Tadeusz Hawrot, Psychedelic Access and Research European Alliance (PAREA), discusses the potential use of psychedelic-assisted therapies in Europe. PAREA is a non-profit, multistakeholder partnership founded in 2022 to change perceptions about psychedelic-assisted therapies, raise awareness of the scientific advances, and, ultimately, integrate psychedelic-assisted therapies into European mainstream mental health services. Psychedelic research began in the 1950s and was halted for several decades due to the so-called “war on drugs”. Despite their enormous potential for mental and neurological conditions, psychedelics are still Schedule I drugs under the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Drugs. The European collaboration, PAREA, aims to encourage policy-makers to allocate more funding to further study psychedelics, provide equitable access once these therapies are available, and ensure the development of rigorous guidelines. This interview took place at the European Academy of Neurology (EAN) 2022 Congress in Vienna, Austria.
