Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research

Many of us feel disconnected from our family stories and traditions, which can create a sense of loss of home and belonging. Pacha philosopher and ecopsychologist Lorena Saavedra Smith believes reconciling with our ancestors’ traditions and weaving ourselves back into our history is a therapeutic endeavor that deserves to be embarked upon with respect and authenticity.  

In this episode, Lorena is joined by Susana Bustos, faculty at CIIS’ Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research for a conversation on her book, Awaken Your Roots, which explores belonging through the medicine of nature, cultural connection, and ancestral wisdom. Lorena shares how to access tools to interweave your dreams with your deep roots. With a focus on ancestral wisdom and our relationship with nature, she offers a pathway to move through anxiety to rediscover your inner wisdom.  

This episode was recorded during a live online event on February 19th, 2026. A transcript is available below.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

At the 2026 Scholarship Dinner, CIIS students and donors gathered to celebrate the journeys that generous giving makes possible.

What if the questions that draw us to learning could also reshape who we become? Across disciplines and life paths, curiosity emerges as sacred work, an opening into connection, healing, and transformation.

Dr. Janis Phelps founded the world's first academically approved psychedelic therapy training program, preparing clinicians for a transforming field of mental health.

The Wall Street Journal spotlights the growing field of integration therapy—and features Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research Director Dr. Janis Phelps discussing why the work that happens after a psychedelic experience is just as important as the experience itself.

As psychedelic use expands beyond clinical settings, CIIS' Dr. Janis Phelps and Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research graduates emphasize why rigorous training and ethical practices matter—wherever psychedelics are administered.

Harvard-trained anthropologist and author Manvir Singh has traveled from Indonesia to the Colombian Amazon, living with shamans and observing music, the use of state altering substances and Indigenous curing ceremonies. 

In this episode, he is joined by psychology professor, transpersonal psychotherapist, and independent researcher Susana Bustos for a conversation exploring the spiritual practice of shamanism, one of the most mysterious religious traditions.

This episode was recorded during an live online event at California Institute of Integral Studies on June 6th, 2025. A transcript is available below.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

Michelle Tea is best known for her book, Modern Tarot, which is now a cult classic. Her latest book, Modern Magic, explores her magical roots. Sharing how she crafted her own magical practice, Michelle offers a framework to tap into the distinctive magic that lies within each of us, a framework that incorporates queer, feminist, anti-racist, and intersectional values.

In this episode, self-described DIY witch, professional tarot reader, author, and feminist icon Michelle Tea is joined by arts-based, psychedelic-assisted ancestral psychotherapist Camara Meri Rajaberi for an illuminating conversation that explores modern magic.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on November 6th, 2024. A transcript is available below.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

The Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies and Research Certificate — the nation's first program of its kind — expands eligibility to nonclinical applicants.

In this episode, CIIS professor and clinical psychologist Jason Butler and clinical psychologist Genesee Herzberg are joined by psychotherapist and mentor in the CIIS Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research Gisele Fernandes-Osterhold for a conversation exploring how psychedelic medicine can be incorporated into contemporary psychotherapy.

Together, Jason, Genesee, and Gisele examine the practice of psychedelic therapy and offer practical guidance for cultivating a highly effective, ethically grounded, and integral approach to psychedelic therapy.

This episode was recorded during an in-person and live streamed event at California Institute of Integral Studies on January 25th, 2024.  A transcript is available below.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

CIIS to launch the first-ever undergraduate Bachelor of Science in Psychedelic Studies offering, planned to begin in fall 2025.

The New York Times travels to CIIS to learn more about the Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research and the science behind holotropic breathwork. 

Coverage of our work healing individuals, communities, and the earth

A Center for Psychedelic Therapies & Research faculty member and student explore the role chaplains are embracing as they provide patients with psychedelic-assisted treatments.

The New York Times showcases how psilocybin combined with therapy is emerging as the most effective "Next Big Addiction Treatment."

The U.S. may approve therapies using MDMA and psilocybin; CIIS is training the psychedelic researchers of the future.

The field of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy has been growing rapidly in recent years with decriminalization efforts moving forward on local, state, and federal levels. Ketamine was first developed in the 1960s as a surgical anesthetic for humans. In recent years, it was discovered that ketamine also has rapid acting anti-depressant and anti-obsessional properties.

In this episode, clinician Gisele Fernandes-Osterhold has a conversation with psychologist Raquel Bennett about her experience working as a ketamine specialist over the past 19 years and the exploding field of therapeutic ketamine.

Learn more about Raquel's personal experience using Ketamine in an interview.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on March 4, 2021. A transcript is available below.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

MDMA is currently in phase three of clinical trial research studies for the treatment of trauma in the United States, Canada, and Israel.

