Beckley Foundation

Background

Since its creation by Amanda Feilding in 1998, the Beckley Foundation has been at the forefront of global drug policy reform and scientific research into psychoactive substances.

The Beckley Foundation Scientific Programme initiates, designs and conducts research into the effects of psychoactive substances on the brain, in order to minimise their potential harms, learn more about consciousness and brain function, and discover and explore their therapeutic potential. Recent research includes collaborations with Dr Jordi Riba at Sant Pau Hospital on ayahuasca, Professor David Nutt at Imperial College on the effects of psychedelics on cerebral blood flow, Professor Valerie Curran at University College London on the effects of cannabis on the brain with a view to possible therapeutic applications and with Professor Roland Griffiths at Johns Hopkins University studying the effects of psilocybin in combating addiction.

The Beckley Foundation Policy Programme is dedicated to improving national and global drug policies, through research that increases understanding of the health, social and fiscal implications of drug policy, and the development of new evidence-based and rational approaches. It brings together country representatives, science and policy experts at international seminars in order to discuss alternative drug policy, and commissions and disseminates reports to open up and facilitate debate among policy-makers and the public.

Roadmaps to Regulation: New Psychoactive Substances 2016

To coincide with the introduction of the UK’s Psychoactive Substances Act 2016 on 26 May 2016, Amanda Feilding released the report, “Roadmaps to Regulation: New Psychoactive Substances.” The document surveys the complex and unique world of NPS production and distribution and suggests a harm reductive model for the legal regulation of this vast array of substances. The NPS report is part of wider family of forthcoming reports, “Roadmaps to Regulation: Cannabis, Psychedelics, MDMA and NPS“.

Public Letter 2016

Recognizing the clear need for the nations and countries of the United Nations to design their own drug policies, tailored to mitigating their individual experiences of the ‘War on Drugs,’ Amanda Feilding attended the 2016 UN General Assembly Special Session on drugs and hosted an official side event at the UN Headquarters in New York. The event marked the launch of the Beckley Foundation’s 2016 Public Letter, “Out of UNGASS: A New Approach” which calls for the abandonment of the 1961 Drug Convention, and for every country to be allowed to implement drug policies that are cost-effective, harm-reductive and respect human rights.

Jamaica's Regulated Cannabis Industry: First Steps 2015

In Spring 2015, Amanda Feilding and the Beckley Foundation were invited by Mark Golding, then the Jamaican Minister of Justice, to advise the government on the formation of a balanced policy in the regulation of the cannabis industry in Jamaica, and to provide feedback on global drug policy issues as Jamaica moved towards the creation of a successfully-regulated cannabis industry. The two-day conference brought together academics, government officials, growers, Rastafari and healthcare professionals. The outcome of these discussions was fed into the process for the 2016 UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on global drug policy.

Beckley Foundation Guatemala 2012–13

On 3 July 2012 Beckley Foundation Guatemala was launched after the organisation had been asked to convene an international Board of Experts to write reports which would:

1. analyse the impact of the current drug prohibitionist policies;
2. propose a sophisticated range of alternative policy solutions for Guatemala.

The alternative drug policy solutions were presented to President Otto Pérez Molina by Amanda Feilding in January 2013 in this 'Paths for Reform' report. The suggestions include a proposal to investigate legalising the illicit opium poppy crop in order to produce pain-relieving medications for the Guatemalan people, a initiative that has been mentioned by President Pérez Molina during Davos 2013 and other official appearances

Public Letter 2011

In 2011 an open letter from the Foundation was published in The Times and The Guardian calling for a new approach to drug policy. The letter opened by emphatically stating that the war on drugs has failed and calling for a new approach. Signatories of the letter now include the current Presidents of Colombia (Juan Manuel Santos) and Guatemala (Otto Pérez Molina), and former Presidents of the United States (Jimmy Carter), Mexico, Colombia and Switzerland, as well as Nobel Prize winners and numerous other world figures.

