The Speakers of Sacred Medicines 2025

Indigenous Elders

Chief Alvaro Tukano

  • Álvaro Tukano, also known as Doéthiro, is a distinguished leader of the Tukano people from the Alto Rio Negro region in Brazil. The Tukanos are regarded amongst the first ethnic groups to use ayahuasca, going back to 10,000 years ago according to some estimates. Born and raised within his community, he has been a pivotal figure in advocating for indigenous rights and the preservation of ancestral traditions and considered one of the founding fathers of the indigenous rights movement in the region. 

    As a respected elder and medicine holder, Álvaro has dedicated his life to the sacred practices of his people, particularly the ceremonial use of ayahuasca and rapé. These rituals, rooted in millennia-old traditions, are integral to the Tukano's spiritual and cultural identity.In the 1970s, Álvaro co-founded the Union of Indigenous Nations (UNI), playing a crucial role in uniting various indigenous groups across Brazil. His leadership extended to the Indigenous Peoples' Memorial in Brasília, where he served as director, furthering the cause of indigenous representation and rights.

    Álvaro's contributions to literature include his work titled "Tembeta," which offers insights into indigenous perspectives and challenges.His participation in the Sacred Medicines Conference underscores his commitment to sharing indigenous knowledge and promoting the responsible use of sacred plant medicines.

Tukano - Brazil

  • Oseas Barbarán Sánchez is a Shipibo-Konibo leader and advocate for indigenous sovereignty and ancestral medicine. As President of the Confederation of Amazonian Nationalities of Peru (CONAP), the largest indigenous organization in Perú, he represents 944 indigenous communities across seven regions of the Peruvian Amazon, defending their rights, cultural heritage, and sacred territories.

    In the mambe and ambil ceremonies, words play a central role as participants weave together their thoughts and prayers into sometimes days-long ceremonies in which they stay awake in contemplative prayer. Abuelo Gilberto is an incredible story teller, illuminating upon the nature of medicine, healing and the natural order through the ancient myths and stories of his people. 

    Having resided most of his life in his community, Gilberto has only recently begun travelling to other places carrying the teachings of mambe and ambil with him, sharing a highly misunderstood medicine of which very little research has been done so far despite being regarded as one of the most important sacred medicines for many indigenous peoples. In many cosmovisions, mambe and ambil are regarded as the “parents” of ayahuasca.

Shipibo-Konibo Peru

Oseas Barbarán Sánchez

  • Edinson Ramos is a Shipibo Elder, descendant of a long line of healers with uninterrupted transmission of their ancestral healing practices and knowledge. He was born and raised in a Shipibo community in the Peruvian Amazonic region of the Ucayali River, where he still lives and receives people from all over the world to guide them through deep ayahuasca treatments usually involving “dietas” with some of the many medicinal plants he grows and cares for in his land.

    Edinson has been a long-time community leader for the Indigenous community of San Francisco. He is profoundly knowledgeable about the traditions of his people and a methodical and articulate teacher, able and inspired to help transmit and decodify the insights of his lineage for people who want to learn about the medicine in a sincere way.

Shipibo - Peru

Edinson Ramos

Taita Gilberto

  • Taita or “abuelo” Gilberto, is one of the main elders from the Muina people in the Colombian Jungle. He is a carrier of the mambe and ambil medicines, with his people being one of the original seven ethnicities to receive the care of this medicine thousands of years ago. 

    In the mambe and ambil ceremonies, words play a central role as participants weave together their thoughts and prayers into sometimes days-long ceremonies in which they stay awake in contemplative prayer. Abuelo Gilberto is an incredible story teller, illuminating upon the nature of medicine, healing and the natural order through the ancient myths and stories of his people. 

    Having resided most of his life in his community, Gilberto has only recently begun travelling to other places carrying the teachings of mambe and ambil with him, sharing a highly misunderstood medicine of which very little research has been done so far despite being regarded as one of the most important sacred medicines for many indigenous peoples. In many cosmovisions, mambe and ambil are regarded as the “parents” of ayahuasca.

Muina - Colombia

Ruro Caituiro Monge

Apurímac - Peru

  • Ruro Caituiro Monge is a traditional Andean midwife, temazcalera (sweat lodge guide), and healer, dedicated to preserving and sharing ancestral birthing, herbal medicine, and rituals to work around individuals' birth experience. Born in the Apurímac region of the Peruvian Andes, she carries forward a lineage of indigenous midwifery that honors the spiritual and physical dimensions of birth.

