Conference Schedule and Speaker Announcement

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In Oakland, revolutions aren’t just remembered – they’re happening right now. This Easter weekend, April 19–20, 2025, Oakland’s activist spirit collides with the psychedelic resurgence in a conference unlike any other. The 2025 Oakland Psychedelic Conference + Spirituality & Beyond 5 sponsored by SUPERMIND coffee is more than a meeting of minds – it’s a rallying point for a movement. With Bicycle Day (4/19), 4/20, and Easter Sunday aligning in one cosmic convergence, Oakland is about to become “the epicenter of psychedelic and spiritual exploration”​. This once-in-a-lifetime alignment of dates imbues the gathering with an urgency and significance that you will not want to miss​.

A Historic Convergence of Activism, Science, and Spirit

For the first time, the world’s largest psychedelic church (Church of Ambrosia) is joining forces with Oakland’s homegrown psychedelic community (Oakland Hyphae) to host a two-day extravaganza of consciousness and culture. Day 1 (Saturday, April 19 – also Bicycle Day, commemorating the first LSD trip in 1943​) is the Oakland Psychedelic Conference, curated by Oakland Hyphae’s Reggie Harris – an organizer known for championing grassroots education and harm reduction​. Day 2 (Sunday, April 20 – 420 and Easter) is Spirituality & Beyond, led by Pastor Dave Hodges of the Church of Ambrosia, focusing on sacred plant medicine and spiritual awakening. The fact that 4/20 and Easter Sunday coincide has “preordained” this event to be a profound celebration of both cannabis culture and spiritual rebirth​.

What does this mean for you? It means that for one weekend, Oakland will host “the most comprehensive gathering of psychedelic expertise on record”​. World-renowned pioneers in psychedelics and neuroscience – researchers, mycologists, doctors, artists, activists – are converging to share knowledge and ignite action​. Oakland, which in 2019 became one of the first U.S. cities to decriminalize entheogenic plants​, is again taking the lead. This conference carries the activist roots of the Decriminalize Nature movement and the visionary spark of a spiritual revival. It’s a place where ancient wisdom meets cutting-edge science, and where community healing meets cultural revolution. In the words of the organizers, “this historic gathering is more than an event – it’s a catalyst for transformation”​. Will you be there to be part of that change?

Community Healing, Science, Spirit, and Justice: Key Themes

This isn’t a narrow academic symposium or a woo-woo retreat – it’s all of the above and more. The conference weaves together multiple core themes that reflect the many facets of the psychedelic movement. Here are the pillars holding up this event’s visionary program:

Just a few of our featured speakers

• Community Healing: Grounded in Oakland’s activist legacy, the conference emphasizes healing collective wounds. How can psychedelics help our communities recover from trauma, oppression, and disconnection? Local leaders and healers will share how entheogens are used to rebuild community bonds and create spaces of mutual support and understanding. From addressing racial trauma to veteran PTSD, expect heartfelt discussions on making healing accessible to those who need it most.

• Science & Research: Hear from the leading minds in psychedelic science. Dr. Robin Carhart-Harris, who helped reshape psychiatry with his groundbreaking psilocybin and LSD research​, will divulge the latest findings on how these substances can treat mental health conditions and expand our understanding of the mind. Dr. Carl Hart, Columbia University neuroscientist and fearless drug policy reformer, will bring hard evidence and harder questions about how society views psychoactive substances​. This theme is all about credible knowledge – from cutting-edge microdosing studies to the neuroscience of mystical experiences – equipping us with facts to drive intelligent advocacy.

• Spiritual & Sacred Medicine: Explore the rich spiritual dimensions of psychedelic use. Day 2’s Easter Sunday gathering will feel part revival, part ceremony. Pastor Dave Hodges – founder of the world’s largest psychedelic church – will deliver a rousing Easter sermon on psychedelics and spiritual awakening​. Indigenous wisdom keepers like Mother Jaguar will share how ancient traditions use plant medicines for sacred healing. We’ll honor the 63rd anniversary of the famed Good Friday Experiment (where psilocybin ignited mystical experiences in 1962) as a reminder that the search for the divine through entheogens is decades-strong​. Whether you come from a church, a temple, or the school of life, this theme invites you to connect with the mystical and the meaningful.

