Chris Conrad

Chris Conrad has played a pivotal role in cannabis history since the 1980s, including hemp industries, marijuana legalization, medical, personal, commercial and religious use. With his wife, Mikki Norris, he reframed the issue as author, publisher, strategist, organizer, educator, speaker, museum curator, and consultant. He founded Business Alliance for Commerce in Hemp, Family Council on Drug Awareness and other groups. He co-founded the Hemp Industries Association and Human Rights and the Drug War, designed and edited Herer’s The Emperor Wears No Clothes and shaped California case law as an expert witness in cannabis use, cultivation, processing, etc. He helped pass Prop. 215 (medical use, 1996), Senate Bill 420 (medical sales, 2003) and Prop. 64 (adult legalization, 2016). His books include Hemp: Lifeline to the Future, Hemp for Health, Shattered Lives: Portraits From America’s Drug War and The Newbie’s Guide to Cannabis and the Industry. Conrad, professor emeritus at Oaksterdam University, publishes ChrisConrad.com and theLeafOnline.com.