    As the founder of Ruruchay Birthing House in the Sacred Valley, Ruro has created a sanctuary where women can experience natural, sacred births, combining traditional Andean techniques, water birth, and plant-based healing. A temazcal (sweat lodge) guide, Ruro leads ceremonies that support women’s transitions: pregnancy, postpartum, and personal healing.

    Beyond her hands-on practice, Ruro is a mentor and teacher, sharing indigenous wisdom with midwives, birth workers, and seekers worldwide. She is a fierce advocate for culturally rooted birth sovereignty, ensuring that Andean midwifery remains a thriving, respected tradition for generations to come.

Young Indigenous Leaders

The Elders of Sacred Medicines will be accompanied by a group of young Indigenous leaders who represent the new generation of medicine and knowledge carriers. As activists and leaders of Indigenous organizations, they are recognized in their communities and worldwide for their mission to bring the ancestral and modern paradigms closer.

Naiara Tukano

  • Naiara Tukano (daughter of Alvaro Tukano, another speaker at this conference), belongs to the Yepã Masã people, from the Alto Rio Negro region, Amazonas, Brazil. She is a mother, lawyer and activist for the Indigenous and environmental causes and for the rights of Mother Earth. She has spent decades working on projects that contribute to the cultural and spiritual strengthening, empowerment and autonomy of Indigenous peoples.

    Naiara seeks to defend the Rights of Nature and other initiatives that seek recognition of respect for the life of all beings and the regeneration of the earth and all its forms of life. She was raised between two worlds and gradually came to understand that her path would be precisely to make the connection between these two worlds: Indigenous and non-Indigenous. She has presented on these topics on several national and international forums such as TEDxSaoPaulo on her talk “Visions of the Tukano people”.

Yepã Masã - Brazil

Urpi Q'uyllur R'iti Prem Tárika

  • Urpi Q'uyllur R'iti Prem Tárika (PERU) is a Hampi Qamayoq native of the Quechua Nation. Qoya, guardian of the Waka Incaraqay of the Sacred Valley (Q'OSQO), is a member of the Council of Grandmothers and Qoyas who lead the prayer of WARMI TINKUY PERU, the Ceremonial Gathering of Women of Andean Wisdom in Peru.

    Founder of the School of Feminine Ancestral Wisdom and Manager of the Training of Priestesses of the Moon (FSL) in Abya Yala, she dedicates her life to recovering Feminine Ancestral Knowledge and bringing spiritual strength to all Beings through connection with their own Altar of Origin. Her teachings, songs, and stories are profound, simple, and loving, bringing joy and inspiration to all seekers of their own spiritual path. Learn more about Urpi Prem Tárika and her work on her IG @sacerdotisasdelaluna.

Hampi Qamayoq - Peru

  • Tupã Mirim Ju Yan is a Guarani educator, artist, and cultural leader from the Tekoa Itakupe village in São Paulo. A geographer by training (UnB), he is deeply rooted in the ancestral teachings of his people and carries forward the Xondaro warrior tradition. As a cultural and art educator, he works across schools, universities, and Indigenous centers to share the wisdom of the Guarani people, fostering respect for Indigenous ways of knowing and for the Earth. His work bridges ecology, spirituality, education, and Indigenous rights, with a strong emphasis on consciousness, healing, and collective wellbeing.

    He has represented his community at national and international events such as COP25, and contributed to audiovisual projects like Fé pelo Clima. At the Memorial dos Povos Indígenas in Brasília, he has facilitated cultural programs, storytelling workshops, and art exhibitions that center Indigenous voices. As a cultural producer, he recently organized Omombe’u Nhandereko, a large-scale event engaging over 30 Indigenous participants and 600 attendees through traditional stories and performances. Guided by ancestral consciousness, Tupã Mirim sees his work as part of a larger journey to awaken collective memory and protect sacred ways of life.

Guarani - Brazil

Tupã Mirim Ju Yan

Arawako Karibe (Taino) - Ayiti

Alfonso Peralta

  • Prof Alfonso Peralta is an indigenous leader of the Arawako Karibe (Taino) nation, traditional medicine and wisdom keeper, musician, artist, writer, actor, political scientist, linguist, researcher and Capoeira Angola practitioner from the Caribbean island of Ayiti, Sibao region. He is the founder and director of the Centro de Saberes Ancestrales del Caribe (@tainostudies), dedicated to the preservation of native island culture and languages across the Caribbean and Abya Yala through education, art, and culture.

    He has published two books on Indigenous Caribbean culture: Caribe Raíz and Karibe Ancestral, as well as released musical albums in Caribbean island Arawak language. He lives in the North Coast of Ayiti, protecting the territory, uniting and uplifting native communities across the Caribbean.

