Beckley Foundation

Last updated

Beckley Foundation
Formation1998
Type ECOSOC Accredited NGO
Legal status Charitable trust
Purpose Scientific research and drug policy reform
Location
Director
Amanda Feilding
(Director and founder)
Website beckleyfoundation.org

The Beckley Foundation is a UK-based think tank and UN-accredited NGO, dedicated to activating global drug policy reform and initiating scientific research into psychoactive substances. The foundation is a charitable trust which collaborates with leading scientific and political institutions worldwide to design and develop research and global policy initiatives. It also investigates consciousness and its modulation from a multidisciplinary perspective, working in collaboration with scientists. The foundation is based at Beckley Park near Oxford, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1998, and is directed by Amanda Feilding, Countess of Wemyss.

Contents

Background

Since its creation by Amanda Feilding in 1998, the Beckley Foundation has been at the forefront of global drug policy reform [1] and scientific research into psychoactive substances.

The Beckley Foundation Scientific Programme initiates, designs and conducts research into the effects of psychoactive substances on the brain, in order to minimise their potential harms, learn more about consciousness and brain function, and discover and explore their therapeutic potential. Recent research includes collaborations with Dr Jordi Riba at Sant Pau Hospital on ayahuasca, Professor David Nutt at Imperial College on the effects of psychedelics on cerebral blood flow, Professor Valerie Curran at University College London on the effects of cannabis on the brain with a view to possible therapeutic applications and with Professor Roland R. Griffiths at Johns Hopkins University studying the effects of psilocybin in combating addiction.

The Beckley Foundation Policy Programme is dedicated to improving national and global drug policies, through research that increases understanding of the health, social and fiscal implications of drug policy, and the development of new evidence-based and rational approaches. It brings together country representatives, science and policy experts at international seminars in order to discuss alternative drug policy, and commissions and disseminates reports [2] to open up and facilitate debate among policy-makers and the public.

Policy

The Beckley Foundation Drug Policy Programme

The Beckley Foundation Drug Policy Programme was created to promote rational discussion on delicate global arrangement issues. [3] It intended to provide drug strategy advice to academics, substance misuse specialists, strategy developers, and the general public. Senior officials, top researchers, and practitioners evaluated the most recent data on the success of drug policies.

International Therapeutic Psilocybin Rescheduling Initiative (ITPRI)

In 2022, the Beckley Foundation joined in the launch of the International Therapeutic Psilocybin Rescheduling Initiative, a global coalition working to promote and secure a rescheduling of psilocybin under the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances. The ITPRI is seeking a worldwide policy change in order to facilitate research into the therapeutic potential of the substance. Partners of the coalition include the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), Mind Medicine Australia, Drug Science and Open Foundation. [4]

Roadmaps to Regulation: New Psychoactive Substances 2016

To coincide with the introduction of the UK's Psychoactive Substances Act 2016 [5] on 26 May 2016, Amanda Feilding released the report, "Roadmaps to Regulation: New Psychoactive Substances". [6] The document surveys the complex and unique world of NPS production and distribution and suggests a harm reductive model for the legal regulation of this vast array of substances. The NPS report is part of wider family of forthcoming reports, "Roadmaps to Regulation: Cannabis, Psychedelics, MDMA and NPS". [7]

Beckley Foundation Guatemala 2012–13

On 3 July 2012 Beckley Foundation Guatemala was launched after the organisation had been asked to convene an international Board of Experts to write reports which would:

  1. analyse the impact of the current drug prohibitionist policies;
  2. propose a sophisticated range of alternative policy solutions for Guatemala.

The alternative drug policy solutions were presented to President Otto Pérez Molina by Amanda Feilding in January 2013 in this 'Paths for Reform' report. The suggestions include a proposal to investigate legalising the illicit opium poppy crop in order to produce pain-relieving medications for the Guatemalan people, [8] an initiative that has been mentioned by President Pérez Molina during Davos 2013 and other official appearances [9]

Public Letter 2011

In 2011 an open letter from the Foundation was published in The Times and The Guardian calling for a new approach to drug policy. The letter opened by emphatically stating that the war on drugs has failed and calling for a new approach. Signatories of the letter now include the current Presidents of Colombia (Juan Manuel Santos) and Guatemala (Otto Pérez Molina), and former Presidents of the United States (Jimmy Carter), Mexico, Colombia and Switzerland, as well as Nobel Prize winners and numerous other world figures. [10]

