Episode 004: Advocacy & Safe Access with Melanie Rodgers

Melanie Rose Rodgers began her cannabis journey in Denver’s medical marijuana community in 2009. As a lifelong cannabis enthusiast, she became involved in Denver’s grassroots movement while witnessing the innovation, patient testimony, and overall economic and cultural growth accompanying the budding medical cannabis industry. Fascinated by the natural benefits of the cannabis plant, and disillusioned with the corporate healthcare industry as a marketer for Cigna Healthcare, Melanie left for a career in cannabis. After 3+ years of various marketing and business development roles with a handful of cannabis nonprofits and a cannabis branding agency, she started marketing consulting and organizing events and fundraisers through a company of her own - Influential X.

Founded in 2017, Influential X combines Melanie’s natural inclination to drive business growth using her creativity, experience and marketing knowledge to produce influential, educational experiences and marketing campaigns. With Influential X, she’s found that co-creating and promoting events focused on education, advocacy, and social responsibility culminates in a positively engaged community in action. In December 2017, Melanie was recognized among her peers and nominated for ‘Advocate of the Year’ in Colorado’s 2017 Cannabis Business Awards along with notable names such as Joe Rogan and Montel Williams. She is a founding member of Safe Access Colorado, a newly established chapter of Americans for Safe Access, the largest national member-based organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research. Today, you can find Melanie advocating at the local and national level for cannabis patients rights and access to natural therapeutics in an effort to curb the US opioid epidemic. She also serves as a committee member and media/PR coordinator for the Denver Psilocybin Initiative, a ballot initiative that will be voted on May 7th 2019 that would decriminalize psilocybin mushrooms in Denver. As an advocate to end the war on drugs, Melanie believes that no one should go to jail for a psilocybin mushrooms, a natural substance that has demonstrated therapeutic and medicinal use.

Cannabis Resources links:
Americans for Safe Access
Cannabis Clinicians Colorado
Cannabis Science Conference
Cannabis Nurses Network
US Hemp Roundtable

Social Media Links:
Twitter: @melanierose
Facebook, Influential X
Facebook, Safe Access CO
Connect with me on LinkedIn!

Connect on Instagram: Cannabliss the Podcast

Host: Tori Rerick, PharmD
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