2021 SPEAKERS
Steve Bolt
Steve has been a practising solicitor since 1991. He worked for several years at Redfern Legal Centre. From 1996 to early 2004, he was the principal solicitor at the Northern Rivers Community Legal Centre. Steve is the author of Rough Deal, a plain English book about the NSW drug laws. He is also the author of a number of other publications on drug laws and drug policy.
Tony Bower [Mullaways]
Mullaways Medical Cannabis
Tom Brown
Cannabis Law Reform Alliance’s Drive Change campaign
Tom is a co-founder of honahlee, a patient advocate and a digital marketer. Tom created honahlee to educate Australians about cannabis and improve access for those who can benefit from the plant.
The Cannabis Law Reform Alliance is a team of educators and advocates have joined forces to be the voice for cannabis law reform Australia-wide. The CLRA’s first campaign is Drive Change.
Martin Ernegg
Hemp Engineer, Hemp Fibre Fusion
Hemp fibre fusion is the materials and molding company of Martin Ernegg whose core competence is structural materials made from micro-fibrillated plant fibre. Martin and early partners Horst Döpfner and Robert Bramsteidl started their early research with recycled paper drawing on the technologies of paper mache to make a recycled suitcase. In 1994, their invention “hempstone” landed on the market. One of the beauties of Martin’s work is the essential fusion of three simple elements: fibre, water, pigments &/or hemp charcoal.
Cate Faehrmann
Greens MP NSW
The Greens have a plan to legalise recreational cannabis in New South Wales to end the harmful effects of prohibition and give NSW the economic benefits of a regulated cannabis market. In February 2021, Greens MP Cate Faehrmann introduced the Cannabis Legalisation Bill to the Upper House of the NSW Parliament. The bill will:
- Legalise the recreational use and possession of cannabis;
- Allow a household of 2 persons or less may grow up to 6 cannabis plants while a household of more than 2 people can grow up to 12 cannabis plants.
- Require cannabis products to be labelled with health warnings and information about the strain and THC/CBD contents;
- Prohibit retailers from promoting or advertising cannabis;
- Prohibit cannabis stores from operating with 200 metres of a school or childcare centre;
- Establish a NSW Cannabis Authority which will regulate the cannabis market with the aim to reduce the harms caused by cannabis and prevent the dominance of the industry by large corporations;
- Allow for cannabis social clubs of at least 5 people which can grow six plants per member up to 99 plants;
- Begins the process of extinguishing past cannabis convictions.
People are risking criminal records just because their drug of choice has been deemed illegal due to the failed moral crusade that we are only too well aware of. One in 3 Australians have used weed in their lifetime. In fact, if our parliaments were truly representative of the public, then at least one-third of politicians have probably used cannabis. Cate Faehrmann has admitted to the personal use of recreational drugs, including cannabis and medicinal CBD products and has been leading a campaign to Rethink Reform our drug laws as the Greens Drug Law Reform spokesperson. The Green’s Cannabis Legalisation bill is part of this campaign and is set to be debated in the second half of this year.
Cannabis Legalisation Bill 2021
https://www.catefaehrmann.org/cannabis_discussion_paper
David Heilpern
David Heilpern was appointed as a Magistrate in 1998, and was at the time the youngest magistrate in Australia. He ‘retired’ in May 2020. David has a commitment to ensuring that drug laws change to reflect the principles of harm reduction. In particular, he believes that harm is only increased by applying a law and order model to victimless crimes.
Dr John Jiggens
Dr John Jiggens is a writer and journalist who has published several books including The Joke, Sir Joseph Banks & the Question of Hemp and, with Jack Herer, the Australian version of The Emperor Wears No Clothes. His PhD was ‘Marijuana Australiana: Cannabis Use, Popular Culture and the Americanisation of Drugs Policy in Australia 1938 – 1988‘. The books that derive from this are Marijuana Australiana, The killer cop and the murder of Donald Mackay and The man who knew too much. As a journalist, he currently works in the community newsroom at Bay-FM in Byron Bay.
