From the ancient banyan tree at Etapu Kastom Village, Tanna Island, the whole village emerged in welcome. This ethnobotanical field story follows kastom dance, fire making, bush medicine, kava, family connection and the living knowledge shared with Sacred Plants Australia during an expedition across Vanuatu.

Stevan Sipka, founder of Sacred Plants Australia, speaks on ethnobotany, sacred plants, psychedelics and traditional medicine systems, bringing together remote fieldwork, living plant cultivation, science, ceremony and cultural respect.

This field story follows our return to the mountain village of Lao Chai, Vietnam, into the mist, indigo cloth and living traditions of the Black Hmong people. The story focuses on the warmth, skill, humour, ceremony, textile making, household fire, ancestral memory and welcome shared with us by Co, her family and the people who allowed us into their world. For us, this visit formed part of a wider ethnobotanical journey, paying attention to the relationships between plants,

This field story follows our journey across Tanna Island, Vanuatu, from the fire and ash of Mount Yasur into the warmth of Imaio Village. The story focuses on the songs, laughter, food, dance, fire making, family presence and welcome shared with us by the people of Imaio beneath Mount Yasur. For us, this visit formed part of a wider ethnobotanical expedition, paying attention to the relationships between land, culture, food, fibre, fire, family and memory.

A medicine song born in ceremony - honouring Grandfather Yopo, the jaguar spirit of the jungle. Let the visions flow.

Yopo: Ayahuasca's Grandfather. Seeds, Snuffs & Visionary States. An Ethnobotanical Exploration. Presented to the Australian Psychedelic Society on Thursday 12 March 2026.

Long ago, before the first fire was lit and the first song was sung, the Spirit of Earth, known as the Great Mother, dreamt of healing. From her breath, she called forth Seven Teachers, each representing a different element of her sacred body: root, vine, leaf, seed, cactus, fungus, and star.

Introduction: Why Intentions Matter In the sacred space of healing, intention is everything. It is the unseen current that shapes the...