Go Green by MHIRA

Go Green Podcast by MHIRA latest episode featuring Dhira Narayana, an activist, Chairman, and founder of the Lingkar Ganja Nusantara (LGN). Listen to Dhira as he shares his Aspirations of Cannabis Use from Lingkar Ganja Nusantara's perspective. 

(This episode is in Malay & Indonesian language)

Dhira who is also the Executive Director for Yayasan Sativa Nusantara was formed by the Lingkar Ganja Nusantara (LGN) movement in 2015 to carry out research and advocacy missions. Since then, YSN has become the first official research and advocacy institution in Indonesia that focuses on developing science and technology on various aspects surrounding the cannabis plant, including biological, social, political, legal, economic and cultural aspects.

The LGN movement itself not only legalizes medical cannabis but also puts forward research with several researchers whose aim is to open new studies regarding the use of cannabis.

Go Green Podcast by MHIRA latest episode featuring Kitty Chopaka, ganjapreneur, and expert on Thailand’s cannabis industry, who explains her journey on the Legalisation of Cannabis in Thailand and how its rapid change ignite regional advocacy, law reform, business opportunity, and a hope for chronic illness patients. 

Kitty is a Founder & CEO of Elevated Estate, an industry-leading Cannabis focused expo, incubator, fund, and consulting firm. Elevated Estate, is an authoritative source of information and a vital community hub for the cannabis industry in Thailand and beyond.

Go Green Podcast by MHIRA latest episode featuring Tharma Pillai, Co-Founder of UNDI 18. Listen to this insightful session as he speaks about Championing The Future Generation’s Voice – What’s next for Malaysia? 

UNDI 18 is a national organization that heavily focuses on the youth empowerment movement that successfully advocated for the amendment of article 119(1) of the federal constitution to lower the voting ages in Malaysia.

Coming from a family personally involved in social justice and hoping his voice can help create change in society, Tharma Pillai’s sense of justice was partially shaped by his aunt Dr Selva Vathany, who lifted the lid on the systematic abuse of the welfare system for Orang Asli. Lowering the voting age to 18 is an issue of justice for Tharma who co-founded Undi 18, a youth-led movement dedicated to democratic reforms, with Qyira Yusri whom he met at a Malaysian student leadership conference in the United States. 

Despite the law recognizing 18 years old as the age of majority, youth between 18 and 21 were not allowed to vote. It was the case for Malaysia until recently when the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2019 was passed, permitting those who are between 18 and 21 years old to have a say in determining the future leader of Malaysia towards becoming a progressive nation beyond 2050.

Go Green Podcast by MHIRA latest episode featuring Dania Putri, International Drugs Policy Consultant based in Rabat, Morrocco. Listen to Dania as she shares her insights on the Decolonisation of Drug Policy. 

Born and raised in Jakarta, Indonesia, she spent six years studying and working in The Hague, Netherlands. She currently represents Persepsi, an independent think tank on Drugs Policy Reform. Her previous contribution includes her work at the Transnational Institute (TNI), International Drugs Policy Consortium (IDPC), and Lingkaran Ganja Nusantara (LGN). 

Through Persepsi, she worked together with advocates and strategists on the issue of cannabis policies internationally, aiming for the adoption of rights- and evidence-based approaches towards cannabis production, distribution, and consumption. Working from thousands of miles away, her contribution ranged from translation, (international) policy analysis, to consultancy in research, network-building, and fundraising.

Go Green Podcast by MHIRA latest episode featuring Hadhinah Felice, a fellow young Malaysian woman who works as a Compliance Officer with a US-Based Cannabis company in Las Vegas, Nevada (MJ Holdings). Listen to Hadhinah as she shares her experience and challenges working in the Cannabis industry. 

Hadhinah is the Compliance Manager and Head of Marketing at MJ Holdings Inc., a highly diversified, publicly traded, cannabis holding company providing cultivation management; licensing support; production management, and more.

Hadhinah Felice was born and raised in Sandakan, Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. She received the BSc. in Software Engineering and MSc. in Internetworking Technology from the Technical University of Malaysia, Melaka in 2009 and 2012 respectively. She emigrated to the USA in 2014 to pursue her dream of traveling to all 50 states. Upon the completion of the successful journey, she wrote a book in her native language about her 50 states adventure and now a published author in Malaysia. She has been in the cannabis industry for over 2 years as a compliance manager. She is also a member on volunteer board of Nevada State Democratic Party.

Go Green Podcast by MHIRA latest episode featuring Tricia Yeoh, CEO of Ideas talks on Public Policy Challenges in relation to advance National and State policy towards allowing hemp/cannabis as a sustainable crop to be cultivated in Malaysia. 

Tricia Yeoh is the CEO of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS). She is also a Ph.D. Candidate in political studies at the University of Nottingham Malaysia and a Visiting Research Fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.

She is a former Research Officer to the Selangor Menteri Besar at the Selangor State Government and has served as Director of the ASLI Centre for Public Policy Studies and Research Director of Institut Rakyat, a think tank linked to Parti Keadilan Rakyat. She was a columnist at The Sun, the Penang Monthly, and Selangor Times.