Science

The Beckley Foundation is one of the few organisations in the world initiating, supporting, and directing scientific research investigating the effects of currently-controlled psychoactive substances. [11] This ground-breaking research explores how substances such as cannabis, psychedelics, and MDMA act upon the human brain, using the latest developments in neuroscience and brain imaging technology. The purpose of the research is to increase our scientific understanding of consciousness itself, and to explore new avenues for the treatment of illnesses and the betterment of humankind. Over the last 18 years, the Programme has produced dozens of scientific articles published in influential peer-reviewed journals, [12] and Amanda Feilding has spearheaded numerous collaborations. Collaborating partners include leading institutions such as Imperial College London, Sant Pau Hospital, University College London, King's College London, and Johns Hopkins University, and topics have covered:

Latest findings from the Beckley Foundation scientific programme

Ayahuasca and Neurogenesis 2016

A preliminary study conducted within the framework of the Beckley-Sant Pau Research Programme and in collaboration with the Spanish National Research Council found that harmine and tetrahydroharmine, the alkaloids present in highest amounts in ayahuasca, have potent neurogenic properties (the ability to create new brain cells). The addition of harmine and tetrahydroharmine to cultures containing neural stem cells dramatically increased their differentiation and maturation into neurons. [20]

Psilocybin for Depression 2016

Based on the Beckley/Imperial Research Programme's psilocybin study brain imaging results, in 2012, the Medical Research Council awarded funding to the programme for a clinical study investigating psilocybin in the treatment of depression. Results from the study, published in the Lancet Psychiatry Journal, showed that two doses of psilocybin lifted depression in all 12 volunteers for three weeks, and kept five of them depression free for three months. [21]

LSD Revealed 2016

On 13 April 2016, the Beckley/Imperial Research Programme released the world's first images [22] of the human brain on LSD, [23] collected as part of the first ever brain imaging study to examine the effects of LSD on the human brain. Programme co-directors Amanda Feilding and David Nutt, together with lead-investigator Robin Carhart-Harris, held a press conference at the Royal Society on 11 April 2016 to herald the publication of the paper. [24]

Beckley Canopy Therapeutics

News reports in 2018-2019 indicated that the Foundation had been retained by the Canadian cannabis producer Canopy Growth Corporation to conduct research as to the benefits of various strains of its products, particularly in treating pain, anxiety and drug addiction. One goal is to reduce dependence on opioids in treating cancer-related pain. The two formed Beckley Canopy Therapeutics in Oxford, to raise funds from investors for cannabinoid research and drug development.

Canopy Growth has been planning to export its products to the UK. [25] The long-term intent of the partnership is to confirm the value of cannabis in specific conditions and to convince insurers to pay for medical cannabis when used accordingly. Mark Ware, Canopy's chief medical officer, said in an interview that Feilding's "ability to take a scientific look at what would otherwise be considered as controversial therapeutics makes her a very good partner". [26]

Feilding's son, Cosmo Feilding Mellen, is the managing director of the partnership. [27] [28]

Ongoing projects and collaborations

Past projects and collaborations

Recent Scientific Journal Publications

Beckley Foundation Press Publications

The Beckley Foundation Press was created to allow the publication of Drug Policy and Scientific material that was not being picked up by mainstream publishing houses due to the controversial nature of the material.

Authors: Albert Hofmann. Translated by Jonathan Ott and Edited by Amanda Feilding - Publisher: The Beckley Foundation Press and Oxford University Press (2013). ISBN   978-0-19-963941-0, 248 pages

Authors: Robin Room, Benedikt Fischer, Wayne Hall, Simon Lenton and Peter Reuter, Convened by Amanda Feilding - Publisher: The Beckley Foundation Press and Oxford University Press (2010). ISBN   978-0-19-958148-1

Authors: Annelie Hintzen M.D. and Torsten Passie M.D., M.A. Paperback: App 200 pages - Publisher: The Beckley Foundation Press and Oxford University Press (June 2010) ISBN   978-0-19-958982-1

Edited by Amanda Feilding - Publisher: Beckley Foundation Press (2010) ISBN   978-0-9548054-9-4

Authors: Yuri Moskalenko, Amanda Feilding and Peter Halvorson - Publisher: Beckley Foundation Press (2010) ISBN   978-1-907072-01-7

Major Seminars

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LSD</span> Hallucinogenic drug

