch is not easy. Despite once being a vibrant American crop, industrial hemp has been illegal in the U.S. since the Controlled Substances Act of 1970 sought to tighten restrictions on marijuana as a drug, despite the fact that hemp contains minuscule amounts of THC. That all changed with the 2018 Farm Bill, which made industrial hemp legal again as long as THC levels are below .3%.

The use of hemp in clothing— and products as diverse as build-

ing supplies and auto parts—has been legal, however, meaning that manufacturers have had to source hemp offshore, mostly from Canada and China. Farming industrial hemp requires infrastructure— farmers need the seeds and they need to be able to decorticate the plant, strip off layers that won’t work for fabric (though these scraps do have other industrial uses). From there it can be made into clothing.

“Once it’s harvested it has to get stripped apart into fiber,” explains Aumen. “That fiber goes to a spinner, which spins it into a yarn.

Then that goes to a textile mill.

And then it is woven into a fabric.”

Hemp is a durable fabric, but manufacturers like Patagonia who want to use it in work wear have had to rely on hemp grown outside the U.S.

PHOTO COURTESY OF PATAGONIA

hen a team from iconic outdoor brand Patagonia met in Denver during the Outdoor Retailer trade show in 2019 to discuss the possibility of working with an industrial hemp farm in the U.S., Colorado Gov. Jared Polis took note. He responded— immediately—showing up for a lunch and listen and then sending a rep to tell the brand that if industrial hemp was going to return to America, he wanted it to start in Colorado. “We just wanted folks to come together and start trading notes and business cards,” says Ed Aumen, business unit director, fieldwear at Patagonia,

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Polis’ office connected Patagonia with Wright-Oakes Farms in Colorado’s San Luis Valley for a 500-acre test plot, but without the seeds and proper machinery, there could be no crop. Luckily, Patagonia’s Chinese hemp supplier, who had been at the Denver meeting, stepped in, providing the seeds, which are sensitive to elevation. It turned out that the Chinese farm is at about the same high altitude as the San Luis Valley. The Chinese supplier would also provide expertise and even send essential hemp harvesting machinery to Colorado. The plan was to send the U.S. hemp to China to manufacture into clothing (the U.S. does not have the infrastructure to do this) so the supplier would still benefit.

Then COVID-19 hit. “So he couldn’t ship the machinery,” says Aumen. “But somehow they located a decortication machine in Colorado. It’s bizarro to me why someone would even be sitting on something like that, but they had one. Soon we were Zooming back and forth and sending videos from the Chinese textile mill to the farmer in southern Colorado.”

Fully on board, Gov. Polis drove to the St Louis Valley to inspect the acreage in person. “Polis heads down there and walks the field in a cowboy hat,” says Aumen. “He’s super invested in it for all the right reasons. He’s trying to figure a new revenue stream for the farmers.”

Wright-Oakes Farms harvested 500 acres of hemp and stored it in a shed while Patagonia sent samples to China to test it in the machinery and process it into a first-quality fiber that can be spun into a yarn, which can then be crafted into Patagonia textiles. Al150

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though it has not set an exact date, Patagonia plans to begin selling work wear made with U.S. hemp in the next few years, possibly as soon as 2023. Though produced in China, it will be the first apparel made from U.S. hemp from the first legal industrial hemp growing operation in America.

PATAGONIA PLANS TO BEGIN SELLING WORK WEAR MADE WITH U.S. HEMP IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS, POSSIBLY AS SOON AS 2023.

THOUGH STILL PRODUCED IN CHINA, IT WILL BE THE FIRST APPAREL MADE FROM HEMP CULTIVATED IN THE FIRST LEGAL INDUSTRIAL HEMP GROWING OPERATION IN AMERICA.

FINDING A WAY TO SAVE MOTHER EARTH It’s no surprise that Patagonia has both a strong interest in hemp and in investing in U.S. farmers. The California-based company, which was founded by outspoken climber, surfer, and activist Yvon Chouinard, operates as a B Corp. That means it has a legal mandate to put environmental and social causes and the welfare of its employees and community ahead of corporate profits. And it doesn’t just do this on its word. B Corps must submit to third-party validation and keep their operations transparent.

Chouinard and his company have been cantankerously disruptive when it comes to progressive causes over the years, once encouraging customers not to buy one of its jackets to reduce consumption (they did anyway) and including a label in a pair of shorts during last year’s election that said “Vote the Assholes Out.” Chouinard even demanded the outdoor retailer trade show move out of its biannual home in Salt Lake City because Utah politicians wanted to sell off and degrade public lands. Patagonia then joined a lawsuit against the Trump administration when it dramatically cut Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments.

PHOTO BY FOREST WOODWARD, COURTESY PATAGONIA

Wright-Oakes Farms had to find a decortication machine to process the hemp to be sent to China and made into fabric.

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ing with the Regenerative Organic Alliance (ROA) through its Patagonia Action Works, which supports grassroots organizations that make a difference out in the field.“Regenerative agriculture is one of the most promising methods of sequestering carbon, slowing climate change,” says Elizabeth Whitlow, ROA executive director. “Regenerative practices build healthy soil and use compost and natural methods—age-old farming methods— where you keep the soil covered so that you don’t have problems with erosion, and you use things like nitrogen-fixing crops.”

All of that makes hemp a natural fit for Patagonia. It’s a tough fiber, stronger than cotton, far easier on the environment than synthetics, and it fits into Patagonia’s philosophy of working with materials that do less—or no—harm to the ecosystem and support local growers.

Patagonia has been using hemp in apparel since the 1990s and made it a staple of its work wear collection, which launched in 2017.

No surprise then that Patagonia was a big proponent of changes in agricultural laws, including 2018 Farm Bill that brought industrial hemp farming back to the U.S. It

PHOTO BY SARAH HAYES, COURTESY OF PATAGONIA

The brand has also been at the forefront of sustainable apparel innovations, creating a pioneering program that allowed customers to recycle old Patagonia clothing and investing in organic cotton for its ever popular t-shirts. Cotton is a natural fiber, but the process of growing it and turning it into fabric often involves pesticides and other agricultural chemicals that, while they may make growing crops easier, wreak havoc on natural soil systems and leech into ecosystems beyond the farm. To that end, Patagonia has also invested in regenerative agriculture, partner-

released the film Harvesting Liberty, which documented the efforts of Growing Warriors’ Michael Lewis and Fibershed’s Rebecca Burgess to legalize the crop in 2016. That activism and the ability to grow hemp in the U.S. again resulted in the partnership with the state of Colorado and WrightOakes Farms that synchs with Patagonia’s core values and mission.

“We grew all the hemp with zero pesticides or herbicides.

Plus, hemp needs very little water.

So we love it,” says Aumen. “And when it comes to the farmers, the last thing they want to do is spend money on chemicals to spray onto their fields. Ultimately, what we’d love to have happen here is for this be a no-till situation, regenerative agriculture. Industrial hemp can contribute to great soil

“POLIS HEADS DOWN THERE AND WALKS THE FIELDS IN A COWBOY HAT. HE’S INVESTED IN HEMP FOR ALL THE RIGHT REASONS. HE’S TRYING TO FIGURE A NEW REVENUE STREAM FOR THE FARMERS.” —Ed Aumen, business unit director, fieldwear at Patagonia

health.” At the end of the day, it is “the strongest fiber that you can put into a textile in the world.”

