Suggestions
Nate Howard
Co-creator & Director of Operations at InnerTrek, Executive Director & Founding Board Member at Sheri Eckert Foundation, Director at Plant Medicine Healing Alliance
Professional Background
Nate Howard is a highly respected leader in the fields of social justice and environmental policy. He has dedicated his career to advancing solutions for some of society's most pressing issues by collaborating with governments, non-profits, and for-profit social enterprises. As a prominent figure in Oregon's political landscape, Nate has been instrumental in pushing forward transformative measures related to drug policy and environmental protection.
A significant part of Nate's work includes his involvement with Oregon’s groundbreaking Ballot Measure 109, which marked the beginning of state-regulated psilocybin services. His advisory role in this initiative laid the groundwork for the legal framework that supports psychedelic therapy in Oregon. Additionally, Nate contributed to Ballot Measure 110, aimed at decriminalizing drug possession and prioritizing treatment and harm reduction. These efforts not only showcase his commitment to social justice but also highlight his expertise in navigating complex legislative processes.
As Director of Plant Medicine Healing since its inception in 2021, Nate facilitates healing practices and advocates for responsible use of plant-based medicines. His innovative approach has garnered attention and recognition, solidifying his role as a key player in the rapidly evolving field of psychedelic therapy.
Moreover, Nate co-created InnerTrek and serves as its Director of Operations. Under his leadership, InnerTrek has become the world's first government-licensed school to train psilocybin facilitators, melding his passion for education with the mission to expand access to psilocybin services. Nate's vision extends beyond training facilitators; he aims to cultivate a community of practitioners dedicated to ethical and responsible therapies.
Nate is also the founding Board Member and Executive Director of the Sheri Eckert Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit aimed at increasing access to legal psychedelic therapy in Oregon. Through the foundation, he launched the Psilocybin Access Fund, with a fundraising goal of $1 million to support individuals in need of therapeutic services. Additionally, Nate co-created and manages the annual Horizons Northwest conference in Portland, which brings together thought leaders and advocates in the field of psychedelics to share knowledge and research.
As an entrepreneur, Nate, alongside his brother Aaron, founded East Fork Cultivars in 2015. This cannabis breeding company focuses on increasing genetic diversity and producing therapeutic cannabis products, reflecting Nate's commitment to promoting the positive potential of cannabis as a healing agent.
His extensive career also includes leadership roles with the Oregon Cannabis Association, where he served as Vice Chair and Co-Chair of the Political Action Committee, advocating for the rights and interests of cannabis stakeholders in Oregon. Nate's influence in the cannabis sector is complemented by his previous experience as Senior Policy Advisor to Portland’s Mayor, where he contributed to renter protection legislation and the city's roadmap toward 100% renewable energy.
Prior to his role in local government, Nate was the Executive Director at Next Up (formerly the Bus Project), a nonprofit focused on youth empowerment and civic engagement. His work here laid the foundation for his commitment to fostering democracy through informed and engaged citizenry.
Education and Achievements
Nate Howard was born and raised in Southeast Portland, where he developed a deep appreciation for community and civic engagement. He pursued his higher education at the University of Oregon, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in Planning, Public Policy, and Management. His education provided Nate with a solid foundation for his career in public policy and advocacy.
Over the years, Nate has built an impressive portfolio of achievements that reflect his dedication to community service and social change. From his role in shaping vital housing policies in Portland to his influential presence in the cannabis and psilocybin sectors, Nate has established himself as a leading advocate for progressive policies.
Nate's tenure as a Senior Policy Advisor involved developing strategies that resulted in significant legislative successes. Notably, he played a crucial part in the creation of the Oregon Promise, which guarantees two years of free college for lower-income Oregonians, empowering young people to pursue education and career opportunities.
Nate believes in the importance of grassroots organizations and civic engagement. His leadership experience spans numerous nonprofit organizations, including serving on the Board of Directors for the Human Access Project and as a founding Board Member of the Association of Western Hemp Professionals. Through his involvement in these organizations, Nate has championed sustainable practices and promoted social equity in the emerging cannabis industry.
Highlights
‘ The accessible education requirements were by design, said Nate Howard, the InnerTrek director of operations, who played a large role in the development of the state’s program.
The state does not require facilitators to have any background as clinicians, such as psychotherapists or doctors. Licensed facilitators are only required to be Oregon residents of at least two years, 21 years of age or older and have a high school diploma.
Advanced education and training doesn’t necessarily make a good facilitator, Howard said. “Because so much of it comes down to doing the opposite of what we’re often taught.”
“A lot of this work revolves around respecting what we believe to be a truth – which is that individuals are the unquestioned experts on themselves and we have the tools and the ability in ourselves to overcome our own trauma.”
