Melissa Etheridge stormed onto the American rock scene in 1988 with the release of her critically acclaimed self-titled debut album.

With massive original hits such as I’m the Only One and Come to My Window, Melissa has remained one of America’s favorite rock stars for more than three decades. Her artistic and commercial successes have been highlighted by accolades including two Grammy Awards for “Best Female Rock Performance,” a “Songwriter of the Year” honor at the ASCAP Pop Awards, and a career milestone with a victory in the “Best Song” category at the 2007 Academy Awards for I Need to Wake Up, written for the Al Gore documentary An Inconvenient Truth.

Throughout her career, Melissa has shown herself to be an artist who has never allowed “inconvenient truths” to keep her silent. She publicly acknowledged her sexual orientation at a time when it was considered risky to do so, and continued her activism toward achieving Marriage Equality.

After being diagnosed with breast cancer in October 2004, Melissa appeared on the 2005 Grammy telecast despite losing her hair from chemotherapy, to sing “Piece of My Heart” in tribute to Janis Joplin. As a cancer survivor, Melissa has publicly advocated for the therapeutic benefits of medicinal cannabis. She is also an Advisor to the nonprofit Survivorship Collective.

Through the Etheridge Foundation, Melissa has continued her activism and public education with a mission to help people heal from opioid use disorder through transformative plant medicine and psychedelic treatments.

Gabor Maté (pronounced GAH-bor MAH-tay) is a retired physician who, after 20 years of family practice and palliative care experience, worked for over a decade in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side with patients challenged by drug addiction and mental illness.

The bestselling author of five books published in 43 languages, including the award-winning In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters With Addiction, Gabor is an internationally renowned speaker highly sought after for his expertise on addiction, trauma, childhood development, and the relationship of stress and illness.

For his ground-breaking medical work and writing he has been awarded the Order of Canada, his country’s highest civilian distinction, and the Civic Merit Award from his hometown, Vancouver. His most recent book, The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness and Healing in a Toxic Culture is a New York Times and international bestseller.

His next book, co-written with his son Daniel, will be Hello Again: A Fresh Start for Parents and their Adult Children, based on their popular workshop, and is expected to publish in late 2027.

www.drgabormate.com

José Carlos Bouso is a Clinical Psychologist with a PhD in Pharmacology. He developed his scientific actitives while at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, the Instituto de Investigación Biomédica IIB-Sant Pau de Barcelona, and the Instituto Hospital del Mar de Investigaciones Médicas de Barcelona (IMIM). His psychopharmacological studies have examined the acute and neuropsychiatric long-term effects of many substances, both synthetic and of plant origin. As the Scientific Director at ICEERS, José Carlos coordinates studies on the potential benefits of psychoactive plants, principally cannabis, ayahuasca, and ibogaine, with the goal of improving public health. He is co-author of numerous scientific papers and several book chapters. He is also a member of the MARC (Medical Anthropology Research Center) at the Universitat Rovira i Virgili in Tarragona, visiting professor in the mental health program at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of São Paulo in Riberão Preto, Brazil, and vice-president of the Society of Clinical Endocannabinology (SEC).

Allison (Alli) Feduccia, PhD, is a neuropharmacologist, psychedelic researcher, and educator. She is the Founder + CEO of Psychedelic Support, a platform for education and connection to psychedelic practitioners and community groups. She serves as a scientific advisor and consultant to 501(c)(3) nonprofits advancing psychedelic research, innovative treatments, and advocacy for equitable, responsible access to psychedelic therapies for mental health and wellness. She began researching MDMA in 2004 and has worked on mental health studies at UT Austin, UCSF, NIH, and MAPS. Through her work, Dr. Feduccia bridges rigorous science with compassionate, earth-honoring wisdom to illuminate the transformative power of expanded states of consciousness.