Since this conference will delve deep on inter-paradigm dialogue, the conversations with the elders and integrations will be supported by a seasoned and diverse team of “bridgers,” formed by scholars and community practitioners with profound knowledge and experience with psychedelic medicines, Indigenous traditions and group facilitation. These individuals will be present in different cohorts, serving to bridge the wisdom of the indigenous elders with the learning process of the participants.

Bridgers

  • Marlena Robbins is a Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) candidate at the University of California, Berkeley, specializing in the intersection of Indigenous knowledge, psychedelic science, and mental health policy. Her research and practice focus on developing culturally informed frameworks that integrate traditional healing practices with modern public health approaches, with an emphasis on policy analysis, program evaluation, and community-led health initiatives.

    Robbins collaborates with tribal leaders, public health officials, and research institutions to advance equitable and culturally grounded approaches to psychedelic-assisted therapy. Her work includes contributions to the Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and the Colorado Natural Medicine Tribal Working Group. She has played a key role in tribal engagement strategies, regulatory discussions, and the development of educational programs aimed at fostering ethical and community-driven approaches to psychedelics.

    Her research explores multigenerational perspectives on psilocybin use, the policy landscape of SB 1012, and human-centered design approaches to integrating Indigenous healing into contemporary mental health care. She has developed tribal engagement toolkits for psychedelic policy, evaluated nonprofit psychedelic therapy programs, and co-created community-driven models for psychedelic-assisted care in Native-serving clinics.

Marlena Robbins

  • Ayize Jama-Everett, MDiv, MA, MFA, is a therapist, educator, and advocate focused on psychedelics, mental health, and social justice. With master’s degrees in Divinity, Psychology, and Fine Arts, he explores the role of psychedelics in therapy, spirituality, and cultural healing. At Starr King School for the Ministry, he teaches "The Sacred and the Substance," a course on entheogens in religious traditions, and leads the Psychedelics and the Seminary lecture series. He produced the documentary "A Table of Our Own," amplifying Black perspectives on psychedelics, and co-organized a conference of the same name exploring ayahuasca and plant medicine healing.

    Jama-Everett serves on the boards of the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation, focusing on psychedelics in marginalized mental health, and Access to Doorways, increasing BIPOC and LGBTQ+ representation in psychedelics. He advises Psychedelics Today’s VITAL training program and has worked with UC Berkeley’s Center for Psychedelic Science and CIIS’ Psychedelic Therapies program.

Ayize Jama Everett

  • Dr. Glauber Loures de Assis is a researcher of sacred plants and their traditions and a psychedelic dad. He has a Ph.D in sociology from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG). He is the author of numerous articles and book chapters, and the co-editor of the book Women and Psychedelics: Uncovering Invisible Voices (Synergetic Press). Glauber is the founder and president of Céu da Divina Estrela, a legal and tax-exempt Santo Daime ayahuasca church in Brazil. He has 15 years of experience with ayahuasca and other sacred plants and has led more than 500 ceremonies in Brazil, Europe and the United States, and has built this practice in dialogue with his local Brazilian ayahuasca community and with the blessings of Indigenous elders and activists in Brazil.

    He is also the co-founder of Jornadas de Kura, a plant medicine center in Brazil that promotes an alliance between the ceremonial use of sacred plants, public education on plant medicine and psychedelic science. He is an Indigenous rights activist and the Director of the Psychedelic Parenthood Community. He is father to 3 children and lives with his wife Jacqueline Rodrigues in Santa Luzia, Minas Gerais, Brazil.Glauber is driven by the desire to collectively co-create a plant medicine community in which all families are safe, welcome and integrated into the psychedelic field. A community in which diversity is embraced, children and elders are taken seriously, ancestral Indigenous traditions are honored, and where all kinds of families can coexist in solidarity.

Glauber Loures de Assis

  • Susana Bustos, PhD, is a psychotherapist, music therapist, and researcher specializing in entheogenic healing, expanded states of consciousness, and integration practices. A Holotropic Breathwork practitioner since 1999, she has studied Amerindian entheogenic traditions for over 20 years, focusing on healing songs and plant medicine practices. She co-founded the Escuela de Psicovegetalismo, dedicated to bridging ancestral plant medicine wisdom with Western therapeutic frameworks, and teaches in psychedelic-assisted therapy programs in the Bay Area and abroad.

    From 2016-2020, she directed the Spiritual Emergence Network U.S., supporting individuals navigating psychedelic-induced spiritual crises. She has published on shamanic song, healing, and psychedelic integration, and lectures internationally on bridging indigenous knowledge and Western therapy for safe, effective, and ethically grounded psychedelic work.

Dr. Susana Bustos