Sam Gandy

PhD Ecologist & Research collaborator at Centre for Psychedelic Research - Imperial College

Talk date & time :

Saturday 12:00-13:00

There appears to be a growing disconnection between humans and their natural environments which has been linked to poor mental health and environmental destruction. A growing body of evidence shows that psychedelic usage is associated with enduring increases in nature relatedness, or connectedness, post experience, with this encompassing an awareness of being part of a wider web of life that makes up the natural world. How does this occur, and what are the potential implications of this at a time of growing mental health and ecological crises? What overlap is there between how psychedelics and contact with nature affect our mental state, and how can we maximise this synergy between nature and psychedelics to improve mental health?

Sam is a PhD ecologist, independent researcher, consultant and science writer. He has varied experience of working within the psychedelic field, as a past scientific assistant to the director of the Beckley Foundation, as a research assistant with the Synthesis Institute, and as a consultant for PsiClone. He has worked as a senior science writer for Wavepaths, is a certified Shinrin Yoku forest bathing practitioner and also leads fungi growing workshops on occasion. He is also a collaborator with the Centre for Psychedelic Research at Imperial College London, with a research interest in the capacity of psychedelics to influence human relationships with nature.