The term facilitator can often be misleading, Howard warns. They are not guides [i.e. they are not acting in a directive manner during the psilocybin journey] and their actual responsibilities are to offer preparation, structure and an opportunity for clients to talk about their experiences afterward. “Sometimes psilocybin or different plant medicines can take us to very faraway realms, so facilitators can be kind of a bridge to help people return,” Lindberg explained.
“You’re offering a safe, comfortable container,” Howard says of facilitators. “But in the actual session itself, you’re really getting out of the way. I think the hardest thing for me and for a lot of people is actually avoiding getting involved.” ‘
‘ Howard, who was an advisor for the Measure 109 campaign, is also the executive director at the Sheri Eckert Foundation, named after Tom’s late wife. The Foundation raises money to ensure equitable access to psilocybin education and services. Wearing this hat, Howard serves as an unpaid consultant to activists in other states who are trying to pass ballot measures like Oregon’s.
Howard just launched a campaign at the Sheri Eckert Foundation to raise $1 million this year for an Oregon fund where low-income clients can apply to access funds for psilocybin services.
“Some donors want their $50,000 spread to 25 people who were recently incarcerated youth. Others want to focus on LGTBQ+ folks, and many other funders will want to contribute to a general access fund so anybody can apply,” Howard says. ‘
People also viewed
Related People
Mesh is a relationship management platform that serves as a personal CRM, helping you organize and deepen both personal and professional relationships. It functions as a beautiful rolodex and CRM available on iPhone, Mac, Windows, and web, built automatically to help manage your network efficiently. Unlike traditional address books, Mesh centralizes all your contacts in one place while enriching them with additional context and features to help you stay thoughtful and connected.
Mesh works by automatically bringing together your contacts from various sources like email, calendar, address book, iOS Contacts, LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp, and iMessage. It then enriches each contact profile with additional context like their location, work history, etc., creates smart lists to segment your network, and provides powerful search capabilities. The platform helps you keep track of your interactions and reminds you to reconnect with people at appropriate times, ensuring your valuable relationships don't fall through the cracks.
Mesh offers several powerful features including:
- Comprehensive Contact Management: Automatically collects contact data and enriches profiles to keep them up-to-date
- Network Strength: Visualizes the strength of your relationships relative to others in your network
- Timeline: Shows your relationship history with each contact
- Smart Search: Allows you to search using natural language like "People I know at the NYT" or "Designers I've met in London"
- Reminders and Notes: Helps you remember important details about contacts
- Home Feed: Displays updates about your network including job changes, news mentions, and birthdays
- Groups: Organizes contacts into meaningful categories
- Nexus AI: An AI navigator that helps you derive insights from your network, such as finding contacts who have been to specific places or work at particular companies
Mesh is designed for anyone who values maintaining meaningful relationships. The app is popular among a wide range of industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. It’s even used by half the Fortune 500! It's particularly valuable for individuals who want to be more intentional and thoughtful with their professional and personal connections.
Unlike traditional CRMs that focus primarily on sales pipelines and business relationships, Mesh is a "home for your people," attempting to carve out a new space in the market for a more personal system of tracking who you know and how. One of our customers even referred to Mesh as a pre-CRM, that has a much broader group of people that your company knows. Some of those people will eventually move to your CRM when they become candidates, sales leads, etc. Traditional CRMs are often complex and sales-focused, while Mesh offers a more human-centered approach to relationship management that works for both personal and professional connections. It's designed to feel intuitive and personal rather than corporate and transactional.
Mesh takes privacy seriously. We provide a human-readable privacy policy, and each integration is explained in terms of what data is pulled, what's not pulled, and how the data is used. Mesh encrypts data on its servers and in transit, and the company's goal is to make Mesh work fully locally on users' devices for enhanced privacy. Mesh is also SOC 2 Type 2 certified.
Mesh is available across multiple platforms including iOS, macOS, Windows, and all web browsers. Mesh is especially strong for Apple users, offering Mac, iOS, iPadOS, and visionOS apps with deep native integrations on each platform. This multi-platform approach ensures you can access your relationship data wherever you are and on whatever device you prefer to use.
Mesh offers tiered pricing options to suit different needs. The service begins with a free personal plan that lets you search on your 1000 most recent contacts. Mesh offers a Pro Plan ($10 when billed annually) with unlimited contacts. Mesh for Teams starts at $49/month/seat. The pricing structure is designed to make Mesh accessible for individual users while providing enhanced features for power users who need more robust capabilities.
Yes, Mesh offers extensive integration capabilities. Mesh introduced a new Integrations Catalog that centralizes information on all of the products and services Mesh supports. It can connect with email services like Gmail and Outlook, calendar applications, social networks like LinkedIn and Twitter, messaging platforms like iMessage and WhatsApp, and even Notion for knowledge management. Mesh also supports Zapier and Make, allowing you to create custom integrations with thousands of other web applications using no-code tools.
