Practice makes progress in psychedelics. Across the country, a growing movement of enthusiasts, advocates and entrepreneurs are shaping the future of the psychedelic renaissance, rooted in culture, driven by community and fueled by healing. This year, one gathering rises above the rest: Psychedelic Awakening 2025.
The event, taking place October 2nd-4th at The York Manor in Los Angeles, will bring together leading researchers, healers and visionaries. Produced by the Psychedelic Institute of Los Angeles, founded by Paul Karasik, Awakening has become an annual gathering of the hearts and minds building the future of psychedelia.
What to Expect at Psychedelic Awakening 2025
The conference includes over 50 speakers, panelists and workshop leaders across two full days of immersive sessions focused on healing, science, spirituality, activism and culture. Attendees will get a rare opportunity to learn directly from researchers, therapists, entrepreneurs and thought leaders about the current state of psychedelics including ongoing projects, the path towards legalization and deep dives on specific plant medicines and their benefits and nuances.
A can’t miss keynote on Saturday features Leonard Pickard, author of The Rose of Parcelsus. Leonard served twenty years of his sentence for LSD manufacturing and research. Outside of the sessions, there will be a vendor hall with exhibitors, sponsors and a lineup of musical performances with meditation and medicine workshops throughout the day, making Psychedelic Awakening as much a festival of culture as it is a conference of ideas.
The Psychedelic Institute of Los Angeles envisions a world where psychedelic healing is available to everyone. They believe and advocate for the mind, body and spirit healing elements of psychedelics, promoting and supporting universal legalization. Personal transformation contributes to global transformation.
With that in mind, they work to bring healing to one person at a time shifting the context and zeitgeist. Awakening embodies this mission by providing a space for discussion, judgment-free questions, stories and evidence through their curated panels, workshops and ceremonies.
Healing, Science and Plant Medicine
The conference approaches mental health challenges of today like depression, anxiety, PTSD, addiction, pain, OCD and more with reverence and care, bringing together a support structure of advocates and experts and in-depth sessions for open discussion and collaboration. There will also be several doctors and researchers in the mix, bringing the latest in their studies on psychedelics and their potential uses to alleviate stress and trauma.
Plant medicines of every stripe are in the conversation including mushrooms, ayahuasca, ibogaine, DMT, cannabis, MDMA, Kambo, hape, cacao, Sananga and more. By providing chances to participate in live medicine workshops and connect with therapists and facilitators, the conference combines education with direct experience for a practical and visionary event.
Attendees will have access to several plant medicines and their practitioners, from breathwork and sacred art workshops to cacao, hape, Kambo and Sananga ceremonies. There are also planned sessions for light and sound healing experiences and community workshops focused on integration coaching, brand building, women in psychedelics and first responder therapy.
Panels include “Psychedelics & Technology”, “Capital Raising & Business”, “Microdosing & LSD”, “End-of-Life Care” and so much more. A cross-disciplinary approach keeps all of the panels balanced across science, therapy, business and culture.
On Stage and In Community
This is the second year Apartment 113 has been a media sponsor. I’ll be the MC for the conference stage, keeping things on time and introducing all the excellent folks along the way. I will also have a chance to sit in the moderator’s chair for two panels, “Powerful Psychedelics You Can Use Legally” and “The Healing Power of Cannabis” (Very cool to see cannabis cast in the healing light here).
Following that, I’ll be presenting my session “Hermeticism and Psychedelics: Ancient Wisdom for the Modern Mind” for the first time, something I’ve been working on this year after falling down a hermetic rabbithole in my personal reading and research. I’m grateful for the opportunity and can’t wait to dig in with the Psychedelic Awakening crew.
Music and art are central to the experience, as they should be. Live bands and artists drive the main stage and outdoor experiences with acoustic sets, psychedelic soundscapes, sacred vibration workshops and art created in real time. The creative heartbeat of the movement runs parallel with the science and healing on stage.
And of course, Los Angeles is the perfect backdrop. From the beat poets to Venice Beach mystics, from the rock revolution of the Sunset Strip to today’s plant medicine collectives, the city has long been a crucible for counterculture.
The York Manor itself, a historic landmark in Highland Park, adds character and intimacy, bringing people together in a space that feels both sacred and stylish. Psychedelic Awakening 2025 is more than a conference; it’s a cultural gathering in the very heart of a city that thrives on reinvention, creativity and community.
Ready to be part of the movement? Get your tickets now and join us October 2nd to 4th at The York Manor for Psychedelic Awakening 2025. For more info or to get involved, visit psychedelic-awakening.com.
Rob Sanchez is the founder and host of Apartment 113, a cannabis & psychedelics industry podcast and software product management company. With over 13 years of experience spanning the full seed-to-sale lifecycle, Rob has worked extensively in cannabis software, compliance, and ERP systems across North and South America, from Colombia to Canada.
A Certified Ganjier, Agile Coach, and Product Manager, he is passionate about championing authenticity over commercial hype. Through storytelling and community-building, Rob elevates cannabis and psychedelic culture by bridging media, technology, and industry innovation.
