Brainforest Café

Dennis McKenna and OpticMystic explore humble, a graphic meditation on openness, self-questioning, books, technology, AI, love, and the ongoing mystery of what it means to be human.

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OpticMystic a.k.a Hugo Amadeu is just a human fascinated by being alive.
He intended to be an astrophysicist or an oceanographer but ended up
studying graphic design and becoming a freelancer. He worked on DMT: The
Spirit Molecule documentary film by Mitch Schultz, ESPD 50 book and
later at the McKenna Academy. Currently, he is working with Namae Ntumae
at CWays Home performing all sorts of media wizardry. He is also a
sandwriter, musician, writer and terrific dishwasher.
A bookworm from early age, his curiosity and passion for reading has
made him a sort of accidental philosopher. A trance festival, more than
20 years ago, altered profoundly the course of his life and his hopes
for the future. A few, yet, intense psychedelic experiences assured him
that there is certainly more to the world than the eyes can see. Devout
atheist with a profound feeling for the sacred, he will ignore the gods
but embrace the spirits. There is something punk in his approach, an
itchiness for authority and a refusal to compromise that arises from
earnest questioning.
He has written a graphic meditation called “Humble”. An exploration of
ideas that reflect on openness, relativity and love as forms of
approaching the self and the other(s).
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In this special crossover episode of Plants of the Gods and Brainforest Café, Dennis McKenna and Mark Plotkin explore sacred plant medicines, psychedelic science, and indigenous wisdom, moving from DMT and ayahuasca to virola snuffs, salvia, ibogaine, and beyond. Originally recorded for Mark´s Podcast “Plants of the Gods”, this rich conversation on ethnobotany, shamanic healing, and the future of psychedelic medicine is now being released as a special crossover on both shows.

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Dr. Mark Plotkin is a renowned ethnobotanist who has spent more than four decades working alongside Indigenous communities of the Amazon to document and protect traditional plant knowledge. He is President and co-founder of the Amazon Conservation Team (ACT), a nonprofit he launched in 1996 with fellow conservationist and his wife, Liliana Madrigal, to support Indigenous stewardship of tropical forests and biocultural knowledge.

Dr. Plotkin is also the host of Plants of the Gods, a popular podcast exploring hallucinogenic plants and fungi and their powerful influence on world culture, religion, and healing. He is the author of several widely read books on ethnobotany and conservation and has shared his work through a TED Talk and lectures around the world. Dr. Plotkin was educated at Harvard, Yale, and Tufts University.
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Ethnobiologist Michael Coe returns to Brainforest Café with a special
mission: to turn the spotlight onto Dennis McKenna’s lifelong dedication
to ayahuasca, visionary plants, and ethnopharmacology. In this intimate
conversation, Michael honors Dennis’ 54 years in the psychedelic space,
from early fieldwork in the Amazon to pioneering biochemical and
pharmacological research on plant medicines.
The discussion explores the importance of mentorship, with Dennis now
seeing his primary role as supporting a new generation of
ethnobiologists like Michael and their work with indigenous communities
and threatened medicinal plant traditions. Together, they discuss
standing on the shoulders of giants, the challenges of academia and
funding, and why following what “puts fire in your belly” matters more
than chasing titles.

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Michael Coe is an ethnobiologist and applied ecologist with a Ph.D. in
Evolution, Ecology, and Conservation Biology. As an Assistant Professor
at Tarleton State University, his teaching and research focuses on the
relationships between humans, ecosystems, and traditional knowledge
systems. Passionate about biodiversity and the sustainable management of natural resources, Michael brings a dynamic interdisciplinary perspective, helping to integrate contemporary ethnobiology and ecology with traditional ecological practices to inform sustainable use
strategies, conservation priorities, and global medicine security.
Michael is the principal investigator (PI) for the COE LAB where they
are conducting hypothesis driven research in ethnobiology and harvest
impact assessments on medicinal plants that serve as a primary source of
healthcare for over 80% of the world's population. Michael is also the
Director for Research and Education for the Pacha Nishi project, a
Shipibo-Konibo led effort in the Peruvian Amazon basin seeking to
restore 20ha. of degraded land in an agroforestry setting with a primary
goal to inform sustainable ayahuasca production in the area as locally
sourced sustainably grown medicine.
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Discover Una Meistere’s journey from Soviet-era Latvia to becoming a
bridge between indigenous plant medicines, psychedelic science, art, and
Baltic traditions in this in-depth conversation with ethnobotanist
Dennis McKenna. They explore ayahuasca, psilocybin mushrooms in Latvia, Amanita muscaria, and ancient sauna rituals as a kind of “Latvian
ayahuasca,” touching on symbiosis with nature and how psychedelic
experiences can help heal our disconnection from the natural world.
​
Una shares how synchronicities led her from journalism to co-founding
Arterritory, Spiriterritory, and the NGO Veseliba Latvija, and to
organizing the first psychedelic science conferences in Latvia together
with the University of Latvia. The discussion dives into stigma, legal
grey zones, human rights to psychedelic-assisted therapies, and the
Baltic region’s emerging role in the global psychedelic renaissance.
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Michael Coe is an ethnobiologist and applied ecologist with a Ph.D. in Evolution, Ecology, and Conservation Biology. As an Assistant Professor at Tarleton State University, his teaching and research focuses on the relationships between humans, ecosystems, and traditional knowledge systems. Passionate about biodiversity and the sustainable management of natural resources, Michael brings a dynamic interdisciplinary perspective, helping to integrate contemporary ethnobiology and ecology with traditional ecological practices to inform sustainable use strategies, conservation priorities, and global medicine security.  Michael is the principal investigator (PI) for the COE LAB where they are conducting hypothesis driven research in ethnobiology and harvest impact assessments on medicinal plants that serve as a primary source of healthcare for over 80% of the world's population. Michael is also the Director for Research and Education for the Pacha Nishi project, a Shipibo-Konibo led effort in the Peruvian Amazon basin seeking to restore 20ha. of degraded land in an agroforestry setting with a primary goal to inform sustainable ayahuasca production in the area as locally sourced sustainably grown medicine.