ICBC REHASHED

HILTON UNION SQUARE | SAN FRANCISCO

2020 ICBC

BRINGING BUSINESS & CANNABIS TOGETHER

he 2020 International Cannabis Business Conference took place this February 6 and 7 at San Francisco’s Hilton Union Square. The first of five conferences taking place internationally this year, the San Francisco event is the only conference in the event series held in the U.S. Taking place soon after will be their conferences in Barcelona, Berlin, Switzerland and Vancouver, B.C. Attendees traveled from every corner of the country to showcase their products - from the East Coast to the West Coast, Washington, Texas and even as far as Germany! Our team had the opportunity to network and build bonds with some new and old faces over the two-day event.

Day one of the conference began on the eve of the 6th, as attendees trickled in to the VIP reception in the Hilton ballroom. Conference master of ceremonies and comedian Ngaio Bealum led the evening by thanking us for joining, and his jokes had the entire room smiling in laughter. T

This was an ideal start to the event and provided a way to break the ice with new friends, as well as warm up closer to those we may still be getting to know.

It’s true what they say - that the most business happens at the after parties. Ironically enough, the after party sometimes can happen before the conference itself, and it certainly did in this case! We enjoyed ourselves at both the official and unofficial mixers, and it was comical to see our peers rally the next morning to tend to their booths for the actual event.

Fueled up on coffee and CBD, our team took to the conference center in the Hilton to represent our magazine and learn about all of the other businesses in attendance.

There seemed to be an even mixture of Cannabis organizations, product and packaging innovations, and ancillary businesses spread throughout the conference hall.

As we made our rounds from booth to booth, there was a sense of innovation that excited us for the future of Canna

“Feeling the support of the industry fueled our love and passion for the plant and people even more than we could have dreamed of.”

bis, not only in California, but across the world. We not only connected with industry pioneers, but had the opportunity to provide a preview of our publication to these attendees. It warmed our hearts for our work to be so well-received by the Cannabis community in California, having our journalism appreciated for how authentic we remain in this ever-changing and growing world of Cannabis.

Some of the most memorable booths were those designed with physical samples of the product, and those that were interactive, such as Cryo Cure’s booth.

They came prepared with big round jars full of cryogenically cured Cannabis buds. It was also interesting to see some of the packaging companies and all of their different clients’ designs.

The evolution of beautiful Cannabis packaging truly helps us appreciate the craft products inside - especially now that more sustainable options are being offered for producers.

And now to the highly regarded speakers that ICBC lines up for the event. First up on the docket was Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, who appeared virtually via Skype to discuss federal Cannabis law reform. Regardless of your political preferences, it is telling of the times to see politicians participating on panels at Cannabis conferences. Panels covered topics ranging from communicating with industry stakeholders, technology steering the Cannabis industry, differentiating in the crowded CBD industry, branding and marketing, and much more.

This event was definitely geared toward those who are more serious about building and maintaining a strong business presence in the industry and learning how to apply these principles and topics - which is what will really separate the industry leaders from those who wish to let their business fall into the hands of fate instead of their own.

Our choice to take our fate into our own hands starts with building lasting bonds and connecting with the true pioneers in Cannabis.

The ICBC event really helped to solidify the first few steps we took as we began to break ground in launching our California publication. Feeling the support of the industry fueled our love and passion for the plant and people even more than we could have dreamed of.

We can’t wait to see everyone’s smiling faces again at next year’s International Cannabis Business Conference!

www.InternationalCBC.com Follow @internationalCBC

Bugging Out

STRANGE DAYS EDITION

STORY by JONAH TACOMA @DABSTARS2.0 for LEAF NATION | PHOTOS by JESS LARUE @JESSICALARUE_420

JESSICA AND I went over a mental checklist as we stared at the packed 8x5 tow behind trailer. I had a flight to Holland in only a few hours, but traveling to Europe was out of the question. COVID-19, dubbed the coronavirus, was all the rage - literally. Schools everywhere were shut down indefinitely and parents across our state were suddenly thrust into the position of at home teacher. My gut was telling me we didn’t want to stay in town, and we had spent the last few hours prepping and packing the small trailer and the Tahoe that would tow it.

The trailer itself had been converted into a clandestine camper with full amenities, complete with a 55-inch TV screen that matched the curve of the rear wall. Well-insulated and fitted with both propane and electric heat, she was able to suffice as a basecamp for extended trips and we often used her around harvest time - deploying a canvas cabin with portable bunkbeds for trips with the kids.

I had always considered myself something of a prepper, not for anything specific, but for the eventual calamity that might befall humanity as nature tried to correct herself. Dehydrated food stacked in large buckets and sealed in nitrogen had been moving with me from house to house for the last decade or so. I had suffered plenty of jeers from friends who wondered at my 500-roll industrial box of toilet paper or the gallons of hand sanitiser on standby. As both of these things had been quickly wiped out by the first flood of worried consumers, I was glad to have sustained the ridicule.

We had ceremoniously purchased the last can of soup at the local Walmart an hour earlier. The shelves were beginning to look barren and the things that most Americans took for granted were now in short supply. Milk, eggs, bread - the staples seemed to be the first to go. Washington itself seemed to be a bit of an epicenter and people were already on edge.

We loaded the family into what little space remained in the now overpacked Tahoe, which bristled with all manor of survival gear and armaments acquired over the years. Traffic was light as we pulled onto I-5 South bound for Capital Forest, the largest chunk of green on the Washington map.

Growing up, camping was a way of life and I always tried to instill that in my kids, often by regaling them with stories about how much harder it was when I was a kid. My dad was a purist and often camped without the benefit of a tent, in spite of the Colorado mountain weather which could be frigid almost any time of year. “I HAD ALWAYS CONSIDERED MYSELF SOMETHING OF A PREPPER, NOT FOR ANYTHING SPECIFIC, BUT FOR THE EVENTUAL CALAMITY THAT MIGHT BEFALL HUMANITY AS NATURE TRIED TO CORRECT HERSELF.”

My own outlook towards the virus was somewhat dubious. The threat was real but the public’s reaction, or overreaction, seemed to be largely fueled by sensational news coverage and distorted social media messages. Either way, now was as good a time as any to get the family out of dodge. And we were doing just that.

Whatever the course of this now famous pandemic, one thing was certain: For most of us this was a once in a lifetime event. Years from now, when people asked what you did during the coronavirus, at least my kids would have a good story...