Dr Andrew Katelaris
Dr Andrew Katelaris makes hemp oil and risks his freedom for sick children. Since 1990 he has been experimenting with the medical uses of cannabis. With this safe and effective herbal medicine he has seen a dramatic reduction in the frequency and intensity of the seizures and in addition, most of the children have shown a noticeable improvement in their social, intellectual and motor functioning. Whilst various governments have talked about trialling medical cannabis this has not progressed at the rate required by the seriousness of the situation. Epilepsy is currently the major cause of preventable brain damage.
Kog
In 1995, Kog was busted with 8,000 marijuana seedlings. The cops valued these worthless little plants at $2,000 each and sentenced Kog to 2 years in prison for being in possession of $16 Million dollars worth of marijuana. After he got out of prison, he set about to grow the biggest and the best crop of dope he’d ever grown – and he did. Kog was determined to share his knowledge with the greater community and wrote “Marijuana – A Growers Lot“.
Luke
Greenlight Health
Greenlight Health is an alternative healing consultancy that advocates the use of whole plant extracts. We referrals and consultancy on medicinal cannabis-based therapy and other alternative healing modalities. Put your health in the hands of nature!
Sophia Moermond
Legalise Cannabis WA – Newly elected State MP
Prof Kylie O’Brien
Professor Kylie O’Brien PhD, MPH, B AppSc(Chin Med), BSc(Optom), Grad Cert Tert Ed
Director of Research & Education, Releaf Group Ltd
Adjunct Professor, Torrens University
Adjunct Fellow, NICM Health Research Institute
Kylie has had a strong academic career in the fields of Chinese medicine, integrative medicine and now medicinal cannabis since career changing in 2000 from optometry. She worked for the Victorian government on implementing the Chinese Medicine Act 2000 when Victoria became the first state to regulate the practice of Chinese medicine and has held senior leadership roles in the university and private education sector. Kylie now works as Director of Research and Education at Releaf Group Ltd and has formed the International College of Cannabioid Medicine (ICCM) which will launch in April 2021 to provide educational resources on medicinal cannabis for healthcare practitioners.
Kylie is an internationally recognised expert in Chinese medicine and integrative medicine, and has published extensively. In addition to journal papers, she published her first book in 2017 (O’Brien & Sali, A Clinician’s Guide to Integrative Oncology: What You Should Be Talking About with Cancer Patients and Why? US: Springer, 2017) and a second one on mental health and medicinal cannabis co-authored with Dr Philip Blair is due for publication in 2021. She has conducted world-first research in Chinese medicine and supervised Master/PhD research students to successful completion.
Kylie has been leading doctor education in medicinal cannabis in Australia, with her two-day courses receiving RACGP Category 1 CPD accreditation in 2018, 2019 and 2020. She also set up the pathway via the National Institute of Integrative Medicine ethics committee for doctors to apply to become authorised prescribers of medicinal cannabis under the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) Authorised Prescriber Scheme. Kylie is also involved in research into hemp and medicinal cannabis and is actively working to effect change in regulations around cannabis access in Australia.
She is a member of the Tertiary Education Quality Standards Agency (TEQSA) Expert Panel and the TGA’s Advisory Committee for Complementary Medicines.
Fiona Patten
Leader of Reason
In 2021, Fiona will be represented by Robbie Swan, and Emma Sinclair, Victorian State Manager of Fiona Patten’s Reason Party Victoria as well as the National Secretary of Reason Australia.
