On Feb. 1, the Denver Elections Division formally announced that Decriminalize Denver, a group dedicated to crafting a state-level framework for psilocybin cubensis, gathered enough signatures to get their initiative on the ballot for the May 7 municipal election. Although the campaign is just about to launch, the city is currently forging the path of the psychedelic movement.

In December of 2017, Sweet Leaf, Colorado’s largest dispensary chain, was raided by Denver PD after a year-long undercover investigation into the business. Law enforcement shut down all locations for what the state refers to as “looping,” or selling more than the “legal” amount of cannabis to a customer at one time. Two years after the raid, the case came to a head today: Sweet Leaf’s owners Matthew Aiken, Christian Johnson, and Anthony Sauro pleaded guilty to violating the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act (COCCA)—a law that focuses on racketeering and illegal distribution of cannabis.

The power went out early in the morning on Friday, Nov.9. All communication to the outside world was crippled. Yvonne Delarosa Green and her husband Sam Boyer were still in their Malibu home. At this point, the Woolsey fire already singed multiple neighboring canyons. According to Delarosa Green (who was one of High Times’ top 100 most influential women in cannabis in 2018) the flames were still far enough away to stay in their home–or so she thought.

The issue with legalization in California—and many other adult-use states—is that there aren’t many places to legally consume cannabis in public. Many argue this is what makes “legalization” a scam: how is weed legal if you can only consume it in your home without consequence? One Southern California desert community is providing a solution to this problem. Cathedral City Lounge, located in the Coachella Valley, made history opening the region’s first licensed on-site consumption bar on Wednesday, October 31.

The cannabis industry idolizes Dana Rohrabacher. And, in many ways, he’s made it difficult not to revere him. He’s positioned himself as one of the leading political figures in the space by focusing on the reform of federal cannabis laws—the only area of politics the cannabis industry seemingly cares about. But, if this Administration’s taught us anything it’s that racism, discrimination, and inequality are synonymous with American culture—and they always have been.

It was a late Wednesday afternoon. 60 people gathered at Frank Sinatra’s former residence in Woodland Hills to witness Jeff and Serena Baleja walk down the aisle. But their wedding was far from traditional. After Jeff and Serena kissed to solidify their new union, Jeff reached into his pocket and pulled out two joints. He handed one to his wife and put the other to his lips. The officiator ignited a lighter and the newlyweds leaned in to light their joints.

Cannabis is complex. And because of its federal standing, the plant will remain a mystery until it’s re/de-scheduled and scientists are allowed to study it. Until then, our understanding remains limited, which becomes a dilemma when states– such as California, Washington, Colorado, Oregon, Nevada, etc– start legalizing the herb because problems we don’t have solutions to are inevitably going to arise, like driving under the influence of cannabis.

Irvine is mostly known for its pristinely manicured lawns, cookie-cutter houses, and a 10 p.m. nightlife curfew. In other words: surburbia at its dullest. But as of a month ago, the city will also be known for something else: UC Irvine’s Center for the Study of Cannabis, a multidisciplinary program that blends the schools of law, medicine, science, business, public health and engineering.

January 1, 2018, was the day commercial, and adult-use cannabis became legal in California. On the consumer side of regulation, the last seven months have been peachy—what’s not great about walking into any (legal) dispensary and waltzing out with a party bag of flower, edibles, concentrates and more? On the business side of the law, Jan. 1 also signified the start of a massive transition: shifting from an unregulated, black market to a legitimate industry. Part of this evolution involves cultiv

July 10 is officially here! Hallelujah! For those of you who didn’t pick up our inaugural 7/10 Guide issue last year, here’s the rundown: July 10, or 7/10, is holiday-cousins with April 20, the day cannabis-flower lovers pack bowls, roll-joints and pass blunts at 4:20 a.m. and p.m. But the cannabis revolution of the past decade has led to the plants inevitable evolution. Smoking flower is no longer the only way to consume cannabis. Cannabis-oil has changed the way people use and interact with th

The first round of the 2018 World Cup kicked off last Thursday, giving football fans around the globe a reason to celebrate like Prince in 1999. For those who haven’t been watching, Russia is hosting the tournament. Of course, Putin made a cameo at the Russia versus Saudi Arabia game and was shown clapping and cheering for his team, which is obviously a sign that he’s calling the plays and substitutions from the stands. Duh.

While cannabis businesses need access to banking, the industry lacks financial services and support, including insurance options. No other line of businesses in America operates without insurance except cannabis, which is one of the elements hindering the industry from operating to its fullest potential. California is on the road to providing insurance support, but there's still a lot of gaps that need to be filled, particularly with regards to crop insurance.

They say humans are like snowflakes because no two are the same--and on a cellular level, that's true. On a non-physiological level, however,  humans are very similar; especially regarding our innate fascination with the intangible elements of life. More specifically, people have been obsessed with consciousness-- and exploring altered states of consciousness-- since the beginning of time. So although no two DNA's are the same, there are long-standing psychological/spiritual threads that not only connect us to each other, they also act as a link to the ancient civilizations we came from.

A new study by BDS Analytics dives into the social impacts, details, and nuances of cannabis legalization in California, providing evidence suggesting the new law has deeper influences than solely permitting the growth of a multi-billion dollar industry.

It was the wee hours of Wednesday morning, April 18, and the sun had yet to rise. I was adrift in my subconscious, scrolling through the feelings and disjointed thoughts that never make it to the surface. I hardly remember anything I dreamt about, except that I was in Jamaica and watching a young, short-haired Bob Marley perform in an outdoor venue to a massive crowd of thrilled, reggae-loving fans. The scenery was lush and green, and voluminous white clouds filled the sky. Nothing was out of t

The camera pulls back to show a 1964 Chevrolet Impala Super Sport driving along the coast. “I’ve got a joint here that I’ve been saving for a special occasion.” The next shot shows the infamous godfathers of cannabis: Richard “Cheech” Marin, with a majestic handlebar mustache, is driving the car and singing, “I’m nothing but a love machine.” He has guacamole in his shoe. In the passenger seat, Tommy Chong lights up a Maui-wowie doobie the size of a cardboard toilet-paper tube (and laced with “

What’s fascinating about California’s legal cannabis industry is that nearly 80 percent of municipalities still prohibit cannabis. So, although cannabis is de-criminalized and therefore quasi-legal, much work remains to be done in terms of acceptance. Somehow, though, Orange County is represented in the other 20 percent. Thanks to Santa Ana, a healthy cannabis industry exists behind the Orange Curtain. There’s an abundance of cannapreneurs and industry people pursuing revolutionary projects in o

There are pros and cons to shopping at Whole Foods. In terms of buying groceries, you’ll likely spend $100-$200 more dollars than you would at a different grocery store, like Mothers, Sprouts or Ralph’s. But when it comes to finding niche health food items such as organic grass-fed Bison meat, local wildflower honey, an array of Reishi mushroom powders or South American vegan cuisine cookbooks– the “Whole” can be a great resource. While waiting in the check out line last week, I scanned the mag

MedMen, the Los Angeles-based "unicorn" of cannabis retailers, has positioned themselves for an opportunity to place a stake in the slowly growing global cannabis market. On Monday, the billion dollar company announced a first-of-its-kind cross-border joint venture with Cronos Group, the Canadian licensed medical cannabis producer, manufacturer, and distributor.

Hitman Coffeeshop is redefining the concept of the cannabis coffeeshop. Story starts on page 18.