Andrew Freedman, Colorado’s First Director of Marijuana

September 14th 1:30-3:00 pm Round Room

Abstract: Over the past decades, North America has been torn apart by diametrically opposed and deeply held beliefs about cannabis. To some it inspires love, medicates the sick, and promotes wellbeing.

To others it is a limitless font of crime, addiction, and social unrest. Through the last half of the 20th century we witnessed two Beatles’ arrests for possession of hashish, an Olympian stripped of his Gold medal, and a grisly Mexican drug war. Voters became tired of the War on Drugs, and the new millennium brought a wave of populist-led legalization efforts.

Evaluating the success of these legalization efforts has been almost as divisive as legalization itself, with some claiming that the sky has fallen and others claiming only upside. Freedman understands something that few else can. The cannabis legalization experiment cannot be easily shoehorned into a simple narrative. He knows that its short-term successes and shortcomings do not definitively answer the “Should we legalize?” question.

He knows that we can’t yet conclude whether legalization will be good or bad for society. Informed by his unique experience, Freedman’s conclusions are much richer than the doom-and-gloom pronouncements of prohibitionists or the panaceas presented by proponents. How you legalize matters. Getting legalization right matters.

Alone among policy experts, Freedman is able to offer a nuanced evaluation of the history-making experiment – and how it will profoundly impact the world for generations to come.

Join Freedman as he provides a tempered view of what we currently know about the effects of legalization. Freedman will then lead a dialog about how best to engage your community on this divisive topic going forward.

References:

1. Lessons and approaches to engaging the community.

2. An agenda-free look at current data and how best to collect data going forward.

3. Preparing the public health community to engage in the future policies of legalization.

Learning Objectives: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1500043; https://cdpsdocs.state.co.us/ors/docs/reports/2016-SB13-283-Rpt.pdf; https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.2017.303848; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/add.13886

Bio:

Andrew Freedman is Co-founder and Senior Director of Freedman & Koski, Inc. Andrew’s first-in-the-nation consulting firm works with government, research institutions, communities and private businesses to get cannabis legalization right. Andrew brings vast experience from his three years as the State of Colorado’s first Director of Marijuana Coordination. During this time, he developed distinctive experience effectively implementing voter-mandated legalized recreational and medical marijuana while protecting public health, maintaining public safety, and keeping marijuana out of the hands of children.