Education & Economic Development and Impacts

Track Chair/s: Anthony Washington, Genevieve Kahrilas, Joshua Hess

 

The Education & Economic Development Track examines how cannabis and hemp research, training, and industry growth intersect with workforce development, academic programming, entrepreneurship, regional economies, as well as the economic impacts of cannabis legalization and use. Sessions address educational models, university and community partnerships, industry collaboration, workforce pipelines, and the economic impacts of cannabis policy and innovation. The focus is on building sustainable ecosystems that support research, education, business development, and community engagement.

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Evidence-Based Cannabis and Driving Messaging: Translating Behavioral Science into Public Safety Impact    

Session Chair/s: Sarah Hacker, Thomas Marcotte

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As cannabis legalization expands across the United States, public education campaigns addressing cannabis-impaired driving have proliferated. Yet the empirical foundation guiding these efforts remains limited compared to decades of alcohol-impaired driving research. This session will examine the current evidence base for cannabis and driving messaging, emphasizing behavioral science, message framing, risk perception, and real-world implementation. Building on survey and experimental research examining how cannabis users interpret, trust, and respond to safety messaging, presenters will explore which communication strategies are associated with greater message credibility, behavioral intention to delay driving, and perceived risk. Special attention will be given to subgroup differences (e.g., frequent users, medical consumers, users in non-legalized states) and how tailored messaging may differentially influence decision-making. Speakers will likely include researchers conducting experimental and observational studies of cannabis-related risk communication, public health practitioners developing state-level campaigns, and experts in transportation safety and mass media evaluation. The session will also address methodological challenges unique to cannabis messaging research, including measurement of impairment perception, rapidly evolving legal contexts, and disentangling legalization effects from communication exposure. By integrating behavioral research, public health practice, and policy considerations, this session aims to move the field beyond awareness campaigns toward evidence-informed strategies capable of producing measurable reductions in cannabis-impaired driving. Attendees will gain practical insights into designing, evaluating, and scaling effective cannabis safety communications within complex regulatory environments.

 

From Poster Contest to Research Showcase: Advancing Student Research in Step with the CRC  

Session Chair/s: Aaron Johnson 

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The CRC student poster contest has become an important and energizing platform for emerging cannabis scholars. Having served as Student Research Poster Coordinator last year, this proposal is informed by direct organizational experience and by scholarly reflection on how academic conferences evolve alongside growing fields. The CRC itself has expanded from Pueblo to a statewide and national convening space, with growing international visibility. As cannabis research diversifies across geographies, disciplines and methodologies, the forms through which scholarship is communicated are also evolving. The student research component should progress in step with this trajectory. This proposal recommends evolving the poster contest into a broader, catered Student Research Showcase. Traditional posters would remain central, but additional formats, including digital displays, short research videos, interactive data visualizations, and applied research demonstrations, would be welcomed. Student work would be displayed alongside faculty, non-student, and non-competition research submissions, reinforcing intellectual continuity across occupational sectors and career stages. All submissions would remain academic and research-based; vending and commercial promotion would be excluded. To enhance engagement, evaluation could incorporate a participatory model allowing attendees to provide feedback via smartphone or paper ballot, with evaluator categories collected for context. The goal is not to replace tradition, but to advance it thereby ensuring that the CRC’s educational and student research programming reflects, if not leads, the expanding scope and ambition of the conference as a whole.

 

How Cities and Towns Across the U.S. are Building Sustainable Cannabis Ecosystems in Their Communities  

Session Chair/s: Garland Doyle

 

This session will examine local government cannabis policies across the United States.  Our focus will be the community and economic development impact that different community benefit and social equity programming models are having on cities and towns.  For example, we will look at the City of Pontiac, MI as a case study.  The city has developed a robust community benefits model and social equity programming through its Cannabis Pontiac program and the Pontiac Social Equity Fund.  Other effective models will be highlighted to show how communities are building sustainable cannabis ecosystems through research, business development, and community engagement.

 

Imagining the Future of Cannabis Education: A National Roundtable & Networking Reception  

Session Chair/s: AaronJohnson

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Over the past three or more years, CRC has included paper sessions focused on cannabis education and academic program development. While the topic remains timely and nationally relevant, past participation suggest that a traditional academic panel format may not best serve this rapidly evolving and highly applied area. Cannabis education now spans universities, community colleges, workforce and compliance training programs, public health outreach initiatives, and continuing education efforts. Educators and program directors are navigating enrollment volatility, institutional stigma, accreditation constraints, employer perceptions, and questions about credential legitimacy. Many are building curricula and degree programs in relative isolation, without shared benchmarks or comparative data.This session proposes a facilitated roundtable and networking reception in place of formal paper presentations. A brief framing presentation will introduce emerging structural questions, including the discrepancy observed at multiple institutions between strong course enrollments and lower rates of degree or minor declaration. The remainder of the session will prioritize structured dialogue, peer exchange, and collaborative problem-solving.
CRC is uniquely positioned to convene a national conversation on cannabis education infrastructure. This format aims to strengthen coordination, surface shared challenges, and foster sustained collaboration beyond the conference.

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