WHERE DO YOU SEE VIALPANDO, LLC HEADED IN THE NEXT 5 YEARS? ANY BIG MISSIONS YOU WOULD LIKE TO TACKLE? My goal in setting up the company was to improve how Cannabis users experience the plant and its many active ingredients. We’ve already started this process and developed some IP that will give users - both medical and recreational - a better product. The tablets we developed for Level are a great example of that. Our vision is that in five years, we hope that when people go to their local dispensary, there will be a wide selection of well-designed and engineered products for many different use cases; and we hope to have played a large part in making that happen. YOU ARE ALSO A YOGA INSTRUCTOR. HOW DOES CANNABIS ENHANCE YOUR YOGA & MEDIATION PRACTICES? My favorite studio in San Francisco, Asta Yoga, has been doing ganja yoga for years. We joke that Cannabis is one of the core principles of yoga, along with breathing, bandhas (energy locks), and dishti (gaze). Certain strains like Cherry Cheesecake and Lemon OG enhance my practice by reducing my chitta vritti (monkey mind) which allows me to simply flow and be in the now, which is the goal of yoga. HOW IS EMPOWERING WOMEN SIGNIFICANT TO YOU? ANY PERSONAL EXPERIENCES YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH <strong>MJ</strong>? While I am very lucky to have a lifelong scientific mentor, I’ve always had trouble finding women to look up to in the scientific community. That’s why I appreciate the California Cannabis industry being so proactive about women empowerment and education. I think women need to realize the value that they add and should not worry about coming across as too assertive. The idea of empowering women is the driving force behind the work of organizations like Kikoko. They’ve really been ahead of the curve in creating products that female Cannabis users find accessible and enjoyable. HOW DO YOU RECOMMEND PEOPLE STORE THEIR FLOWER TO MAINTAIN FRESHNESS & POTENCY? Clear plastic baggies are the absolute worst for your flower because they break the delicate trichomes that give it its flavor. I recommend UV-resistant glass jars with a Boveda humidity packet to maintain the optimum moisture. WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN VAPING OIL AND VAPING FLOWER? ARE THERE BENEFITS OF ONE OVER THE OTHER? WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE VAPORIZER? Actually, the most important distinction centers on where your vaping material - flower or concentrate - is sourced from. Have they been tested for pesticides? What about microbial testing? If you want to be more discreet, then oil is probably better; but you’re likely to feel the effects longer when you are vaping flower. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON STANDARDIZATION? HOW CAN OUR <strong>MJ</strong> COMMUNITY GET INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS? There’s a lot of misunderstanding about product standards. A lot of people still believe, wrongly, that it is about making everything the same. But it’s actually about having a framework for innovation. When a company in any industry puts a new batch of product on the market, they will have verified the quality of that product against a predefined batch release specification that is there to make sure standards are maintained as they relate to that product. Standardization essentially looks at what the key metrics are for those batch release specifications. When you know what the key quality metrics are - i.e. what makes a product that you and your customers are happy with - you then have a framework within which you can innovate and improve your products. That’s critical at this stage of the development of the industry. We’ve had some initial conversations with the American National Standards Institute, who have set up a technical committee to work on these issues. I’d encourage anyone wanting to get involved to reach out to them. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE CANNABIS PRODUCTS? ANY THAT YOU USE ON A DAILY BASIS? I love tea, and was really happy when Kikoko started making Cannabis-infused tea bags. I particularly like the SympaTea product as it’s high CBD and infused with ginger, so I can drink it throughout the day (and frequently do). I’ve since been lucky enough to hook up with the team there and there was great chemistry between us from when we first met. They are a shining example of strong women driving the Cannabis business forward and I’m really looking forward to helping them drive their business forward. GIRL!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTISE WITH US!! HOW CAN THE <strong>MJ</strong> COMMUNITY SUPPORT YOU AND YOUR MISSION? Demand more from what you buy. So many products are successfully marketed just because they contain Cannabis, but there’s no real technology there that you couldn’t put together in your bathroom. Consumers need to demand better from their chosen brands and drive innovation from the bottom. For more on Monica follow @Mon_Vial or visit www.vialpando-llc.com <strong>MJ</strong> LOVES THESE STASH JARS FROM VAN DER POP MADE OF MIRON GLASS. AS DR. MONICA MENTIONS, VIOLET GLASS BLOCKS HARMFUL UV RAYS, ALLOWS NON- HARMFUL VIOLET RAYS, SLOWS THE DECAY PROCESS, AND IN TURN, PROTECTS CONTENTS FROM MOLD AND BACTERIA GROWTH. WE ARE OBSESSED WITH VDP’S CREATIVELY LABELED SLEEK JARS WITH THE MOOD TO MATCH THE STRAIN INSIDE - FOCUS, RELAX, LAUGH, SEX, PARTY & SLEEP. AVAILABLE IN BOTH 30 ML (FITS APPROX. 3 GRAMS) AND 100 ML (FITS 5-6 GRAMS) ISSUE <strong>01</strong> 90
HIGHER EDUCATION TALKING TERPS & BREAKING MYTHS WRITTEN BY EMMA CHASEN Written by Emma Chasen for the Sativa Science Club Photographed by Jennifer Skog at the Jupiter Hotel in Portland 91 @<strong>MJ</strong>LIFESTYLE