Announcing the Esoteric Pharmacology Project

While we see rigorous, peer-reviewed, reproducible scientific inquiries as the gold standard to develop an in-depth understanding of the many and variegated questions that arise regarding these materials and their use in human beings, we recognize that unfortunately, this is not always possible in today's climate. Furthermore, the fact that these materials are being distributed and used for a variety of purposes worldwide, combined with this dearth of scientific knowledge, creates challenges for those who would use these materials in a responsible and beneficial manner.

We seek to provide high quality information regarding these materials to the extent possible in today's climate, and to create a space in which intelligent, non-judgmental discourse about their effects, risks, and benefits can take place. We recognize that the greater part of that information has and will continue to arise from individuals who carry on the tradition of self-experimentation as undertaken by such luminaries as Heffter, Hofmann, and Shulgin, as well as thousands of individuals doing this work on a smaller scale worldwide in the underground.

We believe first and foremost in the principle of cognitive liberty and of individual freedom as regards the use of these materials, so long as it is done responsibly, and in such a way as to avoid harm to any person. While we do not condone illegal activities of any sort, we recognize that some people working with these materials do so outside of the law. In such situations, we endorse the principle of harm reduction by way of sharing knowledge to help minimize risk of untoward outcomes from any conduct which relates to these materials, whether legal or illlegal.

We also believe strongly in the potential benefits of these materials to individuals and to humankind in general. We have time and again been presented with overwhelming evidence, both of an anecdotal and of a more structured nature, that these materials are of great utility in the realms of psychological, spiritual, and personal healing and growth. We also look to millenia of history to inform this belief, and recognize that humankind has throughout it's recorded history time and time again turned to consciousness-altering substances for these purposes, and continues to do so.

We view the recent history of human interactions with these materials as having been remarkable for the massive proliferation of novel materials, as well as an increasing sophistication on the part of the underground sector that uses them, in terms of the fund of knowledge that has been developed and the use of modern communications technologies to allow this knowledge to be shared in the underground community. The greater part, in fact, of the fund of knowledge regarding these materials that is available, arises out of and is shared with in informal and underground contexts.

We point this out not to denigrate the efforts of those who work within the mainstream, much the opposite, in fact—we laud the brave and brilliant work of academics working in this field as laying the foundation for the eventual re-integration of these materials into mainstream society and the availibility of their benefits on a larger and more formalized scale. However, we believe that despite the essential nature of such formalized, above-ground work, that there is work that is ongoing in the underground sector that is equally essential. This ongoing work takes place largely under the veil of anonymity, but is often of very high quality. However, it suffers from a lack of credibility and a lack of accessibility to the above-ground elements of the movement on account of it's being undertaken, by necessary, out of the public eye and away from traditional systems of peer review and the academic establishment.

We lament that due to social, political, and legal circumstances, that the underground sector lacks a voice to communicate it's work to a broader audience. Therefore, we seek to build a space on the Internet, already the primary medium of communication for the active underground, where genuine dialogue can take place between interested parties both in the underground and in the mainstream. We seek to do so in a way that will preserve privacy and anonymity but also provide for accountability and for a high standard of quality in the work that is being done. We believe that the best way to accomplish this is through expanding upon already-extant networks of trust and by creating a space in which open discourse and discssion can take place.

To that end, we have begun the process of creating an internet community. This will take the form of an invitation-only "walled garden" forum who's membership is referred by members of the community based on their ability to contribute meaningfully to a multi-faceted dialogue on questions relating to all aspects of the materials in question and their relationship to the human experience, and ultimately, their potential applications in bettering lives. We believe that by assembling prominent and respected members of the community, we can achieve increased credibility and undertake what could be reasonably called our own form of the peer review process.

Through strong cryptography and anonymity, we will ensure the privacy of all participants; but at the same time we will vigorously discourage the use of our forum and our resources for the facilitation of any illegal activity, e.g. the distribution or synthesis of illegal substances. With this sole caveat, however, we wish to create a safe space in which discussions can take place regarding chemical, pharmacological, psychological, sociological, spiritual, and all other aspects of these materials as they relate to the holistic human experience of living with them as a factor in one's life.

Accordingly, the focus of discussion on our forums will not revolve around highly technical chemical and pharmacological discussion and on the development of novel agents, and in fact such discussions, particularly regarding synthesis, are discouraged or in fact forbidden in such cases where they might be construed as conspiracy to violate the law. Our focus is primarily on drug effects, both objective and subjective, and the ways in which they can be integrated into human lives in a positive way. We welcome discussion both of a technical, as well as discussion of personal nature, provided it is relevant, of high quality, and not strictly self-serving.

It is our ultimate aim to develop a repository of high quality data regarding these materials contextualized through the lived experience of persons who make use of them. Through the collaborative efforts of this community, we aim to develop this repository into data which will be useful for individuals who wish to explore these materials with an eye to reducing potential harm and maximizing potential benefit, as well as data which will be of use in the development of our shared understanding of these materials, their effects, and their potential for therapeutic and other applications in human lives, and the ultimate development of useful, validated modalities which can be learned and used by others to maximize the positive effects of these materials and minimize the risks of untoward outcomes.

Our discussions will take place within a private forum who's membership is vetted to ensure mature, high-quality discourse that stays within the bounds of propriety, sanity, utility, and the avoidance of propogating dangerous, incorrect, non-productive, and blatantly illegal content. The end results of our discussions, in the form of more formalized, high quality, collaboratively or individually writen articles, will be published on the public internet on our website and in a periodic newsletter, and these materials will be open to public comment.

We recognize that there are already a large number of forums on the internet, both open and closed, well-known and lesser-known, that are dedicated to discussion of similar subject matter from various perspectives. Some of them are oriented towards topics which go beyond the scope of our project, and we would encourage anyone who wants to discuss such topics to seek out the appropriate forum in which to do so. However, we appreciate the work that is being done by other forums, as well as by "brick-and-mortar" organizations. It is our hope that we can engage in collaboration, rather than competition, with already existing online and offline communities, as essentially we all largely share the same goal of sharing information regarding topics that it is not always easy to inform oneself about.

Unsolicited membership applications are welcome, as are referrals by existing members. The only criteria that is required is a sincere interest in the subject and ability to engage in meaningful and respectful discussion within the bounds and scope of our project. All interested parties are strongly encouraged to apply, particularly, but not exclusively, persons already involved in online forums discussing the subject matter, or members of organizations dedicated to doing research or other work on the same. If you think you would be interested in joining our project, please e-mail us at apply@esotericpharma.org. We encourage the use of GPG public-key encryption; our public key is available on request.