In the long run, the return of industrial hemp to the U.S. could provide a healthy boost to the American economy and provide longterm security for small farmers.

“Ultimately, what we’d love to be able to see is a state like Colorado grow industrial hemp and sell its fiber around the world— and hopefully at home too,” says Aumen. “The domestic textile mills—what few there are—are licking their chops to figure a way to make fabrics with U.S.-grown hemp. If we can bring industrial hemp back to the U.S. and have it grown organically, then we are doing exactly what we’re supposed to be doing, finding a way to save Mother Earth.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE STATE OF COLORADO

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis was so excited about the prospects of growing industrial hemp in the Centennial State he drove to WrightOakes Farms in the San Luis Valley to inspect the pilot crop. And he brought his cowboy hat.

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P R O M OT I O N A L F E AT U R E B E G R E E N S U P P LY

Reliable Hardware This Boston-based engineering and manufacturing company is making consumers’ cannabis use experience safer, one client at a time.

W

hen you walk into a dispensary to purchase a vaporizer cartridge do you really know what you’re buying?

Most consumers only think about the actual cannabis oil product itself — perhaps checking to make sure that the plant extract is free of fillers, propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, and other additives. Few people, however, think to ask what the hardware that makes the product work might contain.

“Over time, cannabis oil can corrode certain metals, making the entire cartridge unsafe to use,” says Peter Dunbar, vice president of marketing at BeGreen Supply in Boston, Massachusetts. “Lab tests have shown heavy metals, like lead,

BeGreen’s hardware puts the end-user first, starting with the quality of the raw materials in their manufacturing process.

“We took a stand against plated-metal materials in our product lines. We only use 304 stainless steel, ceramic or better,” says Michaud, who is today BeGreen’s CEO. “We’ve even raised the industry bar with our glass standards.

We commit ourselves to innovation, quality, and customer service.”

“We design and engineer products based on customers’ ideas,” Dunbar says. “Cannabis brands are looking for ways to differentiate themselves to consumers. At first, most of our customers don’t realize how affordable, and fast, customization at scale can be.”

“We are more than just a white-label company. We design, engineer, and build solutions,” says Michaud.

In addition to vaporizer hardware, which makes up the majority of the company’s business, BeGreen has also created other types of custom containers for companies in the cannabis space.

BeGreen Supply also manufactures some of its own products, including vaporizer batteries, under its Hum brand.

The batteries, which are available at area dispensaries, can be customized with retailers’ logos.

“We can be more edgy with our HUM brand,” Dunbar says. “It allows us to work directly with retailers to find unique ways support consumer education.”

BeGreen has also used its Hum batteries to partner with The Last Prisoner Project, with a portion of each battery’s sale price going to support the organization.

leeching into the product. It’s really bad.”

When the company was launched by Chris Michaud, an industrial designer, in 2017, BeGreen Supply—a custom engineering and manufacturing firm serving the cannabis industry—set out to tackle this problem head-on. “Most hardware was designed for tobacco use,” Dunbar says. “But that’s a totally different product. It doesn’t behave the same way. We decided to look at areas of failure and use them to identify opportunities.”

Dunbar also notes that while most tobacco use products and are tested and approved by the FDA, products created for cannabis consumers are not—so right BeGreen Supply now it’s important for cannabis companies A Cannabis-Use Hardware Engineering to be vigilant about the type of hardware And Manufacturing Firm they choose for their products. begreensupply.com

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OPOL S GRANGE IN SEBASTERS HESSEL FARMER AND SMALL PRODUC TO

WITH A MISSION

PROTECT

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“W

e like to be grangerly,” says Vincent Scholten, president of Hessel Farmer’s Grange #750 in Sebastopol, California. By this, he means acting with kindness, respect, and inclusivity, and as a 15-year veteran granger, it’s practically his motto. So what’s a grange and a granger you say? We’re glad you asked.

The Grange, formally known as The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, is a nationwide organization established in 1867 to assist farmers with problems and share information. As granging grew, grangers (members) banded together to promote the interests of smaller farms over corporations. Grange participation waned in the 1900s, but today in California, it’s being revived to again protect smaller producers—with one grange focusing entirely on cannabis and hemp farmers.

Scholten and others resurrected Hessel Farmers Grange—which was a dormant chapter of the national grange—with a cannabis and hemp focus after its legalization.

Along with serving as president of this organization, Scholten is the ag chair for the State of California Grange and received the state and national grange’s blessing on making Hessel the United States’ first cannabis and hemp-focused grange.

Farmer and grange vice president Sam De La Paz joined Hessel to affect change through grassroots movement and believes the grange network is a staple of community building and advocacy through collaboration.

“Exponential growth is achieved when we work together, as we then double and quadruple our

values,” says De La Paz whose activism within the grange led him to help form a local Sonoma County Cannabis Coalition working group, consisting of active Sonoma County cannabis organizations.

De La Paz says Hessel is unique among granges because “it’s the only grange in California made up exclusively of weed and hemp growers who’ve banded together to survive the onslaught of corporate cannabis and resist the power of local regulatory agencies.”

According to Jamie Ballachino, stuart of Hessel Farmers Grange and president of Hands in the Earth farm in Healdsburg, the timing is right for the return of the grange. “The real power of the Grange’s has kinda laid low for about 100 years,” he says. “The reason for the Grange’s formation was simple: They needed representation for the people. You can’t closet,” Scholten says. “It used represent a group of individual to be that you didn’t tell people voices unless you organize.” outside your circle that you grew [cannabis] without repercusBUILDING A COMMUNITY sions. We wanted to bring these Hessel Farmers Grange started people together.” organizing on a small scale, and Gathering cannabis and hemp despite the pandemic slowing its farmers together brings the craft roll, it’s quickly growing into a into the light, allowing growers cannabis community. “I wanted to discuss it. “We have mostly to make something for farmers,” farmers and nurserymen in Hessel Scholten says. “It started with 17 Grange,” Scholten adds. “They can of us cannabis growers who were come and talk farming, which was fed up with county restrictions the original purpose of the grange.” and wanted to push back on the Non-farmer members find benmachine putting us down.” efits in this cannabis communiToday Hessel has about 100 ty too, like Taniya Fuller Green, members, 75 percent related to co-founder of Cannaquisitve and a hemp and cannabis in some way, marketing professional in cannabis and the grange’s growth is showretail at Aloha Aina Dispensary. casing a rapidly changing perspec“I joined the Grange as a way to tive on cannabis farming. learn about what issues farmers “This was my dream from the were facing, to lend my time to get-go, to bring people out of the help the cannabis community, and A P R I L 2021

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to be more social. I’ve received several benefits from gaining friendships to being abreast of what’s happening in cannabis legislation,” she says. “My favorite benefit, though, is being able to share this information with cannabis consumers and those working in cannabis retail. Because I work at a dispensary, this information gets to the consumer through the staff I’ve educated or myself.”

Granger and Spring Creek Farms co-owner Zelig Kronberg joined to partner with other small producers. “The grange is all about education and social change, allowing farmers to share best practices so they can be free from big agricultural companies trying to sell them things they don’t need,” he says. “The grange is also a perfect place to host educational events (soil building, composting) to further give back the power to —Lisa Lai, cannabis grower and the farmer so they are empowered Hessel Grange member to take control of their health and community’s wellbeing.”