Lysergic acid diethylamide, commonly known as LSD, and known colloquially as acid or lucy, is a potent psychedelic drug. Effects typically include intensified thoughts, emotions, and sensory perception. At sufficiently high dosages, LSD manifests primarily mental, visual, and auditory hallucinations. Dilated pupils, increased blood pressure, and increased body temperature are typical.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Recreational drug use</span> Use of drugs with the primary intention to alter the state of consciousness

Recreational drug use is the use of one or more psychoactive drugs to induce an altered state of consciousness, either for pleasure or for some other casual purpose or pastime. When a psychoactive drug enters the user's body, it induces an intoxicating effect. Recreational drugs are commonly divided into three categories: depressants, stimulants, and hallucinogens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Psilocybin</span> Chemical compound found in some species of mushrooms

Psilocybin, also known as 4-phosphoryloxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (4-PO-DMT), is a naturally occurring psychedelic prodrug compound produced by more than 200 species of fungi. The most potent are members of genus Psilocybe, such as P. azurescens, P. semilanceata, and P. cyanescens, but psilocybin has also been isolated from approximately a dozen other genera. Psilocybin is itself biologically inactive but is quickly converted by the body to psilocin, which has mind-altering effects similar, in some aspects, to those of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), mescaline, and dimethyltryptamine (DMT). In general, the effects include euphoria, visual and mental hallucinations, changes in perception, distorted sense of time, and perceived spiritual experiences. It can also cause adverse reactions such as nausea and panic attacks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Psychedelic drug</span> Hallucinogenic class of psychoactive drug

Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary mental states and a perceived "expansion of consciousness". Also referred to as classic hallucinogens or serotonergic hallucinogens, the term psychedelic is sometimes used more broadly to include various types of hallucinogens, such as those which are atypical or adjacent to psychedelia like salvia and MDMA, respectively.

An altered state of consciousness (ASC), also called an altered state of mind, altered mental status (AMS) or mind alteration, is any condition which is significantly different from a normal waking state. It describes induced changes in one's mental state, almost always temporary. A synonymous phrase is "altered state of awareness".

Psychedelic therapy refers to the proposed use of psychedelic drugs, such as psilocybin, MDMA, LSD, and ayahuasca, to treat mental disorders. As of 2021, psychedelic drugs are controlled substances in most countries and psychedelic therapy is not legally available outside clinical trials, with some exceptions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smart shop</span> Retail establishment that specializes in the sales of psychoactive substances

A smart shop is a retail establishment that specializes in the sale of psychoactive substances, usually including psychedelics, as well as related literature and paraphernalia. The name derives from the name "smart drugs", a class of drugs and food supplements intended to affect cognitive enhancements which are often sold in smart shops.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Psychedelic experience</span> Altered state of consciousness brought upon by the consumption of psychoactive substances

A psychedelic experience is a temporary altered state of consciousness induced by the consumption of a psychedelic substance. For example, an acid trip is a psychedelic experience brought on by the use of LSD, while a mushroom trip is a psychedelic experience brought on by the use of psilocybin. Psychedelic experiences feature alterations in normal perception such as visual distortions and a subjective loss of self-identity, sometimes interpreted as mystical experiences. Psychedelic experiences lack predictability, as they can range from being highly pleasurable to frightening. The outcome of a psychedelic experience is heavily influenced by the person's mood, personality, expectations, and environment.

The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) is an American nonprofit organization working to raise awareness and understanding of psychedelic substances. MAPS was founded in 1986 by Rick Doblin and is now based in San Jose, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heffter Research Institute</span> Nonprofit organization

The Heffter Research Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that promotes research with classic hallucinogens and psychedelics, predominantly psilocybin, to contribute to a greater understanding of the mind and to alleviate suffering. Founded in 1993 as a virtual institute, Heffter primarily funds academic and clinical scientists and made more than $3.1 million in grants between 2011 and 2014. Heffter's recent clinical studies have focused on psilocybin-assisted treatment for end-of-life anxiety and depression in cancer patients, as well as alcohol and nicotine addiction.