In this episode, clinician and CIIS professor Gisele Fernandes-Osterhold has a conversation with Israel-based MAPS clinician-researcher Keren Tzarfaty on the benefits and therapeutic applications of MDMA assisted psychotherapy. Keren and Gisele go deep into the nature of the psychedelic experience, the principles that guide the therapeutic work, and the new paradigm this study offers to treatment of PTSD and to psychotherapy in general.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on April 6, 2021. A transcript is available below.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

Psilocybin has been decriminalized in many cities in the United States and most recently has been approved for use in psychotherapy in the state of Oregon. In the latest studies, psilocybin has shown efficacy for patients suffering from depression, addiction, and end-of-life distress.

In this episode, clinician and CIIS professor Gisele Fernandes-Osterhold has an illuminating conversation with UCSF psychiatrist Brian Anderson on the benefits, risks, and therapeutic applications of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on May 6, 2021. A transcript is available below.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

With the second renaissance and re-emergence of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, the general public and therapists alike are confronted with new areas of exploration, but with few systematic frameworks available.

With questions surrounding legal access to care, ongoing criminalization, and medical restrictions to care limiting the therapies available, the immediate future of psychedelic-assisted therapy remains shrouded in uncertainty, even in the face of expanding interest. On the cusp of this new era—one of excitement but also uncertainty—one of many ways to explore this emerging landscape is through the lens of the psychospiritual and the therapeutic uses of psychedelics.

In this episode, clinical psychologist, founder of the Center for Existential Exploration, and author Kile Ortigo is joined by licensed clinical social worker, psychotherapist, and social justice advocate Mary Sanders for a conversation on Dr. Ortigo's latest book, Beyond the Narrow Life, an exploration of the psychospiritual and therapeutic use of psychedelics, which includes the process of psychedelic integration.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on August 26th, 2021. A transcript is available below.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

Apela Colorado is a traditional cultural practitioner and Indigenous scientist dedicated to creating a bridge between Western thought and Indigenous worldviews. In her latest book, Woman Between the Worlds, Dr. Colorado invites us to explore how Indigenous wisdom resonates in modern life while lovingly teaching us to honor its power, beauty, and potential.

In this episode, CIIS faculty Susana Bustos joins Dr. Colorado for a conversation about her lifelong journey connecting with the essence of Indigenous spirituality and culture, and reawakening to the wisdom of her Native American and French Gaul ancestors.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on November 4th, 2021. Access the transcript below.

Poet, journalist, and professor Nicholas Powers describes his youth as growing up with tales of counter culture for bedtime stories.

In this episode, he talks with Natalie Metz, a licensed Naturopathic Doctor, herbalist, faculty member and mentor in the Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research at CIIS.

Nicholas shares stories from his journey exploring psychedelic experiences and events in a discussion about what psychedelic integration could be in the 21st Century.

This episode contains explicit language. A transcript is available below.

In this episode, author and hip hop journalist Jeff Chang is joined in conversation with novelist and poet Adam Mansbach on the cultural history - and future - of race in America.

Jeff Chang is the author of Who We Be, a cultural history of race in post-civil rights America and Can’t Stop Won’t Stop, the history of the hip-hop generation. He's also the executive director of The Institute for Diversity in the Arts at Stanford University.

This episode was recorded during an event on February 11, 2016 in front of a live audience in San Francisco, California. A transcript is available below.

Rick Doblin, founder and executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), has been a relentless advocate for developing legal contexts for the beneficial uses of psychedelics paired with psychotherapy for decades. He is also a teacher for the Certificate in Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies and Research.

In this episode, licensed psychotherapist Gisele Fernandes has a fascinating conversation with Rick about the future of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Diving into his vast knowledge of the science of psychedelics, Rick discusses how drugs such as LSD, psilocybin, and MDMA affect your brain. He shares how, when paired with psychotherapy, psychedelics could change the way we treat PTSD, depression, substance abuse, and more.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on October 23, 2020. A transcript is available below.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

CONTENT ADVISORY: This episode contains references to the existence of traumatic events such as assault, rape, and suicide.

Psilocybin mushrooms have been used for hundreds, likely thousands of years. Currently, more than 65 universities in North America and Europe have been approved for clinical studies ranging from treating depression and Alzheimer’s to addiction. Psilocybin has clearly risen to the forefront of medical research.

In this episode, renowned mycologist and medical researcher Paul Stamets provides an illuminating talk covering the psilocybin movement through history into the current modern moment as well as an overview of the most clinically significant studies, the newest research on psilocybin analogues, micro-dosing, and the implications for creating a paradigm shift in the ecology of consciousness.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on December 3rd, 2021. Access the transcript below.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

CIIS was awarded a $1.0 Million Grant for Psychedelic Therapy Training from Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation to support the Psychedelic Therapies program.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to more fully reveal injustices, inequities, and imbalances that contribute to climate change, ecological degradation, and economic instability that threaten our individual and collective well-being. This potent time invites us to consider questions like: How can we cultivate individual, collective, and ecological resilience in this unstable new reality? What lessons does the pandemic offer for addressing climate change and human health?