Mardigrass is one of my favourite weekends in the year so to miss this one is really disappointing. But bring on 2021! I dare to dream that this year we may see real progress in law reform. The reason I’m not there is because of the work that I am doing in Victoria at the moment around cannabis law reform. It all revolves around two big inquiries that I hope I can weave the Mardigrass spirit into. The inquiry into the use of cannabis in Victoria, which is being run by the Legal and Social Issues Committee (which I chair) is now holding public hearings around Victoria. We have received about 1500 submissions so far and if you are interested, you can google them through my Committee’s website and have a look at what people are saying. The vast majority (almost all of the ones submitted by organisations) call for reform. Another large inquiry into the justice system will be no less important to ending the cruel and futile war on drug users and finally the Medicinal Cannabis Patients and Driving Taskforce report is on the Victorian Police Minister’s desk and I hope that there will be good news in the coming weeks. I am optimistic (some say chronically) that these two inquiries and their reports will provide pathways for change in the near future for all of us. I hope you have an uplifting and enlightened Mardigrass.
Responsible Choice
T.K. Nixon is an educator, parent, and drug law reform activist. His website Responsible Choice juxtaposes the relative harms of cannabis with those caused by alcohol. In 2016 he gave evidence to the Australian Government Senate Economics References Committee – Personal Choice and Community Impacts Inquiry regarding the legalisation of cannabis for personal use. He resides on the Sunshine Coast of South East Queensland, Australia, with his wife Rachel and their four children. His book, Psilocybin Mushrooms of South East Queensland, Australia – Eliminating the Harms, published in 2020, is the culmination of years of association with psilocybin mushrooms, and research into relative drug harms. It contains detailed information necessary for the correct identification of two of the most common psychoactive fungi along the east coast of Australia; namely Psilocybe cubensis and Panaeolus cyanescens.
Dr Jamie Rickord
Medical Director Ananda Clinics
Dr Jamie has practiced medicine since graduating from Imperial College, London in 2006. For the last eight years he has worked as a GP and trained as a psychotherapist. His current focus is endocannabinoid medicine and developing new models to encourage healing, wellbeing and numinosity. Dr Jamie has is actively developing the major role cannabinoids and psychedelics have in the next paradigm of mental health treatments.
David Shoebridge
NSW MLC, Greens Party
David is a Greens MP in the NSW Parliament, serving in the State’s Upper House since September 2010. David is the Greens NSW spokesperson for Industrial Relations, Aboriginal Justice, Planning and Heritage, Child Protection, Firearms, Justice and Local Government. Among David’s current campaigns are working to keep decisions about council amalgamations in the hand of the local community, campaigning to curb the use of police drug sniffer dogs and Tasers, and protecting the rights of workers to fair wages and workers compensation. Before entering Parliament David worked as a lawyer for 13 years, the majority of this time as a Barrister. In that time he acted for a broad range of people and organisations with a focus on employment, discrimination, industrial and tort law.
Eve Sinton
Author, Australian Cannabis Cookbook
Eve Sinton has worked with media in the Northern Rivers for almost 30 years, including The Byron Echo, The Northern Star and the Permaculture International Journal. She lives on a rural property near Mullumbimby and publishes a regular newsletter on energy and the environment.
Dr John Teh
PlantMed Medicinal Cannabis
Dr John Teh has been working within the Medicinal Cannabis industry since the legalisation of cannabis for medicinal use in Australia in February, 2016. As an avid organic farmer and permaculture expert, treatment with natural whole plant products in conjunction with conventional medical treatment has always been a top personal priority for Dr Teh. Coming from a QLD surgical family, Dr Teh has also settled within the surgical field as assistant surgeon to many surgical specialties. Dr Teh worked in the surgical industry for 15 years before moving into Medicinal Cannabis specialty full-time.
Ray Thorpe
Happy Herb Company & Elixiba P/L
Ray first started on his mission for herbs in 1993 when he discovered a unique but very significant herb called Damiana. Bedazzled by its many benefits, he wanted to tell the world about it but was soon startled to discover that it was forbidden to make claims, and therefore learn about the benefits and healing power of herbs.
