Friends of the Coca Leaf Update

Dear friends

Herewith we send a few updates on the progress of the association.

1. Shipments

On April 23, a producer of coca leaf located in the Tropical region of Cochabamba, Bolivia, sent the first 30 packages of 150 grams of coca leaf in certified mail to 30 members. Some members (in Spain and Austria) have already received their package, others are still waiting. We have tried to find out what is going on for some of them and we have been told that the packages have not left Bolivia yet. In Bolivia, we have recieved the comment that the delay may be due to a problem in the company Aerosur, which is responsible for air transport of packages. Anyway, if they do not reach their destination, we can make a claim for each of the packages in the post office where they were deposited. If you have not received a package and would like to claim on your behalf, please contact us.

We have received no news of members who have undergone a police intervention with respect to the receipt of their shipment.

This week a second series of 23 packets will be sent again from Cochabamba, and in June we plan a third shipment. In this third shipment we will cooperate with two new producers, one of Los Yungas, Bolivia and the other one from Peru. If you would like to take part in this third group, please place your order before June 10 (see form below).


2. Legal Defense

We have prepared a draft text of the legal argumentation that can be used by anyone who suffers when suffering judicial intervention in Europe on the import of an amount of coca leaves for personal use. We sent the draft to a lawyer in the Netherlands specialized in the area. We hope to have a final version for the second half of June, so we can send it to all the members who need it.

3. Testimonies

We again call on all members to send us a short testimony (in writing, picture or even a short video) that explains why they want to consume coca leaves, what this consumption means for them. These testimonies (anonymous if desired) can be useful in the legal defense and also published on the website of the association which we are preparing.


In short, we make progress, slowly but surely.

Let us know if you have questions or suggestions

Best wishes

Baylen, Beatrice, Joep and Julien

Please pay the price of your shipment (15 euro) to the following bank account (payments per Paypal are also possible - please contact us):



IBAN BE49 0016 5809 6071
BIC GEBABEBB

Banco: Fortis Bank, Warandeberg, Brussel

Att. Encod/Amigos, Antwerpen, Belgium

Ref: your name
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vzw VRIENDEN VAN HET COCABLAD

PLOEGSTRAAT 27 – 2018 ANTWERPEN – BELGIUM

Tel. +32 495 122 644

coca2009@encod.org - http://www.encod.org

Interdisciplinary Conference on Psychedelic Research 2012

For those that remember Mind Altering Science in Amsterdam of 2010 have been waiting for the second installment of lectures to take place in 2012.

Ticket prices are now on sale in the early bird phase, 55 euro for a student ticket with ID and 75 euro for a regular ticket. Some speakers also have been confirmed and they are very interesting; particularly the Psychopharmacology of ketamine, Effects and mechanisms of nitrous oxide, The neuropharmacology of DMT, and Ayahuasca, altered states & academia.

I already got my ticket been looking forward to this for awhile.

The dates have been confirmed on the weekend of October 7th and 8th in the Amsterdem Center. But the exact location and exact schedule have yet been posted.

Here is what there is for now,

OPEN PRESENTS: ICPR 2012

List of invited speakers and tentative topics

· Robin Carhart-Harris, PhD | Imperial College London| UK| Brain mechanisms of psilocybin
· Matthew Johnson, PhD | Johns Hopkins | USA | Hallucinogen research at Johns Hopkins University
· Robin MacKenzie, PhD | University of Kent | UK | Neuroscience and psychedelics in healthcare
· Teri Krebs, PhD cand. | NTNU | Norway| Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) for alcoholism
· Mitzi Waltz, PhD | University of Birmingham | UK | Psychedelic therapy and autism spectrum conditions
· Ben Sessa, MD | Bristol University | UK | MDMA Psychotherapy and treatment of PTSD
· Jordi Riba, PhD | Autonomous University of Barcelona | Spain | The neuropharmacology of DMT
· Torsten Passie, MD, PhD | Hannover Medical School | Germany | Effects and mechanisms of nitrous oxide
· Ruud Kortekaas, PhD | RUG | Holland | Psychopharmacology of ketamine
· Prof. Wouter Hanegraaff | UvA | Holland | Ayahuasca, altered states & academia

More presenters will be announced soon.


INTERDISCIPLINARY CONFERENCE ON PSYCHEDELIC RESEARCH

With international researchers from a wide variety of academic disciplines, this two-day event will be dedicated to scientific research into psychedelic substances and the psychedelic experience. The 2012 Interdisciplinary Conference on Psychedelics Research will feature current research into a wide array of psychotropic substances, such as psilocybin, LSD, ayahuasca, ibogaine, DMT, ketamine, MDMA, Salvia divinorum and even nitrous oxide.

Researchers will present the results of their studies into the inner workings of the brain under the influence of psilocybin and LSD. In addition to this neuroscientific approach to psychedelics, our conference will also address the broader sociocultural – and philosophical – context in which this research takes place, and the implications of the presented results will be discussed. What do these findings mean for the treatment of conditions such as PTSD, depression, addiction and autism? New therapeutic possibilities will be explored, while old treatment options will be reviewed and readdressed. From psychopharmacological research in humans to the phenomenology of altered states of consciousness, ICPR will be a continuation of our 2010 conference –Mind Altering Science.


WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

The Interdisciplinary Conference on Psychedelic Research is organised for all those with a serious interest in psychedelic research.

We have invited therapists, researchers, addiction experts and academics, as well as students (Bachelor/Master/PhD) in the fields of psychology, medicine, biology and pharmacology to become acquainted with a field of research that regular university curricula barely touch upon. This is not to say that students of other disciplines are not able to relate to the subject matter and gain fascinating insights into new scientific territories. We hope to get all attendants to learn something new. Psychedelic research has a strong multidisciplinary character, which is reflected both in the audience as well as in the speakers, who all come from their own background and whose lectures demonstrate the inherent multifaceted nature of psychedelics research.


TICKET PRICES AND OTHER INFORMATION

More information on lecturers, themes, tickets and other practical information will be placed online soon. Keep an eye out on both this facebook page and the OPEN site for news on psychedelic research, videos of previous events, scientific papers and books.

Conference website: http://icpr.stichtingopen.nl/

OPEN website: http://www.stichtingopen.nl/en/home