• Culture & Equity: At its heart, this movement is about people power and cultural transformation. The conference uplifts voices from communities who have been marginalized in both society and the emerging psychedelic industry. One of the featured speakers, 19 Keys, is a Pan-African thought leader known for bridging ancient wisdom with modern innovation​ – expect him to challenge and inspire on topics of personal sovereignty and cultural renaissance. Oakland’s own hip-hop legend Mistah F.A.B. will speak to cultural evolution and mental health, grounding the psychedelic conversation in real community experiences​. This theme asks: How do we ensure the psychedelic renaissance benefits everyone, not just a privileged few? Discussions around equity, diversity, and the decolonization of sacred medicines will be front and center. (In fact, Oakland’s Dr. Larry Norris, co-founder of Decriminalize Nature, will be there – a reminder that this city’s push for equitable access started a nationwide movement​.)

• Law & Policy: As psychedelics move from underground to mainstream, policy and legal frameworks are being written in real time. Learn about the fights to decriminalize nature and legalize therapeutic use from the activists and lawyers on the front lines. Oakland’s psychedelic reforms​ set the stage, and experts like Jodi Green (who runs a psychedelic business law firm) will share how we can protect community practitioners and religious use while navigating emerging regulations​. This theme arms you with knowledge about policy changes, so we can shape laws that put people first and prevent corporate capture of sacred medicine.

• Women’s & Mental Health: The movement for psychedelics is also a movement for mental wellness and inclusion of women’s voices. Mikaela de la Myco, an educator and community organizer focusing on psychedelics, motherhood, and ancestral healing, will ensure that the wisdom of mothers and the needs of women are not an afterthought​. There will be conversations about how entheogenic healing can address depression, trauma, and women’s mental health, and how women – often the traditional healers in psychedelic traditions – are leading the way. This theme is about honoring feminine perspectives and making mental health healing a core outcome of psychedelic work.

• Mushroom Cultivation: Given Oakland Hyphae’s mycology roots, you bet there’s something here for the fungus lovers. Alan Rockefeller, a renowned mycologist who’s discovered and catalogued new fungi species​, will be on hand to talk mushroom cultivation, identification, and maybe even share a peek into the latest psilocybin strains blowing researchers’ minds. Whether you’re a seasoned cultivator or just “spore-curious,” this theme will delve into how growing and sharing entheogenic fungi can be an act of community empowerment (and literal grassroots activism!).

Together, these themes make one thing clear: this conference is holistically designed to inform and inspire. It’s the intersection of healing, knowledge, culture, and action. You’ll find academic panels alongside circle discussions, science next to spirituality, policy strategy next to poetry. And throughout it all, an unwavering focus on justice, inclusion, and community – the activist roots that nourish this blossoming field.

Visionary Speakers Lighting the Way

A conference is only as powerful as the people who gather for it. Luckily, this one boasts an all-star lineup of visionary speakers whose work spans the spectrum of psychedelia – from the lab, to the law, to the streets. Reggie Harris, the organizer, put it best: “The speaker lineup represents the most diverse collection of psychedelic experts to date”​. Here are just a few of the changemakers you’ll have a chance to learn from and meet:

• Dr. Carl Hart – Esteemed neuroscientist and Psychology Professor at Columbia University, famous for his unflinching research on psychoactive substances and advocacy for sane, evidence-based drug policy​. Dr. Hart will headline Saturday, likely delivering a truth-telling keynote on drugs, race, and freedom that will leave you fired up to fight stigma and rethink everything you “know” about drugs.

• Dr. Robin Carhart-Harris – One of the global pioneers of psychedelic research, now leading UCSF’s Psychedelics Division. He’s the scientist who brought psilocybin therapy into the mainstream medical conversation by showing how it can treat depression and “reset” the brain​. When Carhart-Harris speaks on Sunday, you’ll be hearing about the future of mental health straight from the source – a transformative thinker bridging neuroscience and mysticism.

• Mistah F.A.B. – Legendary Bay Area rapper, entrepreneur, and community activist. Mistah F.A.B. isn’t just an entertainer – he’s a mental health advocate who’s turned pain into purpose. On Sunday, he’ll share how psychedelic healing and creativity can uplift communities. Expect raw truth and Oakland pride from an artist who has always given back. (Fun fact: he founded a nonprofit to mentor youth and promote mental wellness​.)

• 19 Keys – A visionary thought leader and host of High Level Conversations. 19 Keys is known for infusing conversations with a mix of Afrocentric wisdom, futurist mindset, and spiritual insight​. He’ll challenge us to unlock our highest potential, likely touching on topics from economic empowerment to consciousness expansion. In a space that needs diverse voices, 19 Keys brings a crucial perspective that fuses culture with consciousness.

• Alan Rockefeller – The mycologist every mushroom enthusiast idolizes. Alan has been trekking through rainforests and backyards for decades, cataloguing fungal diversity and even discovering new species. He’s a walking encyclopedia of mushroom knowledge​, yet deeply approachable. Whether you want to geek out about cultivation techniques or hear crazy stories of mushroom hunts in Mexico, Alan’s presence will delight the inner mycophile (and teach us how citizen science can propel this movement).

