How Do We Expand Who Psychedelic Therapy Is For?

Good morning and welcome to another edition of The Drop In! We're kicking things off with a story about the Black Psychedelic Learning Project. Have you heard of it?

Here's the tea: Most (if not all) psychedelic therapy training programs are created and led by white educators, ultimately reflecting a narrow range of cultural perspectives. Yet, the people enrolling in these programs are far more diverse. The Black Psychedelic Learning Project is working to broaden the field’s scope of understanding by helping build a more culturally competent generation of facilitators equipped to meet the needs of all communities who want to heal with psychedelics. How tf are they doing this?! You'll have to read on to find out!

We drop in on a lot this week, including why the brain makes DMT, the natural vs. synthetic debate, and so much more. Enjoy!

Happy ancestors week 🎃,
Mary Carreón
Editor-in-Chief

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Inside the Push to Evolve Psychedelic Therapy Training

The Black Psychedelic Learning Project is gathering data to make psychedelic therapy training as inclusive as the healing it promises.

When psychedelic-assisted therapy started gaining traction, it quickly became clear who the movement was accessible to…and who it wasn’t. While psychedelic training programs have multiplied in recent years, Black trainees have often found themselves in predominantly white classrooms, confronting microaggressions, a lack of cultural competency, and curricula generally disconnected from their lived experiences. That disconnect is what inspired the Black Psychedelic Learning Project (BPLP) — a study led by Black researchers, therapists, and clinicians working to document, analyze, and transform the training experience for Black psychedelic practitioners across the U.S.

The BPLP is a research endeavor of Access to Dooways, a 501(c)(3) organization that helps people access ketamine-assisted therapy and training. What makes this project different than others — aside from the topic of inquiry — is that it’s gathering both quantitative and qualitative data from Black trainees and practitioners across the country who are currently enrolled in psychedelic facilitation programs. The goal? To build a body of research that makes the psychedelic field more inclusive, equitable, and responsive to the needs of the Black community.

“This project really came out of a conversation,” says Carsten Fisher, the project’s research assistant and coordinator. “Being a Black person who’s gone through a psychedelic training program, I realized there was this glaring gap. Our community knew our stories, but no one else did. There just hadn’t been space for them.”

Carsten tells DoubleBlind that the study isn’t just about documenting disparities; it’s about redefining how research is done. The team is using Indigenous Research Methodology, a framework that prioritizes reciprocity, relationship, and community participation over detached observation. “We’re approaching this research through what’s called Indigenous Research Methodologies,” says Carsten. “A huge part of that is community-centered, participatory research and making sure the community being studied is actually involved in how the research is conducted.”

Each phase of the project passes through an Elder Council made up of Baba Mudu, Maria Mangini, and Mother Jaguar, who offer guidance and spiritual oversight for every step. “They’re not just there to sign off,” Carsten says. “They make sure what we’re doing aligns with the greater needs of the psychedelic community, and specifically, the Black psychedelic community.”

Ayize Jama Everett — a therapist, filmmaker, and member of the BPLP research team who also serves as its community coordinator — tells DoubleBlind that the project was born out of both necessity and love. “This study isn’t just about producing data. It’s about accountability. We want to make sure that as the psychedelic field expands, it’s not replicating the same extractive systems that have always excluded us. This work is about reclamation.”

That reclamation extends beyond the rigid confines of academia. The study’s methodology itself is a form of resistance. It’s slower, more relational, and rooted in collective care rather than the rush toward FDA approval. “Our approach is antithetical to how most psychedelic research gets done,” says Carsten. “It’s grassroots, steady, and connected to the people. We’re not trying to sprint through this the way institutions sprint through clinical trials. We’re trying to do it right.”

Funding for the project remains an obstacle, however. “We had a really great funding partner in the beginning who gave us seed money,” says Courtney Watson, a member of the BPLP research team and who also runs Access to Doorways. She is also an extensively trained psychedelic therapist. “But the landscape has shifted. Interest in funding equity and inclusion in the psychedelic space has been shrinking, and we’re now working to bring in new donors.”

As the BPLP is a research project under Courtney’s non-profit, all donations — large and small — are tax-deductible. She explains that every single dollar will go towards moving the project forward sustainably. “We’re really intentional about how we use our funds. We make sure we’re providing actual meals, not just hummus and a veggie tray, for participants in our focus groups. Somebody’s donation might be the difference between a Spirit [Airlines] ticket and a Southwest plane ticket. Anyone who’s ever flown Spirit knows exactly why that matters.”

While funny, it also serves as a reminder of the project’s grassroots nature. Donations don’t disappear into a bureaucratic void; they go directly toward tangible needs, like feeding focus group participants or covering travel costs for researchers to reach communities across the country.

“This isn’t just a study for the Black psychedelic community,” says Carsten. “It’s in service of the psychedelic community as a whole.” The research, he explains, will ideally inform training programs, policy, and future standards of care, ultimately ensuring that the next generation of facilitators are better trained.

For Ayize, it’s about building an infrastructure for a future that’s arriving quickly. “MDMA is going to pass eventually. Psilocybin will pass. We need to make sure Black facilitators are being trained and supported to meet their communities where they are,” he says. “The psychedelic field owes Black folks a space in its future, and this is one way we’re making sure that happens.”

The project, still in its early stages of data collection, welcomes donations from both individuals and institutions. Contributions can be made directly through Access to Doorways’ website, or you can email Courtney directly to support the project at: [email protected] .

“This is the kind of research that brings gifts to the entire psychedelic field,” says Courtney. “It’s about making sure that when we talk about healing, we mean that it is for everyone.”

What Will Happen When Psychedelics Go Mainstream?

We all LOVE a good, ol’ fashioned Halloween piece! This year, we penned a story about the top 10 scariest outcomes of psychedelic mainstreaming, and who better to write it than Dennis “Mycopreneur” Walker?

For decades, idealists dreamed that mass psychedelic use would dissolve egos and usher in world peace. But as the psychedelic mainstreaming machine roars ahead, the dream looks less like a revolution and more like a corporate merger. From billionaire biohackers chasing immortality to the Pentagon studying psilocybin for soldier endurance, today’s “awakening” is being engineered for profit, power, and control. Still, even in this dystopian trip, there’s room for humor, and a reminder that laughter might just be our last form of resistance.

Upgrade your subscription here to get the full story THIS Halloween.

DoubleBlind Digs

• Step into the sun-soaked, psychedelic chaos of Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival with Desert Dreams, a visually stunning tribute to the world’s most iconic music festival. This book, written by DoubleBlind contributor Katie Bain, captures the heat, hype, and heart of the desert’s biggest stage. Check it out here.

• Help researchers at Oregon State University explore how substance use and mental health intersect in adults. Take a brief, confidential online survey for a chance to win a $20 gift card and contribute to vital research shaping the future of mental health care. Learn more about it here.

• We’re thrilled to share that the Ayni Regenerative Food Forest has expanded to two new communities along the Marañón River—Atenas and Mundial—thanks to your continued support and partnership with the Kukama women of Huaynakana. Together, we’re helping families cultivate sustainable futures through regenerative agriculture and native beekeeping. Donate here.

• The Indigenous Medicine Conservation Fund (IMC Fund) has appointed a 100% Indigenous Board of Directors, marking a historic step toward ensuring that the protection of sacred medicines, lands, and knowledge is led by the Peoples who have safeguarded them for millennia. This new governance model redefines global philanthropy by centering Indigenous leadership, sovereignty, and spirituality in conservation. Donate here.

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