Joanna Kempner is a widely sought-after speaker on topics like gender, sexism, and bias in medicine; migraine and stigma; the political suppression of science; and the social, political, and ethical implications of psychedelic medicine.
Selected Past Talks
May 2, 2025, Reframing Pain: A Conference Focusing on Critical Approaches to Pain Research, Critical Approaches to Scholarship in Pain Research, Toronto, Canada.
Apr 25, 2025, Psychedelic Humanities Workshop: Bridging the Two Cultures?, The New School, NY.
Apr 4, 2025, Science and the Culture Wars, Vassar STS @ 50 Celebration, Poughkeepsie, NY.
Nov 15, 2024. University of Arizona, Dept of Sociology Colloquium
Nov 14, 2024, American Headache Society, Scottsdale, AZ
Nov 12, 2024, Psychedelic Association of Canada Book Club, Virtual
Nov 6, 2024, “What Does Psychedelic Medicine Owe the Underground?” in conversation with Tehseen Noorani, moderated by Nikolas Langlitz, hosted by Chacruna, virtual.
Brooklyn Psychedelic Society
This year's Synchronicity delves into the dualities of the psychedelic space, not only celebrating its optimism but also addressing the shadow elements that need to be brought to light for true transformation. While psychedelics hold great promise, the path forward requires acknowledging challenges both within ourselves and within the growing sector.
TheraPsil hosts
Joanna Kempner and Joe McKay, 9/11 first-responder and a board member of Clusterbusters, for a wide-ranging discussion about the improbable story of patients, united by pain and the internet, decided to pioneer a psychedelic drug protocol to treat cluster headache, a neurological disease so painful it's known as the suicide headache.
Psychedelic Outlaws
October 7th, 2:15-3:45pm.
Bickford Theater in the Morris Museum, Morristown, NJ.
Virtuous Outlaws
A wide-ranging conversation with Dominic Sisti, Penn bioethicist, about ethical and epistemological considerations essential for academics conducting research with communities engaged in the use of illicit drugs. This discussion will explore researchers' responsibilities to respect the autonomy, safety, and knowledge contributions of these communities while ensuring vulnerable populations are not exploited.
October 5, 10-10:30am, Meyerson Hall, University of Pennsylvania
Migraine & Inequality
Migraine is the third most common disease in the world, affecting over 1 billion people according to the American Migraine Foundation – but it's incredibly under-resourced, underfunded, and mostly ignored. Might it have something to do with the fact that women are three times more likely than men to suffer from migraine?
September 24, 8-10am,
Washington, DC. Live and Virtual.
PPA Symposium
Free access on Day 1. I’ll be speaking about the “Promise and Peril of Psychedelic Citizen Science,” around 2-ish.
Sep 13, Clusterbusters Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL
Sep 6: Rutgers Addiction Research Center Symposium Keynote (w/Caroline Dorsen), New Brunswick NJ
July 11th Psychedelic Safety Seminar, with Katherine Cheung and Iain Jordan, moderated by Jules Evans.
June 12th, 4pm Psychedelic Outlaws Book Talk: Psy-Bio Interest Group, Virtual.
June 11, Book Launch party, Philadelphia, PA
Virtual Book Club….
Book event w/ Bob Wold & Jim Fadiman on Psychedelics Today live. June 4th, 6-7pm EST.
May 30, 2024, “Psychedelic Outlaws.” Pain and Psychedelics Association.
May 15, 2024, “Cluster Headache and Stigma,” Elevate Program. Coalition for Headache and Migraine Patients.
May 2, 2024: “Whose Knowledge? Cyberbotany and the Quest for Epistemic Justice in Psychedelic Research,” Psychedelic Pasts, Presents, and Futures Workshop, Borghesi-Mellon, University of Wisconsin, 12:30-1:30pm CST
April 25, 2024: with Nancy Campbell, moderated by Shayla Love, Oshan Jarow, and organized by Nicholas Langlitz, Psychedelic Salon, at Psychedelic Assembly.
March 8, 2024, “The Invisible Endemic: Migraine and the Perpetuation of Inequality.” The Quadrangle, Haverford, PA.
June 22, 2023, “The Social Mycelium.” Pain and Psychedelics Association. Psychedelic Science, Denver, CO.
May 7, 2023, “Psychedelic Outlaws.” First Annual UK/European Clusterbusters Conference. Glasgow, UK.
March 1st, 2023, “Evidence, Authority, and Ownership: Emerging Evidence and Epistemological Problems in the Regulation of Psychedelic Medicine.” Center for Health and Wellbeing. Princeton University. .
July 13-15th, 2023, “Role of Citizen Science in Psychedelic Research,” PhilaDelic Conference. University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.
“Migraine Stigma and Advocacy,” ACT Now Fellows and Advocates Program. Miles for Migraine, annual presentation, 2020-22, 24-25.
October 14th, 2022, “The Social Life of Psilocybin: Past, Present, & Future.” Keynote Speaker. 2nd Annual Neuroscience Conference on the topic The Neuroscience of Hallucinogens in Treating Depression and PTSD. Montclair State University.
April 10, 2022, “Psychedelics and Pain,” Panelist at Student Psychedelic Conference. Sponsored by Students for Sensible Drug Policy UK, Drug Science Student Society, and the Southampton Psychedelics Research Society.
“Standards without Labs: Drug Development in the Psychedelic Underground.” School of Pharmacy, University of Wisconsin. March 31, 2022. Watch the talk here.
“A Population Health Approach to Migraine.” Panelist for the Health Equity and Inclusion Course presented during the 2021 American Headache Society annual meeting. Virtual Presentation.
August 12th, 2020, “Women’s Chronic Illness During a Pandemic.” Panelist at Roundtable Discussion in Collaboration with the Bipartisan Women’s Congressional Caucus.
November 7, 2019, “Patient-Led Research as a Source of Pharmaceutical Innovation,” Presented by Joanna Kempner and John Bailey to the Jefferson Headache Center, Philadelphia, PA.
July 17th, 2019“Psychedelic Healing: A Public Panel.” University of Edinburgh.
May 30, 2019, “Pain-related Stigma, Prejudice, and Discrimination.” Research Priorities in Ethics and Chronic Pain Management. University of Toronto. Funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
“The Daytrippers: Psychedelics, Citizen Scientists, and the Will to Survive.” Keynote Speaker. 36th Qualitative Analysis and Ethnographic Research Conference. May 23, 2019.
“Migraine and Stigma: What Do We Know.” Shut the Door on Stigma: Collaboration to Reframe Migraine Disease. Coalition for Headache and Migraine Patients. Washington, DC, April 23, 2019. Co-Chair and Presenter.
“Citizen Science in the Psychedelic Renaissance: Surviving Pain During Prohibition.” Anthropology and Sociology Senior Class Speaker. Williams College, March 5, 2019.
“Our Bodies, Our Identities: What’s Standing Between Women and Quality Health Care?” Invited Panelist at the United State of Women Summit. May 5th, 2018.