Jesse Gould, a former Army Ranger and Founder of Heroic Hearts Project, is leading the charge when it comes to providing psychedelic therapy to military veterans. Through his nonprofit, he has raised over $10 million and served more than 1,500 veterans and veteran spouses. Partnering with top institutions like the University of Georgia and Imperial College London, Jesse continues to further research on psychedelic treatments for PTSD and TraumaticBrain Injury. His work, featured in outlets like the New York Times and Forbes, has earned him recognition as the "Godfather of psychedelics for veterans," making him a global advocate for reshaping mental health care for those who have sacrificed so much.

Anne Hamilton is the founder and executive director of the Survivorship Collective, the first non-profit connecting the cancer community to safe, regulated, psychedelic-assisted therapies. Aftersurviving advanced-stage cancer as a young adult, she became an advocate for better mentaland spiritual care for cancer patients, survivors, and their loved ones. Hamilton is a formerlitigator, 9th Circuit Clerk, and a current member of the Psychedelic Bar Association. She hasworked in government, with nonprofits, and in higher education as a professor at USC’s Schoolof Cinematic Arts. She is a 2025 Mira Fellow, a certified mediator, holds a J.D. from Yale LawSchool, a Master’s Degree in Philosophy from Stanford University, and is a graduate of NotreDame and the American Film Institute.

Richard Harris is a Susan Samueli Endowed Chair in the Susan Samueli Integrative Health Institute and Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Care in the School of Medicine at the University of California at Irvine. His background is in basic science and clinical research in alternative medicine. He received his B.S. degree in Genetics from Purdue University in 1992 and his Ph. D. in Molecular and Cell Biology from UC Berkeley in 1997. Following his graduate work, he completed a postdoctoral fellowship at NIH. He is a graduate of the Maryland Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine and has received an MS degree in Clinical Research Design and Statistical Analysis at the University of Michigan. Dr.Harris is currently investigating mechanisms of chronic pain and its treatment with acupuncture, psychedelics, energy healing, and shamanism. His recent investigations have focused on the role of brain neurotransmitters and brain network behavior in chronic pain. He was a member of the National Advisory Council for NIH/NCCIH and is a past co-President for the Society forAcupuncture Research.

Dr. Larry Leeman is a Professor in the Departments of Family & Community Medicine, and Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of New Mexico (UNM). He is the site PI for three NIH grants in the involving opioid use disorder in pregnancy and neonatal effects. Dr. Leeman is board certified in Family and Addiction Medicine, and practices family medicine with a special interest in the care of pregnant women and newborns. He directs the Family Medicine Maternal and Child Health service and fellowship and is Co-Medical Director of the University of New Mexico (UNM) Hospital Mother-Baby Unit. He is also Medical Director of the Milagro Program that provides prenatal care and maternity care services to women with substance abuse problems. Dr. Leeman practiced rural Family Medicine at the Zuni/Ramah Indian Health Service Hospital for six years and subsequently earned a fellowship in Obstetrics. He is currently the Medical Editor for the nationwide Advanced Life Support in Obstetrics (ALSO) program. His current areas of research include rural maternity care, perinatal opioid use disorder, neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome, and the use of psychedelic assisted therapies for trauma and addiction.

Juliana Mulligan, LMSW, is a psychotherapist who is formerly opioid dependent, formerly incarcerated, and has been working in the ibogaine treatment community for fourteen years. In 2011, with the help of ibogaine treatment, Juliana left opioids behind and set off on a path to transform the way drug users and their treatment is approached. She has a master’s in social work from NYU, was previously the Psychedelic Program Coordinator at the Center for Optimal Living, and is a consultant for Americans for Ibogaine. She currently runs Inner Vision Ibogaine, which supports people in preparation and integration around ibogaine treatment and offers consulting services to ibogaine related projects. She is also the founder of Idryma, the first ibogaine facilitator training program. She has worked in multiple ibogaine clinics, presented at many psychedelic and harm reduction conferences, and is the author of the Guide to Finding aSafe Ibogaine Clinic and co-author of Fireside’s Warning Signs When Selecting a Psychedelic Facilitator. She has taught about ibogaine at Charite University in Berlin and SouthwesternCollege in New Mexico and has written for multiple publications about ibogaine. She has also been quoted in the New York Times, Rolling Stone, National Geographic, and Reason Magazine.