Amanda Claire Marian Charteris, Countess of Wemyss and March, also known as Amanda Feilding, is an English drug policy reformer, lobbyist, and research coordinator. In 1998, she founded the Foundation to Further Consciousness, later renamed to the Beckley Foundation, a charitable trust which initiates, directs, and supports neuroscientific and clinical research into the effects of psychoactive substances on the brain and cognition. She has also co-authored over 50 papers published in peer-reviewed journals, according to the Foundation. The central aim of her research is to investigate new avenues of treatment for such mental illnesses as depression, anxiety, and addiction, as well as to explore methods of enhancing well-being and creativity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Nutt</span> English neuropsychopharmacologist

David John Nutt is an English neuropsychopharmacologist specialising in the research of drugs that affect the brain and conditions such as addiction, anxiety, and sleep. He is the chairman of Drug Science, a non-profit which he founded in 2010 to provide independent, evidence-based information on drugs. Until 2009, he was a professor at the University of Bristol heading their Psychopharmacology Unit. Since then he has been the Edmond J Safra chair in Neuropsychopharmacology at Imperial College London and director of the Neuropsychopharmacology Unit in the Division of Brain Sciences there. Nutt was a member of the Committee on Safety of Medicines, and was President of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Psychoactive drug</span> Chemical substance that alters nervous system function

A psychoactive drug, mind-altering drug, or consciousness-altering drug is a chemical substance that changes brain function and results in alterations in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition, or behavior. The term psychotropic drug is often used interchangeably, while some sources present narrower definitions. These substances may be used medically; recreationally; to purposefully improve performance or alter one's consciousness; as entheogens for ritual, spiritual, or shamanic purposes; or for research, including psychedelic therapy. Some categories of psychoactive drugs, which have therapeutic value, are prescribed by physicians and other healthcare practitioners. Examples include anesthetics, analgesics, anticonvulsant and antiparkinsonian drugs as well as medications used to treat neuropsychiatric disorders, such as antidepressants, anxiolytics, antipsychotics, and stimulant medications. Some psychoactive substances may be used in the detoxification and rehabilitation programs for persons dependent on or addicted to other psychoactive drugs.

Psychedelic microdosing involves consuming sub-threshold doses (microdoses) of serotonergic psychedelic drugs like LSD and psilocybin to potentially enhance creativity, energy, emotional balance, problem-solving abilities, and to address anxiety, depression, and addiction. This practice has gained popularity in the 21st century. A June 2024 report by the RAND Corporation suggests that among adults in the United States reporting the use of psilocybin in the past year, nearly half reported microdosing the last time they used it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MindMed Inc.</span> Psychedelic medicine biotech company

Mind Medicine (MindMed) Inc., doing business as MindMed, is a New York-based biotechnology company that is currently developing clinical and therapeutic applications for psychedelic and, more broadly, psychoplastogenic drugs.

Entheogenic drugs have been used by various groups for thousands of years. There are numerous historical reports as well as modern, contemporary reports of indigenous groups using entheogens, chemical substances used in a religious, shamanic, or spiritual context.

Psychoplastogens are a group of small molecule drugs that produce rapid and sustained effects on neuronal structure and function, intended to manifest therapeutic benefit after a single administration. Several existing psychoplastogens have been identified and their therapeutic effects demonstrated; several are presently at various stages of development as medications including ketamine, MDMA, scopolamine, and the serotonergic psychedelics, including LSD, psilocin, DMT, and 5-MeO-DMT. Compounds of this sort are being explored as therapeutics for a variety of brain disorders including depression, addiction, and PTSD. The ability to rapidly promote neuronal changes via mechanisms of neuroplasticity was recently discovered as the common therapeutic activity and mechanism of action.

A psychedelic retreat is a guided, multi-day program with a set or semi-set itinerary hosted by one or more facilitators where psychoactive substances or processes are administered to guests to improve their mental well-being. The program includes learning and lifestyle workshops on topics such as meditation and healthy eating. These retreats may include an overnight stay, ranging from just one night to one month or more, with meals, a variety of healing modalities, and other activities. A retreat may own its own facility or rent a space to provide suitable accommodation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robin Carhart-Harris</span> British psychopharmacologist

Robin Lester Carhart-Harris is a British psychopharmacologist who is Ralph Metzner Distinguished Professor in the Department of Neurology at the University of California, San Francisco. Previously, he founded and was Head of the Centre for Psychedelic Research at Imperial College London.

