About Us
Founding Inspiration
Open Circle Alliance was founded by three women who sit at the intersection of the psychedelic, drug policy reform and healing and wellness communities. Brought together after learning of the 2024 ballot initiative that would create regulated access to psychedelic therapy for Massachusetts, the co-founders saw the need for conversation, collaboration, and innovation across diverse perspectives and experiences. They wanted to shepherd the development of a safe and supportive psychedelic ecosystem that would potentially encompass a legal psychedelic therapy system, but that would also address a broader range of issues and goals for psychedelics in Massachusetts.
Vision
A world where human health and well-being are positively supported by the integration of psychedelic experiences.
Mission
Open Circle Alliance is dedicated to connecting Massachusetts-based psychedelic thought leaders, practitioners, organizations, communities and individuals. Alongside others working towards healing, justice and health, we aim to enhance public understanding of psychedelic substances, build a supportive network, amplify existing work, promote safety and collaboration, and advocate for the best possible psychedelic policies for Massachusetts.
Rebecca Slater, Co-Founder
Rebecca has spent over two decades in operations and technology, leading diverse and complex teams, designing and optimizing systems and processes, and implementing them to improve business outcomes.
But this cause is personal. Like so many of us, Rebecca was frustrated by the status quo of American mental health care. As a mother, partner, daughter and friend, she shifted her focus to the healing potential of psychedelics for healing complex trauma. This led her to advocacy work with the Heroic Hearts Project, the Boston Psychedelic Research Group, and to her creation of a welcoming and safe online space for veterans and those who serve them — to make connections, share knowledge, and support one another.
Through these roles, she’s learned the art of making change happen, patiently, persistently, and kindly – one conversation at a time.
Stefanie Jones, Co-Founder
Stefanie is a seasoned drug policy reform advocate supporting progressive harm reduction, drug education and drug policy initiatives. Most recently, she served as Director of Outreach for Fireside Project, an organization that provides free emotional support via call or text to people using psychedelics or processing past use. During her 16-year career with the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA), a national advocacy nonprofit working to end the drug war and promote drug policies centered in health, social and racial justice, she founded and ran the Safer Partying program as well as oversaw the creation of Safety First, the first comprehensive harm reduction-based drug education curriculum for high school students, now at Stanford Medicine’s REACH Lab.
From 2007-2013, she produced four progressively larger iterations of DPA’s Reform Conference. She has given 30+ talks on harm reduction, including at SXSW and Burning Man, and been quoted in 50+ articles, including in Rolling Stone, Teen Vogue and Scientific American. She is based in Cambridge, MA.
Emily Oneschuk, Co-Founder
Emily Oneschuk is a proven leader and innovator dedicated to building healthier futures by empowering today's communities. A fourth-generation veteran, she served as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal Officer in the Navy. Recently, Emily joined the board of the Center on Conscience and War and she currently serves as the Grassroots Campaign Director for Massachusetts for Mental Health Options, advocating for legal therapeutic access to natural psychedelics in Massachusetts.
During her tenure in the Navy, Emily honed her community development and leadership skills, serving as both a Platoon Commander and later as the Operations Director of a 2500-person refugee camp in the wake of the fall of Afghanistan. After transitioning from the Navy, Emily faced complex mental health challenges and found relief through psychedelics after exhausting available resources within the VA system.
Emily is enthusiastic about fostering a strong, supportive, and diverse community to ensure access to these substances for those who stand to benefit from them.