Spring Creek Farms, Kronberg’s award-winning, legacy farm in the

PHOTO BY NANCY BIRNBAUM

“TRADITIONAL AGRICULTURE IS ALREADY TOUGH, AND WE HAVE ADDITIONAL BARRIERS TO ENTRY AND REGULATORY RESTRICTIONS. WE NEED TO WORK TOGETHER TO GET IT RIGHT.”

An outdoor Hessel coastal redwood hills of Sonoma Farmers Grange member County, fuses ancient holistic ag- meeting. ricultural practices with modern scientific insight to grow regenerative, no-till cannabis in its greenhouses. And it’s just the type of place Scholten is looking to protect and defend.

“As corporations get more powerful, there are fewer family farms.

I’m a small farmer myself and want to see small farmers come back into the spotlight. More diverse farms are more important than one big corporation,” Scholten says. “I fight for the little farmers and try to make little farmers succeed. Cannabis has always been little farmers.”

LOBBYING FOR CHANGE Fighting for small producers matters to Scholten because Hessel Farmers Grange makes its home in Sonoma County’s Sebastopol, a destination not known for welcoming cannabis and hemp farming like other California counties.

That means this grange also serves another important purA P R I L 2021

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pose: collectively pushing back against county restrictions to promote legal cannabis and hemp growth endeavors.

“The grange is fundamentally structured to lobby for our farmer’s rights,” says Kronberg of Spring Creek Farms, and Hessel’s leadership team agrees.

De La Paz is passionate about this mission, as he believes regulatory agencies have squashed many smaller farms’ cannabis interests by failing to issue (or delaying the issuance of) permits to applicants eager to grow this cash crop.

Scholten is familiar with this problem, as he’s been continually denied a permit for cannabis growing, despite being the longtime owner of Nor Cal Growers, an organic nursery in Sebastopol.

“I have been in the cannabis permitting process for three years to do nursery stock and breeding,” says Scholten, who was granted a permit to cultivate hemp last year in a greenhouse on his West

Sonoma property, but still cannot legally grow cannabis.

A few years back, thousands of farmers grew cannabis on this rolling, fertile land. But few remain today after a decision by county officials to make residents with Rural Residential or Agricultural Residential permits ineligible for cannabis growing permits.

Scholten is fighting against this decision and seeking to have their voices heard and make change.

But he always promotes doing so by “killing them with kindness” and changing county regulations through grangerly behavior.

“Sonoma County is one of the best growing climates in the world. We have great seasons,

we’re close to the coast,” Scholten says on why growing cannabis here matters. “This county is way behind; it’s a lot of infighting.”

Community strength and cooperation in making change is the main reason cannabis grower Lisa Lai of AllCali Farms joined Hessel Farmers Grange. “I believed there is strength in the long-standing farming social organization. I still do,” she says. “I wanted to advocate for my personal farm, other farmers, and future farms. Traditional agriculture is already tough, and we have additional barriers to entry and regulatory restrictions. We need to work together to get it right.”

Scholten agrees. “The grange is viable today for helping us get the A P R I L 2021

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word out as a whole and use our But this is just a start of what voice together to be stronger,” he Hessel grangers like Ballachino says. “We needed to come togeth- want to accomplish. “We still er to fight the county to allow us have a lot to fight for. First, we to grow cannabis and hemp.” need our permits, after four years Hessel Farmers Grange uses its of waiting, before the corporate collective voice to successfully farms take over everything. We lobby for resolutions that benefit need to develop ourselves and cannabis/hemp farmers through keep the national big guys from grassroots organization and letstealing it all from us when the ter-writing campaigns. “The reso- government legalizes it,” he lutions we passed, four were cansays. “We don’t want to be the nabis-related, and we passed them next grape, we want to be a better on a state level. We will actively grape, with the least amount of lobby congressmen in Sacramennegative effects on the environto,” says Scholten. “One of those ment and our bodies as possible.” was making cannabis a commodity, one was to use our by-products THE FUTURE OF THE GRANGE for animal feed, one was to change As COVID-19 restrictions are liftthe tax rules, and one was a small ed, Hessel Farmers Grange hopes farmer initiative for farmers that to resume in-person monthly make less than $100,000 a year.” meetings at its grange building in

Sebastopol. With Sonoma County entering the less-restrictive orange tier for reopening, the group plans to resume socially distanced meetings as early as this month.

A kid’s auxiliary sub-committee has also been established, but in the meantime Hessel Farmers Grange will continue to focus most of its efforts on hemp and cannabis. With legalization efforts ramping up nationwide and legislation around cannabis varying widely, the grange’s team plans to focus on cannabis and hemp policy changes that benefit smaller producers in California and beyond.

Whether you’re a cannabis farmer or another cannabis industry professional looking to be part of this community, learn more about joining at hesselfarmersgrange.com.

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MYCO

Designers are giving mushrooms the appreciation they deserve. TEXT ROBYN GRIGGS LAWRENCE

MOMENT

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PREVIOUS PAGE: ILLUSTRATION BY ANNA SULTANOVA, ADOBE STOCK / THIS PAGE: PHOTOS COURTESY SEANA GAVIN

P

laid. Pink. Pineapples. Minimalism. Maximalism.

Mushrooms. What these things share in common, aside from alliteration, is that they all have recurring moments—in art, in home décor, on the runways— bouncing in and out of the zeitgeist, embraced one decade and shunned the next.

Mushrooms, though.

For the weird at heart, fungi never go out of style. There’s just something about toadstools and fairies, Alice and the white rabbit.

Mushrooms turn us on. Whether or not we enjoy eating them for culinary pleasure or spiritual exploration (and we usually do both), we can’t help but admire all the naughty shapes and sexy spores that populate this kingdom, which is neither plant nor animal.

The good news for mycophiles is that right now, mushroom appreciation is at an all-time high.

Mushrooms have invaded our homes and closets, dancing on curtains and rugs at Etsy and Society6 and wallpaper at Spoonflower, popping up in clothing stores from H&M to Forever 21, featured prominently in collections by designers like Stüssy and Marc Jacobs. Women’s Wear Daily declared them a star of Paris Couture Week earlier this year as Iris Van Herpen and Rahul Mishra debuted fungi-inspired pieces. Van Herpen’s show even included computer animations of a swirling spore cloud as models floated down the catwalk.

Mushroom mania superbloomed last fall when Bella Hadid stepped out in an ensemble that included baby mushroom earrings by Frasier Sterling, a silver mushroom necklace (designed to protect against bad trips) by Electro Magnetic Studios, a vintage bag with mushrooms etched on it, and even spore-dotted fingernails. Hadid has also posted shots of herself wearing a shirt with a mushroom and the words Eat Me. Artists from Tokyo to London are also waking up to the mushroom’s magic. One of them is Seana Gavin (@seanagavin), a London-based artist known for her photographs of the 1990s free party rave movement. She’s getting rave reviews for her psychedelic collages made from vintage

photographs that often feature weird and wonderful mycelial figures. “Gavin’s brightly spaced-out collages,” Dazed magazine wrote, “capture the acid-drenched mood of the zeitgeist.”

This zeitgeist was editor Francesca Gavin’s motivation for curating Mushrooms: The Art, Design, and Future of Fungi, an exhibition showcasing mushroom-influenced work by artists, designers, and technologists that opened in January 2020 at the Somerset House in London. The show was packing in more than 2,000 people per day when the pandemic shut it down. “I kept noticing artists working with mushrooms,” Gavin explained in a brief about the exhibit’s genesis. “I read Anna L. Tsing’s The Mushroom at the

TRIPPY LANDSCAPES Mushrooms are often the centerpiece of London-based artist Seana Gavin’s ethereal collages.