Ray dropped his corporate lifestyle to set out to change this inequity and opened his first Happy Herb shop in 1996 at Nimbin,inspired by and in alliance with the cannabis law reform movement at the Nimbin hemp embassy. The Happy High Herb franchise grew from that first shop in Nimbin to over 55 stores around the globe. His book, Happy High Herbs, is now on it’s 8th reprint with 40,000 copies sold worldwide.
He continues the mission for herbs with his latest venture Elixiba, a chain of plant based Herbal restaurant and bars-proudly featuring the HEMPBURGER. Ray is a passionate leader in his mission to promote the appreciation, information, benefits, culture, use and availability of all natural plants and herbs.
The Happy Herb Co has always been proud to support the Nimbin MardiGrass. We set up our first shop in Nimbin, the home of the Nimbin MardiGrass, with a mission to promote all herbs in alignment with the activism for THE HERB that emanated from Nimbin Hemp Embassy. Please support the Nimbin MardiGrass as the fight for medicinal cannabis is not over yet.
Dr Teresa Towpik
Founder and Medical Director MediHuanna
Dr Teresa Towpik graduated in Poland and has been a doctor in Australia since 1991 after passing her AMC exams. After working in various hospitals in Australia, she became a GP in 1993. She discovered amazing therapeutic properties of cannabis in 2016 and has been studying this important plant since then. She feels very honoured to have been a witness of many life changing situations among her patients. She is also a cannabis patient herself. She was diagnosed with left breast cancer in 2001. Unfortunately, in May 2019 the cancer re-occurred and now Dr Towpik is going to share experience in her talk ‘’Cancer my greatest teacher-doctor’s story’’ during MardiGrass in Nimbin 1-2nd May 2021. As a cannabis clinician and patient who is using cannabis herself, Dr Towpik is very concerned about the unfair laws on driving and wants to encourage the general public to facilitate change in a peaceful and assertive way.
“Dr Deb” Waldron MBBS FRACGP
Retired rural GP; Cancer survivor; 7 years research cannabis/cannabis medicine; Degree in Western Herbal Medicine in progress
Dr Debbie Waldron is a survivor, and the biggest fight of her life was against melanoma. It was during this fight she re-discovered cannabis and natural medicine, and has not looked back. She no longer wishes to be part of what she sees as a corrupt, uncaring and broken system of health care, and focuses now on caring for people in a holistic way, and educating as many as she can on cannabis and other wonders of nature that have languished in the wilderness for too long. She has also been an enthusiastic cannabis activist, to the point of standing for State parliament for the Legalise Cannabis Queensland Party, and is looking forward to continuing the fight for reasonable and sensible cannabis legislation.
Dr Brian Walker MB, ChB, FRACGP
Elysian Wellness
LCWA party member Dr. Brain Walker has officially won a seat in WA’s Upper House after getting 9,200 first preference votes in the election. Dr. Walker is a General Practitioner who works in Serpentine, in Perth’s south. He joined LCWA when it first formed, and ran alongside twenty-two LCWA members in the state election. Another LCWA member Sophia Moermond was also elected, in the South West Region. LCWA is one of Australia’s newest political parties. It was only founded in December 2020, after drawing inspiration from Legalise Cannabis Queensland. The party’s public Facebook group now has over 2,900 members. LCWA won about 2% of the popular vote – which is remarkable for such a new party. Dr Walker believes that WA should legalise the use of recreational cannabis, and has described it as “safer” than alcohol and tobacco.
Dr Alex Wodak AM
Dr Alex Wodak is a physician who was Director of the Alcohol and Drug Service, St. Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney (1982-2012) but has now retired. Major interests include prevention of HIV among people who inject drugs, prevention of alcohol problems and drug policy reform. Dr. Wodak is President of the Australian Drug Law Reform Foundation and was President of the International Harm Reduction Association (1996-2004). He helped establish the first needle syringe programme and the first supervised injecting centre in Australia when both were pre-legal and often works in developing countries on HIV control among among people who inject drugs. Dr Wodak helped establish the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, the Australian Society of HIV Medicine and the NSW Users AIDS Association.
