OVERVIEW

What?

An intimate and unique online conference on sacred medicines guided by Indigenous Elders and medicine holders belonging to diverse ethnic groups from Latin America.

When?

May 31st - June 1st, 2025 from

9 AM to 6 PM, with an opening ceremony on Friday, May 30th from 8 AM to noon for those who can attend.

Where?

Zoom Video Conference **

Art by Sitalin Sánchez, @sitalin.sanchez

** IMPORTANT CONFERENCE UPDATE:**

In light of the growing challenges faced by universities under the current U.S. administration—and the fact that the situation at U.S. borders has become increasingly unpredictable for those with valid visas and green cards—we have decided to host the Sacred Medicines 2025 Conference fully online instead of in-person as originally planned.

Although all of the Elders successfully secured their visas, the current political climate poses too great a risk to their ability to safely enter the United States from their respective territories. As a result, the original 4-day in-person gathering at UC Berkeley has shifted to a shorter, online format and the BCSP is no longer involved.

The updated schedule stays true to the spirit and structure of the original event, with both cohort and plenary sessions included. This shift prioritizes the safety of the Elders, ensures greater global accessibility, and upholds the ethos and mission of the conference.

Art by Sitalin Sánchez, @sitalin.sanchez

How?

We will gather in a unique cohort-style conference where you will select your preferred cohort. For example, there will be a “Mental Health Professionals” cohort. This will allow us to engage in deep conversation with one elder at a time while also creating a learning community that can continue beyond the conference. Each group will have several 1.5 hour blocks of intimate discussions and workshops as well as Q&A’s with different Indigenous elders to bring closer the worlds of modern western psychedelic practice and ancestral indigenous practices. Each cohort will have the support of Bridge Facilitators and a Translator.

“Research is not an innocent academic exercise but an activity that has something at stake and that occurs in a set of political and social conditions.”

— Linda Tuhiwai Te Rina Smith

Art by Sitalin Sánchez, @sitalin.sanchez

Why?

To honor Indigenous knowledge, address cultural appropriation, and foster ethical, reciprocal, and decolonial relationships in psychedelic research and practice.

Sign up for a conference information session here:

Conference Co-Chairs

  • Solei Sarmiento

    CO-CHAIR

    Solei Sarmiento is a researcher, community organizer, and multimedia storyteller dedicated to amplifying Indigenous knowledge within the field of contemplative science. As the Director and Co-Founder of the non-profit Sunflower Sutras, she has co-created a platform that merges visual storytelling with decolonial narratives, fostering virtual and in-person dialogue on reciprocity and ancestral wisdom. With a background in cognitive science and human rights from UC Berkeley, her work explores the intersections of Indigenous epistemologies, contemplative psychology, spiritual care, and immersive media. This Fall, she will begin her Master of Divinity at Harvard Divinity School to deepen her engagement with Mesoamerican Traditional Knowledge and decolonial methodologies.

  • Oseas Barbarán Sánchez

    CO- CHAIR

    Oseas Barbarán Sánchez is a Shipibo-Konibo leader and advocate for indigenous sovereignty and ancestral medicine. As President of the Confederation of Amazonian Nationalities of Peru (CONAP), the largest indigenous organization in Perú, he represents 944 indigenous communities across seven regions of the Peruvian Amazon, defending their rights, cultural heritage, and sacred territories.

    Rooted in his Shipibo traditions from the Ucayali River where he still lives, Oseas has spent decades protecting and revitalizing Amazonian plant medicine practices. Since 2007, Oseas has strengthened CONAP, leading efforts to secure direct international funding for large-scale projects that empower indigenous knowledge, governance, and sustainable living. He has represented indigenous peoples before the United Nations, the GCF Task Force, COP and the International Land Coalition, amongst others.

  • Francisco Lopez Rivarola

    CO-CHAIR

    Francisco Lopez Rivarola is from Argentina, Buenos Aires, and works as the Co-Founder of Sunflower Sutras, a multimedia educational platform based on Berkeley, dedicated to documenting the work of indigenous elders and consciousness researchers to help bridge the paradigms of ancestral knowledge and modern-western science. Francisco is currently filming and producing courses with indigenous elders aimed at psychedelic practitioners and guides, hoping to make their voices and cosmovisions accessible for the stewarding of the psychedelic renaissance, in a reciprocal and non-extractivist manner.