For print editions, contact seanagavin@gmail.com.

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Rooms of Shrooms Furniture designer Sebastian Cox and researcher Ninela Ivanova are creating furniture and lamps from a mycelium and wood composite product they invented for a project they call Mycelium + Timber. It’s genius: Fomes fomentarius, a fungus cultivated on willow strips, is added to molds made from the same type of willow strips. As the fungus eats its way through the mold, it leaves behind a soft, leather-like material.

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PHOTOS COURTESY SEBASTIAN COX

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ILLUSTRATION BY ANNA SULTANOVA, ADOBE STOCK

End of the World quite soon after its release and fell into a wormhole of mushroom facts. At this moment of climate crisis, treating something like mushrooms with respect and fascination feels more pressing than ever.”

Tsing’s 2016 book exploring matsutake mushrooms and the people who forage for them in Oregon, Yunnan, Lapland, and Japan is a modern parable of destruction and resilience in late-stage capitalism.

The publisher describes it as “an original examination into the relation between capitalist destruction and collaborative survival within multispecies landscapes, the prerequisite for continuing life on earth.”

Hallucinations and Heaven Mushrooms have been inspiring visionary art since we first found shelter in caves, if you believe ethnobotanist Terence McKenna. In Food of the Gods: The Search for the Original Tree of Knowledge, he describes 9,000-year-old cave paintings at Tassili n’Ajjer in Algeria that depict shamans tripping on mushrooms.

“The shamans are dancing with fists full of mushrooms and also have

EVERY CULTURE HAS A DIFFERENT TAKE ON MUSHROOMS—SOME LOVE THEM, SOME FEAR THEM. MEDIEVAL FLEMISH PAINTERS INCORPORATED TOADSTOOLS INTO THEIR PAINTINGS TO REPRESENT THE UNDERWORLD, WHILE THE PSYCHEDELIC ARTISTS OF THE 1960S AND ’70S PORTRAYED MUSHROOM TRIPS AS A SORT OF HEAVEN.

mushrooms sprouting out of their bodies,” McKenna says. “In one instance, they are shown running joyfully, surrounded by the geometric structures of their hallucinations.”

We’ve been adorning our homes and ourselves with mushrooms of all kinds (not just the magic ones) ever since. Every culture has a different take—some love them, some fear them. Medieval Flemish painters incorporated toadstools into their paintings to represent the underworld, while the psychedelic artists of the 1960s and ’70s portrayed mushroom trips as a sort of heaven. David Singer’s 1970 Grateful Dead poster “The Mushroom Man,” a great example, shows a small man dwarfed by two huge mushrooms; it’s meant to depict humans, stripped of all vanities, padding toward the cosmos via the magical mushroom portal.

That portal is certainly a big part of why we’re so charmed by fungi— especially now, as we find ourselves desperate for solutions to a mental health crisis pushed to frightening new heights by the pandemic.

But mushrooms have a lot more than psilocybin to offer humans,

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PHOTOS COURTESY OF SOCIETY6

SPORE SOCIETY Society6 features mushrooms on many of its products, from phone cases to wall art. society6.com

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DISCOVER WHAT’S HAPPENING IN WEST MICHIGAN’S CANNABIS INDUSTRY

WANT TO LEARN MORE? CONTACT JESSICA LAIDLAW AT JLAIDLAW@GRMAG.COM OR 616.401.8703 GRMAG.COM

FROM TOP: PHOTO COURTESY OF SOCIETY6 / ILLUSTRATION BY ANNA SULTANOVA, ADOBE STOCK

and we’re just beginning to tap into their potential. As we do, it’s becoming clear that they truly could make it possible for us to continue living on this earth, as Tsing asserts.

Mycelium, the stringy vegetative tissue of mushrooms, is emerging as a natural, environmentally superior building material that can be used to replace toxic, resource-intensive products like leather, engineered wood, and plastic. Simply by manipulating the growing conditions, engineers can turn mycelium into a lightweight foam, a durable brick, and everything in between.

Mycelium + Timber furniture and lamps from Sebastian Cox,

WE’RE JUST BEGINNING TO TAP INTO THE POTENTIAL OF MUSHROOMS. AS WE DO, IT’S BECOMING CLEAR THAT THEY TRULY COULD MAKE IT POSSIBLE FOR US TO CONTINUE LIVING ON THIS EARTH.

for example, are made from willow strips and a fungus cultivated on willow strips—a completely natural wood composite.

Perhaps my favorite mushroom innovation, the one I hope will gain wide acceptance, follows a similar concept—with humans as the willow strips. South Korean artist Jae Rhim Lee created a burial suit filled with mushroom spores that have been fed bits of her skin, hair, and nails so they’ll recognize her as food.

When Lee is buried in the suit, Mother Nature’s apex decomposer will devour her body, leaving behind no trace of it and the toxins it once contained.

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From left: Kyler, Adrian, and Sam sit in the staircase of the new location for Kyler's Kicks.

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MINOR

KEYS PHOTOS BY HOLLIE CARDINAL PHOTOGRAPHY

One family fights for clarity for

minors with medical cannabis cards.

TEXT DEBBIE HALL

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yler Nipper and his family’s medical marijuana journey began with a sharp pencil. When the family was living in Colorado, a classmate bullied Kyler about his shoes and then, later, in the hallway of their school. Without any provocation, he stabbed Kyler in the chest with a pencil.

Kyler was just 11 years old at the time and began suffering with symptoms of PTSD, including pain in his chest and feet, and anxiety.

The pharmaceuticals prescribed by his doctor did not help. In fact, they had a devastating effect.

Just 72 hours after Kyler began prescription medication, Kyler’s mother walked into his bedroom to discover a suicide attempt.

Because Sherise Nipper was taking medical cannabis for her own health, she and her husband Nick felt it would be beneficial to ex-

plore that route for Kyler. It took months for the Colorado court system to finally approve Kyler’s access to medical cannabis. “We took Kyler down to get his medical cannabis card that day. It has been night and day. Cannabis has been the key to Kyler’s healing,” she says.

FOGGY TIMES IN NEVADA However, once the family settled in Las Vegas, they found the state less clear about teen access than in Colorado. In Nevada, misunderstandings, miscommunications, and not knowing the law (as stated by the Cannabis Compliance Board) between the staff and management of dispensaries and minor medical cardholders and their parents/caregivers in Nevada frustrates consumers and shop owners alike.

Kyler, age 15, who was featured as the cover story for the March

2020 issue of Sensi Nevada magazine, now holds a medical cannabis card from Nevada. His parents are fostering two other minors who also hold medical cannabis cards.

“In Las Vegas, many dispensaries will not allow minor teens with medical cards to enter or get help— unlike in Colorado, where dispensaries are more accepting of minors,” says Sherise. What’s more, medical providers often don’t understand laws governing minors with medical cannabis cards.

The Nippers want to clarify medical use for teens through public education. Their nonprofit, Kyler’s Kicks, serves teens and families like theirs who are navigating medical cannabis access.

The Nippers opened Kyler’s Kicks Lounge, the first 24/7 nonprofit center in Las Vegas providing a healing space for teens attending sixth to 12th grades, offering ther-

Danny VonHorror, one of the volunteers at Kyler's Kicks, stands in front of the mural he painted at its new location.

