At CERI, we’re working to advance unbiased medical research and credible information about medicinal cannabis. We’ve seen firsthand how this ancient botanical can transform lives. As a non-profit organization, we support patient access to medicinal marijuana — and we believe that people, physicians, and policymakers should understand its potential. Our distinguished board of leading medical and policy experts directs our work, which also includes changing perceptions and increasing understanding about medicinal cannabis.

“We need quality trials; we need to know more about efficacy, dose, routes of administration, and side effects. We need studies. And once efficacy is clear, we need to undertake creative ways to help patients pay for medical cannabis.”

— David Knowlton, Chairman and CEO, CERI

Our Mission:

Advancing access to medicinal cannabis through education and research

Our Vision:

A nation where medicinal cannabis is accessible, well researched, and prescribed safely and effectively.

CANNABIS EDUCATION AND RESEARCH INSTITUTE

The Cannabis Education and Research Institute (CERI) began in 2018 when leading voices in American policy and health care — all passionate about the need for objective and trustworthy research of cannabis — joined together to create CERI.

Our goal is to advance accessibility of medicinal cannabis through unbiased, evidence-based research to consumers, clinicians, payers and policymakers so they can make informed decisions about cannabis.

As a non-profit organization, we support patient access to medicinal marijuana — and we believe that people, health professionals, and policymakers should understand its potential. Our distinguished board of medical and policy experts directs our work, which also includes changing perceptions and increasing understanding about medicinal marijuana.

Our vision is clear: A nation where medicinal cannabis is accessible, well researched, and prescribed safety and effectively.

CERI’s Chairman and CEO, David Knowlton, served as CEO and Chairman of the Board of the Trustees of the Compassionate Care Foundation, a non-profit medicinal marijuana dispensary and cultivation center in Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey. In his work there, Knowlton saw firsthand how cannabis could relieve pain and suffering of patients with cancer, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, and other disorders. Many patients were able to reduce or eliminate their use of highly addictive prescription medications, such as opioids. Knowlton also saw how the stigma surrounding cannabis held back objective research and information and created hurdles to disseminating cannabis to people who can benefit from the medication.

CERI leaders, too, want to ensure that the legalization of recreational marijuana in some states does not negatively impact access to the carefully cultivated strains of cannabis used in medicinal cannabis, such as those with low amounts of THC, the psychoactive component of cannabis. CERI plans to sponsor research, bring together thought leaders in the field, create a registry for physicians, patients, and researchers, and create pilot programs for payers to determine the value of cannabis to their members. As public policy around cannabis continues to shift, CERI will be a powerful voice in support of the medicinal cannabis patient.