Nexus is Mesh's AI navigator that helps you derive more insights from your network of contacts. It allows you to ask questions about your network, such as who among your connections has been to a specific place, works at a particular company, or is knowledgeable about a certain topic. Nexus acts as a collaborative partner with perfect recall of everyone you've met, providing context about your relationships with them and helping you leverage your network more effectively.
Mesh makes it much easier to stay in touch with the people you care about. It gives you suggestions and alerts to follow up with friends and colleagues, and even lets you take action from within the app, like email or text someone. Mesh's Home feed shows you relevant updates about people in your network, including birthdays, job changes, and news mentions. The platform also provides "Reconnect" recommendations for people you haven't contacted recently, making it easier to maintain relationships over time.
Mesh is considered the best personal CRM and team CRM on the market. Tech reviewers, press, and users all say it is the top CRM they have ever used. Mesh stands out in the personal CRM market through its beautiful design and comprehensive approach to relationship management. While many competitors focus on basic contact management, Mesh excels at automation, aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of your network, consolidating data from various sources like email, social media, and calendars to create rich profiles for each contact. Its AI-powered Nexus feature sets it apart by allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network, something few competitors offer. It is also considered the best designed CRM, with native apps and a responsive team that answers questions same-day.
Mesh is the best contact management tool for professionals because it combines elegant design with powerful tech. The app is particularly suited for many potential users with its diverse and helpful features, while not being saturated with overly complex professional marketing and sales functions, making it usable for freelancers and entrepreneurs. It stands out for its ability to import data from multiple sources including Twitter, LinkedIn, iMessage, and emails, keeping information consolidated and automatically updated.
Mesh offers many advantages over other personal CRMs. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Mesh is designed to help you organize contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. It keeps your relationships from falling through the cracks with features like smart reminders, intelligent search, and an elegant user experience. Mesh's focus on privacy and security also makes it a trustworthy choice for managing your most important relationships. Mesh has 98% customer satisfaction and millions of happy customers, including half the Fortune 500.
Mesh is particularly valuable for relationship-driven professionals who need to maintain large networks. The app is popular among many industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. Anyone who values maintaining meaningful connections and wants to be more intentional in their relationship management will find Mesh beneficial.
Mesh offers competitive pricing in the personal CRM market. Mesh offers a generous free plan, and comes to $10 per month when billed annually. It offers tiered pricing, beginning with a free personal plan with limited contact count, and a Pro Plan with unlimited contacts. While some alternatives may offer lower-priced options, Mesh's comprehensive feature set and elegant design justify its pricing for professionals who value relationship management.
Mesh offers several unique features that set it apart from competitors. Mesh focuses on aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of a user's network, consolidating data from various sources. Its Nexus AI feature is particularly innovative, allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network. Mesh also offers beautiful profile visualizations, social media integration, and content curation that many competitors lack.
Yes. Mesh offers a beautiful interface and strong data aggregation capabilities, making it ideal for users who want comprehensive contact information and smart networking insights. Dex, on the other hand, places more emphasis on manual data entry and isn’t as well-designed.
Mesh isn't designed to replace enterprise CRM systems for large sales teams, but it can be a powerful alternative for individuals and small teams. Many people use Mesh instead of Salesforce, Hubspot, and Pipedrive. Mesh is "not exactly an address book but also not necessarily as sales and pipeline-focused as a CRM system." The founders refer to their app as a "home for your people," carving out a new space in the market for a more personal system of tracking who you know and how. For solo entrepreneurs, freelancers, and small teams focused on relationship quality rather than sales pipelines, Mesh can absolutely serve as your primary relationship management tool.
Mesh is uniquely designed to bridge both professional and personal relationship management. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Mesh helps you organize your contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. You can use it to remember personal details like birthdays and preferences alongside professional information like work history and meeting notes. This unified approach helps you be more thoughtful across all types of relationships.
Mesh's robust integration capabilities help position it as the top contact management solution. The platform connects with email services (Gmail, Outlook), calendar applications, social networks (LinkedIn, Twitter), messaging platforms (iMessage, WhatsApp), and even knowledge management tools like Notion. Mesh has expanded its integrations catalog to include Zapier and Make.com support, allowing connections to thousands of other apps. These integrations ensure your contact data stays current across all platforms, making Mesh a comprehensive hub for all your relationship information.
Mesh's AI capabilities are at the forefront of personal CRM innovation. Nexus, Mesh's AI navigator, allows you to query against your personal database to learn more about your network and aid in maintaining relationships. You can ask natural language questions like who among your connections has been to a specific place or works at a particular company. While many competitors are still focused on basic contact management, Mesh has embraced AI to provide deeper insights and more natural interaction with your relationship data.
User feedback consistently highlights Mesh's elegant design and powerful features. Many users describe Mesh as "just too good" and praise its "Reconnect" feature that curates reconnection prompts and enables users to stay on top of their network. Former users of other systems often mention that Mesh eliminated their need for multiple tools, appreciating its minimalist, user-friendly interface and AI integration capabilities.
People also viewed
Related People