Greg Shanken - Collaborence, Community Access & Ethical Growth in Psychedelics

Psychedelics access and ethical growth come through community infrastructure, with Greg Shanken emphasizing pay-what-you-can entry points and vetted partner networks to widen pathways into psychedelic healing. The conversation centers on building Collaborence, a multi-state CO/OR event that connects facilitators, professionals, and the public through online and in-person programming. Shanken also links accessibility to affordability strategies such as scholarships or funds and mentions lower-cost approaches like microdosing and breathwork alongside regulated services. Censorship and platform risk are a practical driver for his approach: repeated Meta account shutdowns push him to build community-based distribution outside big ad networks. He frames this as moving from transactional marketing to mutual aid and reciprocity, while also raising ethical and ecological concerns, including conservation related to toad sourcing and the argument for synthetic 5-MeO-DMT. The episode also traces his personal journey from long-term depression through ayahuasca and ketamine to later Bufo/5-MeO-DMT, tying personal transformation to community leadership.