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From left: Kyler, Adrian, and Brodee

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apy services, education, and social clubs. Kyler’s Kicks first started as a means to give away cool shoes to everyone who needed them. Kyler is president of the Kyler’s Kicks Lounge teen board of directors.

MORE SUPPORT FOR MEDICAL USE Kyler’s Kicks partners with numerous agencies to help teens with medical cannabis. Most teens cannot afford to get a card or purchase medical cannabis without support.

Kyler’s Kicks advises teens and their caregivers about the laws and benefits regarding medical marijuana in the state of Nevada.

For teens seeking solutions for mental health, the challenge starts the first time they visit a therapist, according to Sherise. Therapists are trained to prescribe pharmaceuticals, not medical cannabis.

Pharmaceuticals are approved treatments by insurance and government programs. On the other hand, effective treatments like “yoga, massages, cannabis, and essential oils are not approved by insurance and Medicaid treatment plans,” says Sherise.

The Nipper family has appeased insurance companies with the prescription melatonin, a natural pharmaceutical, as part of their approved treatment plan. However, cannabis still is not covered, costing their family hundreds of dollars a week. Delivery costs due to COVID-19 have made it even more expensive.

Kyler and his family have received help from Cohen Medical Centers in Colorado and Nevada.

“They have been a lifesaver for Kyler and the teens at Kyler’s Kicks,” says Sherise. “It is courageous for a doctor that has worked in the

“We see big changes in teens from the first year to the second year when they can communicate and are healing. I can see what these families go through. It is not that they want to get their kids high but get them the help they deserve.”

—Robert Cohen, Cohen Medical Center

pharmaceutical world for so long to change his opinion about cannabis. This plant has offered true healing for our teens.”

Robert Cohen says that cannabis for teens is slowly becoming more accepted as the benefits become clear. “We see big changes in teens from the first year to the second year when they can communicate and are healing,” he says. “I can see what these families go through. It is not that they want to get their kids high but get them the help they deserve.” The family believes Kyler’s medical cannabis card and lawful use of medical marijuana is a privilege—an attitude that Kyler imparts to everyone as part of his mission.

OVERCOMING THE STIGMA Parents who learn about Kyler and his medical cannabis advocacy sometimes don’t want their teens to associate with Kyler. Others are very accepting. Brodee, for example, who is part of the squad of Kyler, Sam, and Adrian, loves hanging out with her friends and became one of Kyler’s first friends in Nevada. Brodee’s father has a medical cannabis card due to lupus. Brodee does not take cannabis but her mother, Alexis, has encouraged the friendship and even helps with Kyler’s Kicks.

“I don’t notice anything different about Kyler, except that I can see cannabis helps him a lot,” says Brodee. “He is really happy. I have seen him without cannabis, and it is not good for him. I am an advocate for people to feel the best they can, and I know it helps my friends and dad.”

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Kyler’s Kicks Lounge Las Vegas kylerskicks.org

and insomnia. “The pharmaceuticals I was prescribed made my muscle ticks and problems worse,” he says. “I also felt like a zombie.

Now I feel great and normal using cannabis. I no longer feel suicidal. I am looking forward to life.”

Adrian, age 18, was first prescribed Zoloft and other medications for PTSD, anxiety, depression, and gender dysphoria. “I was feeling too low when I took them,” she says. “Now, I am on cannabis, and I feel great. I am studying for an internship to learn how to train security dogs.”

With COVID-19, I have had the time to work on myself. We are here to stay in Nevada to continue to fight. I love this city.”

—Kyler Nipper

From left: Kyler, Adrian, NEVADA STRONG Sam, and Brodee “So far, it has been a wild ride here in Nevada, but it has also been very cool, and I have helped a lot of people. With COVID-19, I have had the time to work on myself. We are here to stay in Nevada to continue the fight. I love this city,” says Kyler.

“Every one of our youth here in Nevada deserves the exact same rights as in Colorado. We are staying to fight for them because they are family,” says Sharise. “We were called here, and with our many blessings, we have become a voice for these teens.”

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A new bill in California aims to help cannabis patients get the relief they deserve, and a network of industry activists is here to support them.

COMPASSIONATE

TEXT DAWN GARCIA

C

annabis and the law have long been bitter rivals— but more and more states are reevaluating medical and recreational cannabis use. In California, legislators and activists continue to normalize and support medical cannabis.

One network of licensed cannabis companies called “Dear Cannabis;” (yes, the semicolon is part of the name) has launched compassion projects to eliminate costs for patients in need under Califor-

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nia Senate Bill No. 34, The Dennis Peron and Brownie Mary Act (CA SB-34). Legacy operators, advocates, and politicians have worked hard to eliminate tax liability on donations throughout the licensed supply chain, and that has created an opportunity for these advocates to step up and support patients who need help.

We talked to Dear Cannabis; co-founder Kellie Carlton to better understand the mission behind compassionate cannabis legislation and the impact of CA SB-34.

PHOTO CREDIT

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What does CA SB-34 allow exactly? What is its significance?

As of March 1, 2020, CA SB-34 (The Dennis Peron and Brownie Mary Act) grants licensed retailers the right to donate free cannabis and cannabis goods to qualified medical patients and their caregivers. SB-34 rectified Prop 64’s oversight on compassionate gifting by eliminating the tax liability on donated cannabis goods throughout the supply chain.

Under SB-34, items designated for donation may only be provided to a medicinal patient or primary caregiver through a licensed retailer; however, licensed cultivators, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers may all designate cannabis or cannabis products in their inventory for donation.

These donations must move through the licensed supply chain in the same way cannabis products that are for sale do, meeting all applicable requirements for cultivation, manufacturing distribution, laboratory testing, packaging, and labeling, etc.

As long as all Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (MAUCRSA) and state cannabis regulations are met throughout the supply chain, the donated goods can be provided to patients at no cost and are exempt from cultivation, excise, sales, and use tax. All donated materials (raw or finished product) must be designated as a donation package in METRC (the state track-andtrace program) and additionally documented along the supply chain with a Cannabis Donation Certificate that is maintained by transferring parties.

It is important to note that there

is a 5-year limitation on SB-34.

What we’re able to collectively accomplish as an industry within this timeframe will be paramount in defining a need for legislators to extend this bill so operators can continue serving those in need.

How can donations remain compliant to CA SB-34?

In order for donations to remain compliant, all MAUCRSA and California state regulations must be met throughout the licensed supply chain, must be designated as a donation package in METRC, and have a passing C.O.A. (Certificate of Analysis).

All participating parties will be responsible for filling out and maintaining the Cannabis Donation Certificate when transferring

custody of the donation package.

This certifies that the donation will not be sold by the accepting party and must be kept in the transferring party’s records for seven years. If the donation is sold at any point, the package will be stripped of its gift designation and the entire participating supply chain would be liable for taxes on that specific batch.

As the disseminating party, California retailers have specific guidelines to follow from patient verification, management, and reporting. In efforts to expand compassion programs, our organization compiled all legislative/ bulletin requirements from the three regulatory oversight bodies (BCC, CDPH, CDA) to create a comprehensive operations proA P R I L 2021

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Cannabis prohibition ended to facilitate safe access for those in need, not put them at further risk.

Dear Cannabis; is motivated to change this and we’re unifying our network to ensure sustainable access for people in need.”

—Kellie Carlton, Co-founder of Dear Cannabis;

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tocol/guide on how to establish a compliant donation program. Our Plug of the People Retail Compassion Toolkit provides a road map for licensed retailers to set up a compliant, plug-in compassion program at no cost.

