How can our mental health benefit from psychedelics? About that; is exclusively coming to talk director of one of the largest psychedelic conferences in the world Breaking Convention and psychedelic researcher Dr. David Luke. From basic research of psychedelics in the field of mental health will gradually proceed beyond the medical model to the shamanic healing. His research interests include transpersonal experiences and psychology of altered states of consciousness from the perspective of both, scientists and shamans, especially in relation to plant psychedelic substances - ayahuasca and Pruvian hallucinogenic cactus San Pedro. Summary: Psychedelics and Mental Health Only during the last decade, has this research gradually been resumed to the point where we might now even speak of a renaissance of research into psychedelic medicines. The talk will explore the medical potential of psychedelics in the field of mental health drawing upon current research from the fields of neuroscience, medicine, psychiatry, psychology anthropology and, indeed, personal insight from time spent with psychedelic counter-cultures and shamanic tribes. Dr David Luke is Senior Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Greenwich where he teaches an undergraduate course on the Psychology of Exceptional Human Experience. As a researcher he has a special interest in transpersonal experiences, anomalous phenomena and altered states of consciousness, especially with psychedelics (mainly Ayahuasca and San Pedro cactus), having published 100 academic papers in this area. David is also director of the Ecology, Cosmos and Consciousness salon at the Institute of Ecotechnics, London, and is a cofounder and director of Breaking Convention: Multidisciplinary Conference on Psychedelic Consciousness. He has studied techniques of consciousness alteration from South America to India, from the perspective of scientists, shamans and Shivaites, but increasingly has more questions than answers. More information: https://gre.academia.edu/DavidLuke http://2015.breakingconvention.co.uk/