Global Initiative for Drug Policy Reform 2011–12

The Global Initiative is a collaboration between the All Party Parliamentary Group on Drug Policy, the Global Commission on Drug Policy and the Beckley Foundation. It was held at the House of Lords in November 2011, bringing together representatives from countries interested in reform, and countries that have successfully implemented alternative drug policies, along with the Global Commission on Drug Policy.

Science

The Beckley Foundation is one of the few organisations in the world initiating, supporting, and directing scientific research investigating the effects of currently-controlled psychoactive substances. This ground-breaking research explores how substances such as cannabis, psychedelics, and MDMA act upon the human brain, using the latest developments in neuroscience and brain imaging technology. The purpose of the research is to increase our scientific understanding of consciousness itself, and to explore new avenues for the treatment of illnesses and the betterment of humankind. Over the last 18 years, the Programme has produced dozens of scientific articles published in influential peer-reviewed journals, and Amanda Feilding has spearheaded numerous collaborations. Collaborating partners include leading institutions such as Imperial College London, Sant Pau Hospital, University College London, King’s College London, and Johns Hopkins University, and topics have covered:

Ayahuasca and Neurogenesis 2016

A preliminary study conducted within the framework of the Beckley-Sant Pau Research Programme and in collaboration with the Spanish National Research Council found that harmine and tetrahydroharmine, the alkaloids present in highest amounts in ayahuasca, have potent neurogenic properties (the ability to create new brain cells). The addition of harmine and tetrahydroharmine to cultures containing neural stem cells dramatically increased their differentiation and maturation into neurons.

Psilocybin for Depression 2016

Based on the Beckley/Imperial Research Programme's psilocybin study brain imaging results, in 2012, the Medical Research Council awarded funding to the programme for a clinical study investigating psilocybin in the treatment of depression. Results from the study, published in the Lancet Psychiatry Journal, showed that two doses of psilocybin lifted depression in all 12 volunteers for three weeks, and kept five of them depression free for three months. The size of the study and the absence of a placebo make the research proof of principle only, but the remarkably positive results highlight the need for continued research in this promising area of psychiatry – psychedelic-assisted therapy. Amanda Feilding and the Beckley Foundation are currently trying to secure funding to expand this research and further evaluate the potential of psilocybin as a treatment for depression.

LSD Revealed 2016

On 13 April 2016, the Beckley/Imperial Research Programme released the world’s first images of the human brain on LSD, collected as part of the first ever brain imaging study to examine the effects of LSD on the human brain. Programme co-directors Amanda Feilding and David Nutt, together with lead-investigator Robin Cathart-Harris, held a press conference at the Royal Society on 11 April 2016 to herald the publication of the paper.

Ongoing Projects Include

Recent Scientific Journal Publications:

Beckley Foundation Press Publications

The Beckley Foundation Press was created to allow the publication of Drug Policy and Scientific material that was not being picked up by mainstream publishing houses due to the controversial nature of the material.

Authors: Albert Hofmann. Translated by Jonathan Ott and Edited by Amanda Feilding - Publisher: The Beckley Foundation Press and Oxford University Press (2013). ISBN 978-0-19-963941-0, 248 pages

Authors: Robin Room, Benedikt Fischer, Wayne Hall, Simon Lenton and Peter Reuter, Convened by Amanda Feilding - Publisher: The Beckley Foundation Press and Oxford University Press (2010). ISBN 978-0-19-958148-1

Authors: Annelie Hintzen M.D. and Torsten Passie M.D., M.A. Paperback: App 200 pages - Publisher: The Beckley Foundation Press and Oxford University Press (June 2010) ISBN 978-0-19-958982-1

Edited by Amanda Feilding - Publisher: Beckley Foundation Press (2010) ISBN 978-0-9548054-9-4

Authors: Yuri Moskalenko, Amanda Feilding and Peter Halvorson - Publisher: Beckley Foundation Press (2010) ISBN 978-1-907072-01-7

Major Seminars