After a revolutionary year, the cannabis industry continues to surpass expectations and 2019 looks to push the boundaries further with new markets opening across the U.S. and Canada. For Marijuana Venture’s fourth annual issue highlighting women in the industry, we’ve gathered 11 leaders who will be crucial in shaping the industry’s North American landscape over the next 12 months.
From media moguls to tech savants, advocates and specialized experts in their fields, these visionaries represent more than their businesses or even cannabis; they are heralds of change for not just our industry, but business in general. It is a great honor to share their stories.
Zoe Russell
In the minds of most people, the cannabis legalization debate is generally a binary argument: Democrats support it and Republicans don’t. Which puts Zoe Russell, assistant executive director of Republicans Against Marijuana Prohibition, at odds with, well, everybody.
“I joke that no matter where I go, nobody likes me,” Russell says with a laugh.
However, when it comes right down to it, marijuana legalization is not all that polarizing a topic, particularly among younger members of her party.
“This is something a lot of Republicans agree with,” she says.
Sharon Ali
Natasha Strother Lassiter
Even in the cannabis space, Prime Wellness of Pennsylvania’s Sharon Ali and Natasha Strother Lassiter are outliers.
Renee Gagnon
Renee Gagnon has seen the business world from both sides of the gender coin and knows from personal experience that it’s a different world for men and women. As a transgender woman, the CEO of Hollyweed North Cannabis has sought capital and built companies as both a man and a woman and says that as a middle-aged white guy, she was once “part of the club.”
That all changed, however, when she came out and began her transition, six months before Caitlyn Jenner brought the issue mainstream.
“It’s amazing how fast they revoke your privilege,” she says. “Suddenly now I’m a hyper-minority.”