Dr. Christopher Nicholas is Assistant Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health with expertise in clinical and experimental trial design, training, and neuroimaging in the field of psychedelics. His research examines the clinical efficacy and therapeutic mechanisms of psychedelics and other psychoactive compounds for addiction (alcohol, opioid, and methamphetamine use disorders), trauma, chronic pain, and depression. Dr. Nicholas is also a supervisor for the UW Addiction Medicine Fellowship Program, and provides specialty clinical services focused on opioid medication management and taper in the context of chronic pain, addiction, and trauma.

Sandeep Nayak is an Assistant Professor and Center Medical Director and Johns Hopkins University. He also works as a psychiatrist at Addiction Treatment Services (ATS) and The Center for Addiction and Pregnancy (CAP) at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center.

Dr. Nayak completed his MD at Brown University and his psychiatry residency at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He’s primarily focused on investigating psychedelics as treatments for psychiatric conditions, particularly substance use disorders and mood disorders.

Some other research interests within the field include the application of Bayesian statistics to clinical trials and psychedelic induced belief changes.

Danielle Nova is an expert in microdosing and psychedelic-assisted approaches for addiction recovery. She is the Executive Director of the first and largest psychedelic society in the United States, San Francisco Psychedelic Society, as well as the Founder of Lumeria and the Microdosing Facilitator Training, the first such certification training in North America.

Danielle transformed her life out of 15 years of severe drug addiction through the intentional use of psychedelics and microdosing. She went on to found Psychedelic Recovery, a harm reduction peer support group that has provided integration services for thousands of individuals around the globe who are utilizing psychedelics to interrupt addictive patterns. 

As a leader in the field, Danielle has professionally trained and certified over 100 clinicians, coaches and wellness practitioners to become ethical, trauma-informed microdosing facilitators. With nearly a decade of experience, Danielle has made a significant global impact by creating and delivering educational programs, integration groups and addiction recovery services to more than 25,000 individuals worldwide.

Featured in outlets such as CBS News, SXSW and the MAPS Psychedelic Science Conference, Danielle is a trailblazer in microdosing training, advocacy and addiction treatment.

Anna Symonds joined the Etheridge Foundation in early 2022 as our first ever staff member, and became our Executive Director in January 2023.‍

Anna is an advocate and activist for the therapeutic benefits and potential of plant medicines and psychedelics. In a previous role as a cannabis science educator, she directly educated thousands of people on an evidence-based approach to the plant, including law and policy makers at the local, state, and national levels. She served on the Oregon Cannabis Commission's Research Leadership Subcommittee from 2020-2021.

Anna is also a retired Women's Premier League rugby player who won a USA Rugby Div 1 National Championship and a Sydney (Aus) Premiership. She holds an MA in Communication, and is also an Ambassador for the nonprofits Last Prisoner Project, Athletes for CARE, and the Concussion Legacy Foundation.

Dr. Chantelle Thomas, Executive Clinical Director of Windrose Recovery, is a Clinical Health Psychologist specializing in the treatment of addiction and trauma.

Since 2013, Dr. Thomas has been studying the therapeutic use of psychedelics for individuals with PTSD, substance use disorders, and depression via clinical and mechanistic research trials at University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. She is certified in both MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy and Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) and established Integrata, an integrative KAP treatment program that implements a relational, inner-directed model for trauma reprocessing for both residential and outpatient clients. 

Dr. Thomas is directly involved in teaching, training, and consulting with clinical trials in the academic and private sector involving LSD, MDMA, Psilocybin, Ketamine, and 5-MeO-DMT. She also hosts a podcast, Blind Spots: Exploring What We Cannot See, that examines therapeutic blind spots in both established and novel treatments for substance use and trauma-related conditions.