Sacred Reciprocity: Indigenous Perspectives on the Psychedelic Renaissance
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Episode 302
Marlena Robbins
In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin welcomes Marlena Robbins, a proud member of the Diné (Navajo) nation and doctoral student at the UC Berkeley School of Public Health. Marlena shares her personal journey with psilocybin mushrooms and how they helped reconnect her with her heritage and family. Her research examines the cultural, social, and policy aspects of psilocybin use within Native communities, highlighting differences between urban and rural perspectives to inform educational frameworks, culturally-informed psychedelic assisted therapy models, and public health policy.
The conversation explores the powerful intersection of indigenous wisdom and modern psychedelic science, discussing how these substances can help address intergenerational trauma while supporting indigenous communities in reclaiming cultural autonomy and sovereignty. Marlena offers unique insights on integrating traditional knowledge systems with Western healthcare models, challenging listeners to consider both the light and shadow work necessary for true healing across all communities.
Marlena Robbins is pursuing a Doctor of Public Health degree at UC Berkeley. Her research examines the cultural, social, and policy aspects of psilocybin use within Native communities, highlighting differences between urban and rural perspectives to inform educational frameworks, culturally-informed psychedelic assisted therapy models and public health policy.
Robbins is a graduate student researcher at the Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics, focusing on program evaluation. Her residency with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration led to the development of a tribal engagement toolkit, showcasing the significance of psychedelics in spiritual, recreational and conservative contexts among Tribal communities.
Recently, Robbins was invited to join the Federally Recognized American Tribes and Indigenous Community Working Group for the Natural Medicine Health Act with the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies. This role enables her to advocate for the protection of sacred plants against commercialization and cultural misappropriation.
Podcast Highlights
- Finding sobriety and healthy motherhood through mushrooms
- First experience of Hozhó: beauty, harmony, and balance
- Reconnecting with mother through shared psychedelic healing
- Advocating for indigenous representation in psychedelic research
- Applying indigenous critical lens to psychedelic policy
- Personifying medicines as relatives with their own spirits
- Evaluating psychedelic integration in Native mental health systems
- Moving beyond capitalism toward reciprocal relationships with medicines
- Meeting ancestral trauma with courage instead of avoidance
- Building bridges between indigenous knowledge and Western healthcare
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This episode is brought to you by The Intensive for Psychedelic Professionals by Third Wave's Psychedelic Coaching Institute. Join us June 25-30, 2025 at Brave Earth in Costa Rica for a transformative six-day immersion featuring workshops with Eric Kaufmann, optional psilocybin experiences, and connections with forward-thinking professionals. To learn more and secure your spot, click here.