References

  1. Feilding, Amanda (23 June 2016). "The war on drugs is failing – decriminalisation is the only way forward | Amanda Feilding". The Guardian.
  2. "Policy Reports and Briefing Papers". 14 April 2016.
  3. "The Beckley Foundation Drug Policy Programme". The Beckley Foundation Drug Policy Programme. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
  4. Jaeger, Kyle (11 January 2022). "Global Coalition Launches Push To Reschedule Psilocybin Under International Rules". Marijuana Moment. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  5. "Psychoactive Substances Act 2016". 19 November 2018.
  6. "Drugs should be moderated, not banned – the new ban will push more users into danger". Independent.co.uk . 4 June 2016.
  7. "Roadmaps to Regulation: Cannabis, Psychedelics, MDMA, and NPS". 15 May 2015.
  8. "Paths for Reform Report: Proposed Options for Alternative Drug Policies in Guatemala". Archived from the original on 18 April 2013. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  9. "Pérez Molina valora legalizar cultivos de amapola | elPeriódico de Guatemala". Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  10. "The global war on drugs has failed - It is time for a new approach".
  11. Tom, Peterkin (27 November 2011). "Countess courts rich and famous to end drug war". The Scotsman.
  12. "Science Publications". 29 March 2016.
  13. "Cannabis/Cannabinoids". 11 April 2017.
  14. "LSD For Major Depression". 19 March 2023.
  15. "LSD Home". 12 April 2017.
  16. "Psilocybin". 6 April 2017.
  17. "Hallucinogenic Amazonian Medicine Stimulates Generation of New Brain Cells". 30 June 2016.
  18. Kamboj, Sunjeev K.; Kilford, Emma J.; Minchin, Stephanie; Moss, Abigail; Lawn, Will; Das, Ravi K.; Falconer, Caroline J.; Gilbert, Paul; Curran, H Valerie; Freeman, Tom P. (2015). "Recreational 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine (MDMA) or 'ecstasy' and self-focused compassion: Preliminary steps in the development of a therapeutic psychopharmacology of contemplative practices" (PDF). Journal of Psychopharmacology. 29 (9): 961–970. doi:10.1177/0269881115587143. PMID   25990558. S2CID   18605313.
  19. Feilding, Amanda (17 May 2016). "We saw magic mushrooms lift long-term depression. It's time for a change of perception | Amanda Feilding". The Guardian.
  20. "Recent advances in the study of Ayahuasca - Jordi Riba". YouTube . 30 June 2016. Archived from the original on 22 December 2021.
  21. Carhart-Harris, Robin L.; Bolstridge, Mark; Rucker, James; Day, Camilla M J.; Erritzoe, David; Kaelen, Mendel; Bloomfield, Michael; Rickard, James A.; Forbes, Ben; Feilding, Amanda; Taylor, David; Pilling, Steve; Curran, Valerie H.; Nutt, David J. (2016). "Psilocybin with psychological support for treatment-resistant depression: An open-label feasibility study". The Lancet Psychiatry. 3 (7): 619–627. doi: 10.1016/S2215-0366(16)30065-7 . PMID   27210031.
  22. "The brain on LSD revealed: First scans show how the drug affects the brain | Imperial News | Imperial College London". 11 April 2016.
  23. "This is your brain on LSD, literally". 12 April 2016.
  24. Cormier, Zoe (2016). "Brain scans reveal how LSD affects consciousness". Nature. doi:10.1038/nature.2016.19727. S2CID   146946079.
  25. "First Cannabis Clinical Trials All Set in UK". Cannabis Industry Journal. 19 December 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2019. Beckley Canopy Therapeutics, based in Oxford, England has raised £7.4 million for the purposes of cannabinoid research and drug development. The new company is a unique partnership established between Canopy Growth Corporation and the Beckley Foundation, a research institute which examines the utilization of psychotropic drugs for the treatment of physical and mental conditions. Studies focusing on the use of cannabinoids for the treatment of opioid addiction and cancer pain will be conducted in Europe, the UK and the US. .. This is exactly the kind of high-placed, societally influential effort in other words, that might finally break the medical taboo at the most important remaining logjam– at the point of prescription and approval for patients.
  26. "The Countess of Cannabis". Bloomberg News. 1 April 2019. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  27. "Beckley Canopy Therapeutics raises £7.4m for cannabis R&D". PharmaForum. 4 December 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2019. As a new business partnership investing in UK medicine and research, we would like the government to ensure that access to medicinal cannabis is as simple and straightforward as possible for patients.
  28. "The Countess of Cannabis". Bloomberg News. 1 April 2019. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  29. "We Are Recruiting for a New Psychedelic Microdosing Study!". The Beckley Foundation. 3 September 2018. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  30. "LSD Microdosing Research". The Beckley Foundation. 25 January 2017. Retrieved 11 March 2019.