Marc Lewis is a neuroscientist and a recently retired professor of developmental psychology – he was at the University of Toronto from 1989 to 2010, and at Radboud University in the Netherlands from 2010 to 2016. His latest book is The Biology of Desire (2015). He lives in the Netherlands.
Shaun Shelly is affiliated with the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Pretoria where he is a researcher and lecturer. Shaun started South Africa’s first harm-reduction centre, and currently heads the drug policy and rights programme at a national NGO. He is also on a number of local and international advisory boards. He lives in Cape Town, South Africa.
October 10, 2025
Part 2 of The Psychedelic Syndicate exposes the compromised foundation of PSFC's influence network — from the abuse scandals that undermined their preferred therapy model, to undisclosed ties with the sole FDA advisory committee member who voted unequivocally for MDMA approval.
October 10, 2025
Part 3 of The Psychedelic Syndicate exposes how Silicon Valley's "move fast and break things" mentality infected psychedelic therapy, creating a culture where leaders rationalized patient harm as unavoidable for progress and ultimately embraced Trump administration officials who promised regulatory shortcuts.
October 10, 2025
Part 4 of The Psychedelic Syndicate reveals PSFC’s strategy to manufacture spiritual and moral authority through academic capture — even as some members align with far-right ideologies that deepen the very crises psychedelics are meant to heal.