Our goal is to create more compassionate resources, so we help coordinate more projects that utilize the resources of our network.

That would allow our team to manage every step in the project, from cultivation to retail, ensuring that donations are compliantly moving through the supply chain and meeting all regulatory standards.

We do encourage all operators to check in with their legal and compliance teams before participating in compassionate gifting.

these actions from tax law 280E, we believe it will create a stronger incentive for companies to step up and provide support to compassion programs.

How did the compassion program start?

Our organization’s goal is to create free, clean, and quality cannabis products specifically for donation through industry collaboration.

As friends and colleagues in the commercial cannabis space, we bonded over our love and respect for the plant. Like most people, we spent 2020 reflecting on our personal values and what truly matters to us. The more discussions we had, the clearer the picture became: patients were being left behind in the cannabis industry and we wanted to What future legislation do you make them a priority again. hope CA SB-34 leads to?

Through these conversations, With the five-year limitation of we were introduced to CA SB-34 CA SB-34, our organization is and the work of Senator Weiner’s pushing to make a measurable office (District 4) to re-establish impact that clearly defines and demonstrates the need for a long- compassionate gifting programs term legislative solution to estab- for qualified patients. This became our call-to-action and an oplishing and maintaining cannabis compassion programs not only for portunity to put our professional network to good use. By June of California, but across the nation.

2020, Dear Cannabis; was foundAs discussions of Federal reed and our first compassion projform progress, we want to safeect was off the ground. guard access for patients within Today, our network is unifythe developing legislation. It is our hope that we will have tracked ing the cannabis supply chain to sustain retail compassion proenough donation data through grams across the state. By utilizing METRC to justify the need for in-kind and gift donations from national compassion programs. our partnered license holders, we Additionally, we believe donatcoordinate each company’s unique ing cannabis companies should supplies and capabilities to co-proreceive tax deductions for their duce compassion SKUs at no cost contributions, not just exempto qualified patients and their tions for the services they are caregivers. Our process provides providing the community. If we can adjust the language to exempt licensed companies an opportunity

to step in and contribute available resources to a project, rather than shouldering the entire production and cost which traditionally has been a major roadblock. Ultimately, this removes the burden of operations on an individual company by dividing the responsibilities among several license-holders while creating a platform for cannabis operators to step up and give back to patients in need.

As co-founder and CEO Melissa Burgstahler explains, “Dear Cannabis; is my love letter to the industry and the people who it was built for, the patients. As a child I lost my mother to breast cancer and as an adult I realized the impact cannabis had in providing her comfort during her illness. Now, I get to give back to patients just like my mom in honor of her.”

In addition to being the inspiration behind our organization, Mrs. Burgstahler’s mother’s handwriting is our logo and placed on every Dear Cannabis; compassion product, continuing her legacy with each and every donation.

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ity products now—and in the future—without the additional stress of how to obtain them.

To date, Dear Cannabis; has coordinated seven compassion projects, yielding and donating over 12,500 products including RSO, tinctures, and pre-rolls. Since June, our network has grown by over 30 partners licensed in cultivation, manufacturing, distribution, and testing facilities across California.

In addition to our supply chain partners, we have over 25 retail partners providing these donations to their local patient base, making sure they end up in the hands that need them the most.

Why are compassion programs so essential to those in need?

As professionals in the cannabis space, we saw firsthand how Prop 64 created barriers of access for patients. Overnight, the new law prohibited license holders from legally donating cannabis despite building off the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, Prop 215.

Those who built their companies to serve patients during the 215-era were forced to operate out of pocket or break the rules, risking their license to continue supporting their patient base.

New, burdensome regulations and taxations across the supply chain furthered a shift in focus to dayto-day operations, compliance and bottom lines. Simultaneously, counties started mandating closures of medical dispensaries leaving cannabis deserts while imposing excise taxes on existing shops that priced out the majority of disabled or low-income patient groups. Together, these factors unintentionally pushed the most

JOIN THE MOVEMENT Kellie Carlton shares how brands and companies get involved in the compassion program.

Today, Dear Cannabis; is actively working to expand its network to strengthen the donation pipeline and sustain partner retail programs. We are working on cultivating strong partnerships throughout the supply chain to expedite compassion projects and increase impact. Below is a list of ways each license type can get involved: Licensed Cultivators can donate extra cannabis flower, trim, or biomass.

Dear Cannabis; will help you certify the donation and work with the network to get it packaged or processed into a compassion product for patients in need.

Licensed Manufacturers can donate bulk oil or their specialized services (processing and or packaging) to create a specific compassion product like FSO, tinctures, pre-rolls, and more. Dear Cannabis; can connect you with source material, compassion products to package, or other network manufacturers to co-produce a specialized product with your oil donation.

To remain compliant, all cannabis donations must be transported through the licensed supply chain in the same way as cannabis products for sale do.

Licensed Distributors can contribute by providing transportation services on any project throughout the state.

Every batch of compassion products produced must pass CA regulatory compliance testing to be authorized for donation. Licensed Testing Facilities can partner with us today by providing required testing on our next project.

Additionally, since all cannabis donations must meet CA regulatory packaging and labeling standards, our projects are always looking for sponsors to cover those costs. Since there is no license required to purchase packaging/ labeling supplies, we are able to partner with unlicensed and licensed businesses to fulfill this need.

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Just like our licensed partners, we’re inspired and humbled by patients’ stories…

It is through these stories that we get to see the positive impacts cannabis products are having, and they continue to fuel our passion to create access for those in need.”

—Kellie Carlton, Co-founder of Dear Cannabis;

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LEARN MORE

dearcannabis.org dearcannabis.org/getinvolved contact@dearcannabis.org. dearcannabis.org/donate

health and we both credit its usage to being able to lead productive, fulfilling lives. Beyond our individual struggles we both shared similar stories of loved ones suffering from cancer, addiction, and chronic pain who all found comfort through consumption. Despite the wide range of ailments, each case had the same solution: cannabis.

As advocates in this space, we hear stories every day of how cannabis is assisting people across the country in a myriad of ways.

From helping chronic pain sufferers, to cancer patients dealHow can the industry continue to ing with side effects of chemo, to support patients and dispensaries veterans living with PTSD, we’ve seen cannabis have positive, therthat offer aid to the public?

Under CA SB-34, licensed cultiva- apeutic benefits for patients receiving our donations. tors, manufacturers, distributors, Just like our licensed partners, and retailers all may designate canWhat resources are available to nabis or cannabis products in their we’re inspired and humbled by pamedical marijuana patients? tients’ stories detailing their struginventory for donation. However, After the passing of Prop 64, acgles and their gratitude for cancess to cannabis resources for pa- those donations may only be disnabis in providing relief. We hear tributed to patients by a licensed tients became limited. The costs retailer. Therefore, we recommend from grandmothers who are now associated with providing cannaable run around with their grandbis for free to at-risk communities partnering (if you’re not already children, veterans finally getting caused programs to dry up around licensed) with a retailer who una full night of sleep, and cancer derstands the compliance and rethe state. Now, CA SB-34 allows patients regaining their appetites. porting requirements of SB-34 so licensed cannabis companies to It is through these stories that we your donations reach people who contribute without incurring tax get to see the positive impacts need them. liabilities on their donations. cannabis products are having, and We believe that our industry However, because this amendment is nascent and lacks compli- needs to work together to provide they continue to fuel our passion ance protocols, we found that ex- the necessary support to patients to create access for those in need.