She is editor of "The Road to Reform: Pakatan Rakyat in Selangor" and author of the new book, “States of Reform: Governing Selangor and Penang”. Her latest documentary, “The Rights of the Dead”, tells the story of Teoh Beng Hock who died in 2009 under the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s watch.

She was formerly Southeast Asia Regional Co-ordinator at Revenue Watch Institute, a non-profit international organization based in New York City. She is the recipient of the Meritorious Service Award, conferred by the Selangor Sultan (Pingat Jasa Kebaktian, PJK).

She is qualified in Econometrics and Marketing from Monash University and holds an MSc. in Research Methods in Psychology from the University of Warwick. She sits on the Board of Directors of Dynamic Search Sdn. Bhd. and the Monash Business School Industry Advisory Board. She is a qualified yoga teacher.

GoGreen by MHIRA Podcast featuring Ann Osman, 1st Female Mixed Martial Artist for ONE Championship. Ann has also garnered attention as the 1st Muslim female MMA athlete to be competing in a Mixed martial art international arena and has been covered by international media platforms such as New York Times, Al Jazeera and named as TIME Magazine’s Next Generation Leader in 2014.

Over the past years, Ann has competed in 10 MMA bouts in ONE Championship since 2013 and despite having to hang her fighting gloves in early 2018, Ann continues to pave the way for new martial art comers as she has joined the ONE Championship force as a Talent Recruiter and colour commentator.

Ann is currently running her organic HALAL Chicken business & aiming to create change for local communities & she also co-founded travel and outdoor adventure company based in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.

Her new venture, BAIÜ (pronounced BAI-YOO) initially started as a family run business by a married couple, Ann Osman & Andrey Adriano, with a mission to offer organic, fresh and halal chicken poultry to our local community at affordable prices. Raising their own family in the breezy state, Sabah in Malaysia, they wanted to be able to provide affordable healthy, organically raised poultry for their growing family as the chicken was the main dish in their household. Starting with farming and selling only 600 chickens under their own developed brand BAIÜ, they received an amazing response and later expanded the BAIÜ family with other shareholders and incorporated their company to BAIU Hana Sdn Bhd in Oct 2020.

BAIU Hana Sdn Bhd (1387037-U) is a semi-integrated operator in the chicken production industry by rearing and sales of broiler chickens, processing, producing, and retailing downstream chicken meat-based food products, as well as trading and distribution of poultry feed.

Prof. Dr Vicknasingam is an expert in drug-related research, treatment and medication. He was appointed as the Chairman of MASA in 2019 and has been in service to the organization since. Prof. Dr Vicknasingam is also currently the Director of the Centre for Drug Research, Behavioral Interventions & Medication use at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM). His research strives to understand and develop behavioural interventions for people who use drugs.  I am also working with my colleagues to conduct several clinical trials among people who use opiates and amphetamines. In these trials, medications and behavioural interventions are provided and measured for their efficacy. An interesting emerging area of research is on recreational drug use (New Psychoactive Substances).

Harish Kumar was born in Pahang and moved to Kuala Lumpur when he was in primary school. Harish has always been interested in forming solutions for problems in the world. A graduate from the National Defense University Malaysia (NDUM), he is an author and activist who formed MASA together with the late Intan Mustika in order to continue advocating for human rights and to become the leading centre for psychedelic plant and alternative treatments research, development and education.

The nature of drug laws in Malaysia is more punitive than rehabilitative. 56 per cent being non-violent and minor drug offenders (marijuana-related cases) over 59600 convicts exceeding its capacity by over 30%. When the pandemic hit the nation, that overpopulation produced the Tembok cluster, which brewed behind the walls of Alor Star Prison and reported a total of 224 cases.

Decriminalisation means that the possession of small amounts of marijuana will trigger minimum or no criminal penalties, although fines and citations may still be levied. Ultimately, marijuana is not entirely about recreational drugs. The Asian Cannabis Report published by Prohibition Partners estimates that Asia's medical marijuana market will be worth more than US$5.8 billion. Thailand alone is projected to generate US$661 million by 2024.

Mohamad Johan, Founder & President of MHIRA 

Understanding WHO scheduling recommendations for Cannabis Hemp

The U.N. created the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) to monitor and amend the designations assigned to substances, which is where the WHO comes in. It’s required by international law to research medical and scientific benefits and risks associated with substances such as cannabis. In turn, the CND implements the WHO’s recommendations when making scheduling decisions regarding a plant or substance. So how significant was the WHO’s recent recommendations on cannabis to the CND?

In earliest be deleted 2019, the WHO recommended the CND reschedule cannabis and that cannabis “r from Schedule 4 of the Single Convention on Narcotics Drugs (1961),” (the most restrictive category, like the CSA’s Schedule I). In addition, the report recommended that tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) be “deleted from the Convention on Psychotropic Substances (1971) and added to Schedule 1 of the Single Convention on Narcotics Drugs (1961).” Regarding CBD, the report recommended that cannabis extracts containing up to .2% THC not be scheduled within the drug control conventions. This signified a monumental change and the codifying of the medicinal value of cannabis. Further, it provided clarity around the international trade of CBD products.