June 8 – 14, 2026

Field Notes #2: Dispatches from London and the Netherlands

Psychedelic Alpha ↗

9 June 2026

June 1 – 7, 2026

A Note From the Editor

It’s been a busy week for Psychedelic Alpha, with our team on the road for two conferences in Europe.

The first of those was ‘THE REAL Mental Health Summit’ in London, where I chaired a discussion on the future of interventional psychiatry in Europe. We discussed how psychedelics might be approved in places like the UK via mutual recognition pathways, but how access will likely be much more complex. We explored several ways in which that challenge might be tackled, including the potential for pilot programs and innovative evaluation models.

We were then off to Haarlem, the Netherlands, for the Interdisciplinary Conference on Psychedelic Research (ICPR), which wrapped up yesterday. It attracts an impressively diverse attendee base, and its programme, too, is so broad that it defies a neat summary here. At least one theme that came through from many of the sessions we attended, though, was a somewhat clear-eyed view of psychedelic research and practice. The programme included, for example, a session on negative psychedelic trials, as well as various discussions of challenging or disappointing psychedelic experiences.

Many of the Europeans in attendance took a very dim view of psychedelics-related developments in the U.S., from concerns around the way that psychedelic pharma is behaving (which some seemed to view as an American phenomenon) through to the current administration’s apparent embrace of the class. “Instead of having policy driven by podcasts and politics, it should be driven by science”, Imperial College London’s David Erritzoe told the audience at one point, in addressing excitement around ibogaine.

Lastly, while U.S. meetings often focus on FDA approval and market access, ICPR was less concerned with these goals. In some cases, attendees are skeptical of the prevailing healthcare system’s ability to integrate psychedelics in an impactful way. Some attendees, however, would like to see psychedelics available in the medical model but are aware that launching a complex new therapy in Europe is not high on psychedelic drug developers’ agendas. Some countries, then, have taken matters into their own hands, launching psychedelics access pathways that are not dependent on traditional marketing authorisations.

There’s much, much more to say, and Pα+ subscribers should keep an eye out for a Field Note that goes into more detail on these two meetings.

Below, you will find your Psychedelic News Feed, a one-stop digest for the latest coverage of psychedelic business, policy, research and beyond.

Josh Hardman
Founder & Editor

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