WES ABNEY

Editor’s Note

Thanks for picking up The Impact Issue of the Leaf!

We’ve decided to honor the people, organizations and trends that are having an impact on the Cannabis industry and culture, which touches all of our lives in an environment that’s constantly shifting. Just as the Earth developed its rich layers of minerals and water from countless impacts during the Late Heavy Bombardment, so has the weed world been shaped by those who have had an impact – changing the landscape for the future betterment of the Cannabis community.

This month also marks the thirteenth anniversary of the Leaf in print, which began printing in June 2010 with Northwest Leaf and hasn’t missed a month yet. I was only 22 years old when I decided to take my journalism skills and apply them to Cannabis – at a time when the biggest impact weed had on lives was the slamming of a cell door. But I’d had a taste of the injustice, having been arrested for a small amount of pot myself, and seen the impact firsthand of a friend who beat all odds through the healing powers of the plant. I knew in my heart that people could heal themselves with Cannabis instead of pharmaceuticals, and that the most dangerous thing about weed were the laws making it illegal – so I set out to tell a story that has lasted for over a decade.

“TODAY THE INDUSTRY IS ONCE AGAIN FULL OF PEOPLE WHO CARE ABOUT THE PLANT AND THOSE WHO NEED IT, LARGELY BECAUSE WE ARE THE ONLY ONES LEFT.”

Along the way the Leaf has distributed millions of copies for free, now across 13 states and with a much bigger team than when it all began. I’m blessed to have been joined on this journey by a team of Leafers who care just as much about Cannabis journalism as I do, and many more who have helped along the way. We’ve told stories about patients healed through Cannabis, and those whose last days were improved by the plant. We’ve seen hundreds of companies come and go, high hopes become failed dreams, and witnessed the weed rising from the ashes as the green rush crested.

Today the industry is once again full of people who care about the plant and those who need it, largely because we are the only ones left. Everyone looking to get rich quickly either did or failed, and those who hoped for nothing more than a chance to grow legally are once again at the forefront of the cultural movement that is Cannabis. And just like the early Earth, it’s the sum of those who’ve had an impact that have built the layers we stand on today.