Second Declaration by the Indigenous Medicine Conservation Fund Delegation to the Psychedelic Field.
(Denver, Colorado) In June 2025, Indigenous delegates from six biocultures attended the MAPS Psychedelic Science conference. Among us we had members of the Tetonwan Lakota, Shipibo-Konibo, Dine, Quechua, Mpongwe, Bwiti Nganga, Tukano, Mazateco, Inga, Ayuuk-Binizá, Noke Koi, Asheninka, Anishinaabe, Embera, and Yawanawa Peoples, as well as non-Indigenous allies.
We are the heritage holders of our spiritual Indigenous medicines and ancestral rituals that are central to the cultural well-being of our peoples. We are members of communities that have ancestral relationships to Peyote, Iboga, Mushrooms, Toad, Huachuma, and Ayahuasca, but do not represent them as a whole. Each of us works to ensure the biocultural conservation of our medicines.
We belong to Peoples who are the guardians of the ancestral homelands where the medicines grow, and our elders are the repositories of the immaterial knowledge that guarantees culturally informed, safe practices and healing. Our diverse delegation holds accountability to each of our communities; for this reason, we made the effort to be here and share our voices.
This is our second declaration, and we continue to be very concerned about the rapidly evolving psychedelic field, the ‘de-sacred-izing’ of the sacred, the repeated patterns of seeking fast routes to healing, and the transactional and profit-driven nature which is resulting in direct and unintended negative consequences for our communities, biocultures, and medicines.
We have been safeguarding biodiversity since time immemorial, generation after generation, towards a common good of all living beings, yet our communities continue to suffer from social and economic inequality, injustice, loss of lands, war, assassinations of leaders, and the extraction of our heritage. Although recognition for Indigenous rights exists, the lack of implementation has brought us to a critical point, where life for our Peoples and the planet is at risk.
We recognize the deep need for healing the mental, spiritual, and physical health of humans at this time, and it is with this recognition and love for humanity that we participated in Psychedelic Science. Despite our skepticism, we share our concerns and recommendations.
We, the IMC Fund delegation to PS2025, declare:
Indigenous protocols for the safe, responsible, and respectful use of these medicines have existed for millennia.
Our territories, languages, cosmologies, governance, and agricultural and spiritual practices are essential elements of our existence and how we approach our mental, spiritual, and physical health. We call for awareness that the rising global interest in our medicines has unintended consequences that bring us harm.
An Indigenous healer has a long learning process, which can last a lifetime. Not all Indigenous apprentices become healers: the decision rests with their community. We do not support quick training processes or so-called psychedelic certifications related to the use of these medicines.
Healing is a collective process that involves the territory, the community, and lastly the individual.
Our communities are in our own processes of healing, and we need our medicines first. We call on the psychedelic field to prioritize Indigenous access to our own medicines.
Our medicines and practices belong to cosmologies. Extracting them from their original contexts has great consequences.
Consider that using our medicines outside of their Indigenous and spiritual contexts does not promote deep healing, and in some cases, it can even do more harm.
We demand that the psychedelic field stop violating the rights of our people and nature.
Healing begins by addressing the source of the disease, and modern society cannot be healed without addressing unsustainable consumption, unemployment, social inequality, the destruction of the tropical forest, pollution of the rivers, depletion of biodiversity, wars, indiscriminate extraction of limited resources, and the privilege of a few over the majority.
Pathways for respectful interaction must be established.
People interested in seeking healing from our medicines should also seek to understand their origins and the impacts of their use.
A respectful interaction with communities goes through recognized local government systems.
Communities have the right not to share, to keep their knowledge secret, and to use it only locally. Our sharing nature has been taken advantage of by scientific, political, and civil society sectors that exercise colonial practices, like cultural appropriation, bio-prospecting, and bio-piracy.
Any research that includes our medicines must be participatory and for the benefit of the communities. Indigenous knowledge keepers must be included in decision-making, debates, and conversations.
Any initiative driven by profit will be extractive and destructive for Indigenous peoples and their territories.
Overharvesting and exploitation to meet commercial demand undermine medicine sustainability, cause scarcity, and in some cases, lead to extinction. This results in rising medicine prices and decreased access for Indigenous Peoples. We call for reducing harm by reducing consumption.
Policy that impacts Indigenous spiritual medicines must respect all Indigenous Rights.
We insist on the establishment of frameworks and protection systems based on Indigenous rights and full implementation of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) as it pertains to the use of these medicines following the United Nations Rights of Indigenous Peoples and Biodiversity Protocols.
FPIC must also be sought and granted for: research initiatives, the use of intellectual property law, business initiatives aimed at commercializing sacred medicines, and activities leading to appropriation.
FPIC is a complex process, and in most cases concerning our medicines, consent has not been given.
When presenting new legislation on psychedelics, consider the indirect and direct impacts that will be produced in our communities where the medicines come from. The Intellectual Property of an Indigenous People is collectively owned. It cannot be understood from the perspective of individual or small group ownership within a nation or region.
We call for working with Indigenous advisory boards and councils, who can guide the development of any new legislation.
Exercise discernment in areas of privilege when interacting with Indigenous communities.
Be mindful that the Western and capitalist exchange/framework does not set an equal base for conversations.
We invite true listening and examination of hidden motives or dynamics like saviourism, charity, power, folklorization, and romanticization.
Realize that going into territories with economic motives can cause divisions, disruption, and harm.
Ultimately, this declaration calls upon all of us to reflect on our roles as stewards of the planet, as individuals and collectivities. It implores us to take collective responsibility and act in ways that honor and protect the ancestral knowledge passed down through generations. We can be the ancestors our future generations need to inherit a world where existence truly flourishes.
Together, we can embark on this transformative journey, guided by the wisdom of those who have been guardians of the land, the medicines, and the ancestral teachings for millennia.
Glossary of Terms
1. Cultural Appropriation
The adoption or use of elements of one culture by members of another—often dominant—culture, especially without understanding, respect, or permission.
2. Cultural Misappropriation
A harmful or exploitative form of cultural appropriation where sacred, traditional, or identity-linked practices are taken out of context, inventing or naming an element sacred, indigenous, or folkloric in order to be commercialized.
3. Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC)
The right of Indigenous peoples to give or withhold consent to a project or activity that may affect their lands, resources, or cultural heritage, based on full information, without coercion, and before any action begins. Right recognized in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).
4. Bio-prospecting
The exploration of biodiversity for new biological resources—such as plants, compounds, or genes—with potential commercial value, often in medicine or agriculture.
5. Bio-piracy
The unethical or unauthorized extraction and use of biological materials or traditional knowledge—especially from Indigenous communities—without compensation or consent.
6. Intellectual Property (IP)
Legal rights that protect creations of the mind—such as inventions, artistic works, or cultural expressions—and determine how they can be used or shared.
7. Biocultural Conservation
An approach to protecting biodiversity and cultural diversity together, recognizing that ecosystems and Indigenous or local knowledge systems are deeply interconnected.