This episode features Natalie Metz, licensed Naturopathic Doctor, herbalist, faculty member and mentor in the Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research, and Elizabeth Allison, Professor of Ecology, Spirituality, and Religion, in a conversation exploring connections between human health and the health of the planet. They discuss the current global narratives in medicine and climate change, and how each narrative relates to human and planetary health. Natalie and Elizabeth explore the microcosm and macrocosm of embodied health and the emergence of a new consciousness that embraces collective well-being.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on June 18, 2020. You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

After observing modern shamanic trainings with a growing concern, clinical psychologist and scholar Anotonio Ramirez began exploring more traditional forms of shamanism by interviewing elder shamans in Latin America.

In this talk, recorded at CIIS on May 21, 2019, Antonio shares his ideas about the dangers of shamanism as it is practiced today in urban areas, how these practices are affecting native shamanism, and suggests ways to avoid falling prey of unethical practitioners.

Author and psychedelic explorer Chris Bache’s book, LSD and the Mind of the Universe chronicles his experiences and insights from 73 high-dose LSD sessions conducted between 1979 and 1999. This became the philosophical adventure of a lifetime, but one Chris had to keep largely hidden from his colleagues and society.

In this episode, licensed psychotherapist Gisele Fernandes talks with Chris about his 20-year journey into the depths and heights of consciousness.

This episode was recorded during an event on April 16, 2020 in front of a live audience in San Francisco, California.

For more than four decades, Don Lattin has written about the social, spiritual, and political aspects of the psychedelic drug movement as a newspaper reporter, freelance journalist, and the author of four books of narrative non-fiction.

In this episode, KQED Science senior editor Kat Snow has a conversation with Don looking back on the long, strange trip his career has been.

This episode was recorded during an event on March 5, 2020 in front of a live audience in San Francisco, California.

In this episode, naturalist Maya Elson talks with Lawrence Millman about his life and work as an author and mycologist exploring the fascinating world of fungi.

This episode was recorded during an event on December 12, 2019 in front of a live audience in San Francisco, California.

Join renowned ethnopharmacologist and author Dennis McKenna for this engaging talk combining ethnobotany, psychopharmacology, history, and the philosophical reflections of a luminary in this field.

This episode was recorded during an event on November 21, 2019 in front of a live audience in San Francisco, California.

In this episode, psychotherapist and CIIS professor Gisele Fernandes-Osterhold has a conversation with social anthropologist and researcher Beatriz Labate about the risks and benefits of the globalization of ayahuasca through the lens of her research on new and traditional uses of psychoactive substances.

This episode was recorded during an event on July 11, 2019 in front of a live audience in San Francisco, California. 

Psychedelic therapist Daniel McQueen and CIIS faculty Natalie Metz explore the potential for healing and personal transformation through the intentional use of cannabis and psychedelics.

This episode was recorded during an event on March 27, 2019 in front of a live audience in San Francisco, California.

Psychologist and NYU researcher Dr. Tony Bossis reviews one of the first FDA-approved clinical trials of psychedelic drugs since research was effectively banned in the 1970s. His work is part of the recent renaissance in psychedelic studies, with results suggesting that psilocybin and other hallucinogens may help treat anxiety, addiction, end-of-life distress, and shed light on the neurobiology of mystical experience.

This episode was recorded during an event on October 22, 2015 in front of a live audience in San Francisco, California.

Mycologist Paul Stamets examines how mushrooms can help the health of people and the planet.

This episode was recorded during an event on August 11, 2016 in front of a live audience in San Francisco, California.

International labor lawyer, Y-Vonne Hutchinson, and Professor of Economics at UC Berkeley, Clair Brown, explore the positive and negative impacts of technology on the world of work. This conversation was a collaboration with the Kapor Center for Social Impact in Oakland.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on October 3, 2018.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

Author and Professor of Religious Studies Dr. Christopher Bache discusses his twenty year long regimen of psychedelic exploration and therapy with CIIS Professor Sean Kelly.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on December 9, 2016.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

CIIS’ Natalie Metz explores the potential that psychedelics hold for the future of medicine.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on March 22, 2017.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

Author Ayelet Waldman is joined in conversation by CIIS writing professor Carolyn Cooke to discuss her personal experiment with the therapeutic value of psychedelics.

This episode was recorded during a live online event on March 29, 2018.

You can watch a recording of this episode and many more episodes on the CIIS Public Programs YouTube Channel.

Mycologist and author Paul Stamets explores the magical world of mushrooms, deepening our understanding of the planet and its people.

New scholarships will help students from underrepresented communities attend our innovative certificate program

The FDA approved large-scale studies using MDMA-assisted therapy and positive results found in psilocybin research.

Implementation of the largest collaborative program focusing on psychedelic studies

New Certificate from Our Center for Psychedelic Therapies & Research