Today under CA SB-34, Dear isting compassion programs were throughout the state. We created Cannabis; is educating licensed our network so licensed compalimited and the dispensaries that companies on how to compliantly nies can unite their resources to were offering assistance lacked navigate the new legislation while help patients without burdening adequate inventory. empowering brands to do their Today, our network of licensed their operations or bottom line. part to help patients in need. If companies is working together to solve this problem by contributing How has cannabis impacted your your licensed company is looking to compassion projects that yield lives? Why is cannabis so valuable to donate inventory or would like products specifically for donation. to the quality of life of so many of to contribute services/resources to Since June 2020, our network has those you partner and work with? a future project, we are happy to help connect your products to pacreated and donated thousands of Personally, cannabis has been tients in need. monumental in aiding our mental products that help sustain retail vulnerable populations out of an industry that was created ultimately to serve them.

We watched as Prop 64 started to unravel the work done to establish safe access for at-risk populations through Prop 215. As a result, patients turned to the traditional market, risking ingestion of adulterated products (molds, powdery mildew, heavy metals, etc.) just to find relief.

This was unacceptable. Cannabis prohibition ended to facilitate safe access for those in need, not put them at further risk. Dear Cannabis; is motivated to change this and we’re unifying our network to ensure sustainable access for people in need.

compassion programs throughout California.

If you are a patient or caregiver looking for support, we recommend asking your local dispensary if they offer a program and if there are any requirements beyond obtaining a medical recommendation to apply. Additionally, there are organizations such as Weed for Warriors Project, SweetLeaf Collective, BlkCannaJoy, and Veterans Cann Coalition, among many others that offer amazing resources and support to patients in need.

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THE SCENE

2016 There was a bit of magic in the air and lots of smiles on people’s faces at Sensi’s official launch party at City Hall in Denver on April 15, 2016—the only big event of the 4/20 weekend that year not cancelled because of snow.

So Many More Photos! sensimag.com

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THE SCENE

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G E T T H E PA R T Y S TA R T E D

The first-ever Sensi Night got going in Denver on August 10, 2016, and we kept the party going the rest of the year with Sensi Night Denver/Boulder in October, Dazed & Amused at Voodoo Lounge in Las Vegas during MJBizCon in November, and Higher Society NYE with Alex Grey in December.

So Many More Photos! sensimag.com

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THE SCENE

2017 The cannabis community came out in full force to celebrate Sensi’s first birthday in April 2017 during what was the largest Sensi Night to date at City Hall.

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HAPPY HOLIDAZED

During MJBizCon 2018, Sensi brought people together for Shanghai Nights in November. The following week in Denver, the community came together to spread some cheer during a special holiday edition of Sensi Connects followed by the Cannabis Business Awards the next night.

So Many More Photos! sensimag.com

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THE SCENE

2018 As Sensi grew into new markets, so did the signature events series: Sensi Nights and Sensi Connects...plus the occasional Sensi Days.

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THE SCENE

SENSI TURNS TWO

A celebration too large to be contained, Sensi’s second anniversary party took over all three floors of two of Denver’s largest event venues—plus the block in between.

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COAST TO COAST

DJ Lord of Prophets of Rage joined Sensi for a three-day tour of Southern California to celebrate the launch of the Los Angeles, Orange County, and San Diego editions in March 2018, then he joined us to launch Boston in May then Las Vegas in June.

So Many More Photos! sensimag.com

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THE SCENE

2019 By the time Sensi turned three, its annual birthday gathering had ballooned in size and popularity, outgrowing almost all of had outgrown almost all of the venues in Denver except one: EXDO Event Center.

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Nights

SENSI NIGHTS

Throughout the year, Sensi Nights brought the local cannabis communities together in Sensi markets across the country.

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THE SCENE

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ALL ABOUT CONNECTION

Sensi Connects is the private event series that brings cannabis industry leaders together to celebrate and collaborate.

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THE SCENE

2020 Before 2020 turned into “2020,” Sensi was on the scene in cities coast to coast for its signature event series—including the first-ever Sensi Connects Coachella Valley, which included an indulgent cannabis pairing dinner at the Bing Crosby Estate in Rancho Mirage.

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S E N S I TA M PA BAY LAUNCH

With a flamingo-foward first front cover, Sensi debuted in the Sunshine State with a high-style launch event for Sensi Tampa Bay at Station House in St. Petersburg on January 31, 2020.

So Many More Photos! sensimag.com

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ADVISORY BOARD C O M PA S S I O N AT E C A R E

Category: Medical Cannabis Author: Dr. Joseph Dryer, D.O., Compassionate Care of Florida.

Location: Oldsmar, Florida

The Perfect Fit

The basic concept of Direct Primary Care (DPC) is that a patient comes in, pays a very reasonable monthly rate (around $75-100 per month), and gets their very own doctor. It gives the power back to the doctor and the patient.

There’s no insurance company to dictate what’s to be done, no onerous Medicare quality measures. A patient can come in when they need to and have full access to their doctor. DPC is a perfect fit with medical cannabis.

People want a more personal relationship with their doctors. Many medical cannabis patients have more issues hen I left resiscientific sources, but what really than can be solved with just cannabis, dency, I accepted amazed me was seeing its effects in and many primary care patients have an offer at a my patients. We had so many success numerous issues that can be helped multi-specialty stories—from getting people off of with medical cannabis. There’s a perpractice owned by physicians. A year methadone to helping Parkinson’s fect harmony here—not just between later, it was sold by the physicians to patients to getting a 9-year-old with se- internal medicine and medical cannaa major insurance company. Over six vere autism to speak for the first time. bis, and not just between the doctor years at that clinic, I learned a lot about I knew I had made the right choice, and the patient, but a combination how broken the medical system is, how that I really loved what I did again. It of all of them. It saved me, mentally, patients get treated poorly, and how to re-vitalized my passion. physically, and financially. I hope that be a compassionate doctor despite the I had always been under the impres- others are so lucky to find the harmony time constraints placed upon me. When sion that physician-owned practices I have found.

I came back to my job from paternity were a dying proposition due to all leave, I knew I needed a change. I the overhead needed to run them, but The Sensi Advisory Board comprises select had always been intrigued by medical a friend from med school now in the industry leaders in a variety of fields, from cannabis, so I left the corporate internal medical cannabis field invited me to a education to cultivation. They are invited to medicine world to open a clinic.

Facebook group called Direct Primary share specialized insight in this dedicated section.

For a full list of board members, see page 15.

I learned about cannabis from Care Doctors that opened my eyes.

A doctor rediscovered his love for work and life when he opened a medical cannabis clinic and adopted a Direct Primary Care system.

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P R O M OT I O N A L F E AT U R E R O PA N A W E L L N E S S

Fueled by Positivity RopaNa Wellness is healing the community, one drop at a time.

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t its core, RopaNa Wellness is a business built on a passion for using what nature has given us to better our bodies and minds.

Founded in 2017, the company offers a wide array of Vermont-grown CBD products designed to bring relief to

customers in the New England market and beyond.