• Mikaela de la Myco – A community organizer and educator interweaving psychedelics with motherhood and ancestral healing​. Mikaela represents the nurturing, Earth-centered ethos of this conference. She’ll speak to how plant medicines can help heal generational trauma and why women, mothers, and caregivers must have a seat at the table in shaping psychedelic practices. Her voice reminds us that this movement is about healing the human family and rediscovering wisdom our ancestors held sacred.

• And that’s just the beginning. You’ll also hear from attorneys, therapists, indigenous healers, grassroots activists, and more. From Decriminalize Nature co-founder Dr. Larry Norris championing local policy reform, to spiritual guides like Mother Jaguar integrating indigenous traditions, the roster spans ages, races, disciplines, and philosophies. This deliberate diversity isn’t just for show – it’s a statement that the future of psychedelics will be built by all of us, together​. By the time you’ve listened to these changemakers, you’ll be armed with new knowledge, moved by personal stories, and connected to a community of allies.

Not Just a Conference – A Call to Shape the Future

The Oakland Psychedelic Conference isn’t a spectacle for passive consumption. It’s a call to action. It’s a rallying cry for anyone who believes in the healing potential of psychedelics and sacred plants to come forward, get engaged, and help shape the next chapter of this movement. Whether you’re an academic, an artist, an activist, or simply psychedelic curious, your voice and vision are needed. The organizers have made it clear: Don’t show up just to listen – show up to participate. Share your perspective in a workshop. Network with fellow attendees who could become co-founders, co-conspirators, and lifelong friends. The Bay Area has a long history of social justice movements, from civil rights to LGBTQ+ rights – now it’s time to add psychedelic justice to that legacy, and it needs you.

This conference is also a celebration of how far we’ve come and a vision of where we can go. Outside the auditorium, a free Psychedelic Arts and Crafts Fair will be buzzing all weekend​, open to the public. Expect live art, vendors selling everything from books to mushroom grow kits, and community organizations sharing resources. There’s even an adults-only Easter egg hunt on Sunday where lucky seekers will find eggs stuffed with vouchers for cannabis, mushroom, and DMT gifts – yes, you read that right, a 420 Easter egg hunt with some really fire plant medicine prizes​. Oakland is turning the typical conference model on its head, mixing activism with festivity. It’s a reminder that building a better future can and should be joyous and community-rooted.

By weekend’s end, you won’t just leave with a notebook full of insights – you’ll leave with a mission. Maybe it’s pushing for equitable laws in your city, starting a integration circle, researching new therapeutic uses, or simply supporting others on their healing journeys. The connections and energy sparked in that auditorium will reverberate long after. As one speaker put it, if you’re coming to Oakland this weekend, prepare not only to be educated and inspired, but to become a stakeholder in the future of psychedelics – a future we must build hand in hand.

24 Hours Only: Pay-What-You-Want Tickets – Don’t Miss This Chance

To lower any barriers and ensure everyone can be part of this movement, the organizers have a radical offer: for the next 24 hours, tickets are Pay-What-You-Want. That’s right – you decide what you can contribute. Whether you’re a student, someone hit hard by the pandemic, or just short on funds, this is your window to claim a spot at the conference regardless of your financial situation. It’s a bold experiment in community accessibility and trust – because this movement isn’t about profit, it’s about people. But the offer is fleeting: after 24 hours, standard ticket pricing returns. So act now. Head to the Eventbrite link and grab your ticket today. Pay $5 or $500 – whatever you can – just make sure you’re in the building. This gesture embodies the conference’s ethos of inclusivity and grassroots support. No excuses, no obstacles – just an open door for you to walk through.

Now is the time to show up. If you’ve felt the call – to heal, to learn, to connect, to advocate – this is your moment. Join hundreds of kindred spirits at the Henry J. Kaiser Auditorium in Oakland and be part of something truly historic. The 2025 Oakland Psychedelic Conference + Spirituality & Beyond is not just an event to attend; it’s a community to join and a future to co-create. The door is open, the vibe is electric, and the world is watching to see what this diverse Oakland coalition will spark. Don’t just read about the psychedelic community – come be a part of it. Grab your ticket, spread the word, and get ready to make history over two life-changing days​. We’ll see you there – and together, we’ll light the way for generations to come.

Pay What You Want Tickets Here

Also after the event Sunday 4/20 we will be teaming up with Akoma Church and Raw Sol Collective for an after party full of good vibes, networking and community!

Official After Party