Created by two outdoorsy, pet-loving yoga enthusiasts, the company strives to bring a positive experience to its supporters. Based on the ancient Sanskrit language, the name RopaNa means “to heal oneself.” That ethos

also translates to the company’s “Most environmentally conscious prioriinsurance ties. Utilizing solar power, recycled, plans do biodegradable materials, and minimal packaging, RopaNa is intent on leaving not cover no scars on the world it occupies as it CBD … journeys forward. so, we The company offers full-spectrum created this hemp extracts in the form of oil and program to edibles. Its newest offering is a cutting-edge oil that offers a 2:1 ratio help people blend of CBD and CBG. It has quickly recover become a customer favorite for sleep, through pain, and stress relief. the healing As part of its commitment to the properties community, RopaNa has created a unique way to bring the healing prop- of our erties of CBD to anyone who needs products. relief but who may not have access No one due to financial need. The Compasshould be sion Program allows individuals who left behind are suffering from chronic illness or disabilities the opportunity to enroll in in our a year-long membership program that world.” delivers a 35 percent discount on the brand’s full lineup of CBD products.

—Andrew Switz, “We understand that most co-founder of insurance plans do not cover CBD and RopaNa Wellness that many folks suffering are on fixed incomes,” says Andrew Switz, co-founder. “That’s so unfortunate.

So, we created this program to help people recover through the healing properties of our products. No one should be left behind in our world.”

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P R O M OT I O N A L F E AT U R E JUPITER RESEARCH

Planetary Convergence

flawless vape experience. Precise manufacturing means brands deliver sleek, eye-catching products.

New products this year include the LiquidX Infinity and Liquid Que. Available in an array of vivid colors and with smooth design and attractive packaging, these vaporizers are designed to stand out in a crowded marketplace. The single-use, all-in-one disposable vaporizer platform LiquidX Infinity does not require recharging s the vape market evolves pods, and more. and delivers around one-hundred and changes seemingly Headquartered in the United States, draws. And the Liquid Que utilizes overnight, new innovaand with a state-of-the-art manufacsnap-in pod cartridges and offers a retions and regulations turing facility in China, Jupiter works chargeable power supply. With quality require that brands choose supply with brands to ensure that vape and consistency in every activation, it partners carefully. Jupiter helps brands hardware is up-to-date and delivered is the model of efficacy. deliver high-quality, safe products with quickly and efficiently. Jupiter facilities Team up with Jupiter to offer enticing designs. are ISO certified. Products are tested customers high-quality, eye-catching Jupiter is committed to real-time using California Phase 3 compliance products that are among the safest on innovation, driving the industry. To as a benchmark, so buyers can rest the market. date, Jupiter’s vaporizer hardware has assured that products are the highest supported 1,000+ THC and CBD brands quality and safe, which is top of mind in 35 U.S. states and 15 countries, for consumers. including Canada and Israel. Jupiter Jupiter products come standard Jupiter Research offers stock and white-label customwith 510 thread and batteries and Vaporizer Hardware Manufacturer ized cartridges, batteries, all-in-ones, CCELL® heating technology for a jupiterresearch.com

Stay ahead with quality customizable vaporizers.

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P R O M OT I O N A L F E AT U R E P R E M I E R H E M P C O M PA N Y

The Healing Power of Hemp Premier Hemp Company is the place to go in Michigan for expert advice and stellar products.

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s one of the leading experts in medical cannabis, Dr. David Crocker has dedicated his life to bringing the restorative and healing powers of cannabis and hemp to the public.

A tireless cannabis advocate, he was one of the first doctors in Michigan to offer medical marijuana exams, and he sits on the board of Michigan NORML. When Crocker realized that many of the products entering the market made dubious claims, he decided to step in and found the Premier Hemp Company.

“I realized that I could not, with a clear conscience, recommend many CBD products [on the market] to my patients. They just were not what they claimed to be,” Crocker says. “So, my wife, Annette Crocker [a registered nurse], and I decided to open our own store to sell only the finest products— ones that we’ve researched and vetted.

Anyone who buys from us knows that they are getting what they are paying for, not a substandard product.”

In the five years since Premier Hemp opened up, it has become the

place to go for relief from symptoms. “I realized The shop’s knowledgeable and caring that I could staff is always available to answer not, with customers’ questions. a clear While he was pleased with his conscience, efforts to launch the store, Crocker was not content. He knew he could do recommend more for his patients and the people of many CBD his community. So, he started work on products creating the best CBD-based product [on the on the market. His in-house brand, Solutions by Dr. Dave, is formulated market] to with 99.9 percent pure pharmaceutimy patients. cal grade CBD isolate, with terpenes They just selected for their synergistic benefits.

The new products are designed to offer were not what they relief to patients suffering from pain, arthritis, anxiety, insomnia, depression, claimed to and muscle spasms. Every offering in be.” the line is developed with the doctor’s —Dr. David Crocker, motto in mind. Lead your best life. co-founder of Premier Hemp Company

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P R O M OT I O N A L F E AT U R E HERBO PIPE

A Kind Pipe

system’s design ensures that smoke is clear and clean. Rather than sucking unfiltered hot smoke into their lungs, a user can enjoy each puff without coughing fits. Plus, the ballistic process pulls all the unwanted heavy oils out of the smoke and leaves them congealed inside the pipe’s dome, easy to clean out after use. hen Wesley Herb that strips out harmful oils and tars HERBO is also the only pipe Dunback designed that commonly accompany each and designed to have no physical contact the HERBO over every puff. with a user’s mouth for a fully sanitary a decade ago, To understand how it does that, look social smoking experience. Each his passion was to create the perfect no further than the name. HERBO is an HERBO pipe comes with a glass screen smoke delivery system. Thanks to acronym that stands for Hydro Electro bowl, dab and carb attachment, and Dunback, the HERBO pipe is a masRespiratory Ballistic Optimizer. An instructions on the proper care and terpiece. “I designed this pipe for one electric pipe, it creates a vacuum that use of the pipe. It’s time to give your reason,” says Dunback. “To be kind to draws smoke into a sealed chamber lungs a break and raise your overall your lungs.” where the smoke and expanded gases enjoyment level.

Made with cutting-edge technoloare filtered through swirling water gy, the pipe enables users to enjoy the and filtering bubbles. It then delivers effects of fresh flower and dabs with a steady stream of cooled smoke none of the negatives of smoking. through a long-tapered stem with little HERBO Pipe That’s because the HERBO pipe utiliz- to no effort from the user.

The Premier Water Pipe es its proprietary Hydrafuge process Scientifically documented, the herbopipes.com

An exceptional clean-smoke delivery system.

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THE END

MAKE IT HAPPEN If you want to work on your art and join a like-minded community, sign up for a poetry class with Lighthouse Writers Workshop today. lighthousewriters.org

April is National Poetry Month and we at Sensi encourage you to read as much poetry as possible, write the poems that you want to get out, work on them fastidiously, and live as if Walt Whitman himself were whispering all of the world’s secrets into your ear. To that end, we give you one of our favorite Whitman poems.

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Oh me! Oh life! of the questions of these recurring, Of the endless trains of the faithless, of cities fill’d with the foolish, Of myself forever reproaching myself, ( for who more foolish than I, and who more faithless?)

Of eyes that vainly crave the light, of the objects mean, of the struggle ever renew’d, Of the poor results of all, of the plodding and sordid crowds I see around me, Of the empty and useless years of the rest, with the rest me intertwined, The question, O me! so sad, recurring—What good amid these, O me, O life?

Answer.

That you are here—that life exists and identity, That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.

PHOTO VIA UNSPLASH

Write It, Live It

O Me! O Life!

Eva Littman, MD, F.A.C.O.G.

Amity Hererra, PA-C

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