Growing up in colorful Colorado, Mariah saw significant changes in MMJ history all around her. The biggest one was her legal right to get the medicine she needed for her abiding pains from her Lyme Disease. As doctors insisted on giving her pain medication, she persisted getting a healthier and effective alternative so she can live a normal life.

With a background in modeling and acting, Mariah has always had a fire in her heart for entrepreneurship and being a voice in the community. She not only wanted to build a legacy for her family, but also for her community and for the very industry that had saved her. Through past experiences with Kevin, Mariah was led to more research, knowledge, and awareness of the industry and has developed a passion for giving back through the industry that gave her her life back.

Kevin began a journey into social entrepreneurship after a 20 plus year career in the nonprofit sector. Having started his career as a direct care counselor for at-risk children he advanced through the sector, eventually moving to Colorado for a job with a major animal charity overseeing a $4MM budget, 40 employees and 120 volunteers, to creating his own nonprofit 501c3 public charity. While determining whether his charity should accept support from the cannabis industry, he realized that there were some challenges on both sides and CannaMakeADifference was born!

COMING SOON

A graduate of UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business, Kieran is a Bay Area native through and through having grown up in the heart of the cannabis industry in Northern California. After a near fatal motorcycle accident, he found cannabis to be a healthier, more effective alternative to many of the prescription drugs that doctors recommended to him. As a patient himself, Kieran began working in and learning from the medical cannabis businesses in his area at a very young age.

This experience eventually turned into Kieran's most significant accomplishment to date, the synthesis of Sonoma Coast Consulting, a boutique consulting firm headquartered in the Bay Area serving all medical and recreational states. This is where Kieran spends his time currently, helping operators and investors alike succeed in the rapidly changing marketplace that is the cannabis industry. In addition to sitting on the Advisory Board for Cannamakeadifference, Kieran helps growing companies in the cannabis space reach their full potential against any and all challenges.

Laura Barrett-Nutting, RN, BSN, MBA, is a wellness and certified cannabis nurse who brings over 20 years of experience helping patients cope with critical illness and chronic disease. Her enthusiasm for wellness and natural healing led her to explore the multiple medical cannabis/cannabinoid options available. Laura works with Maryland providers, patients, and caregivers to educate, inform, and collaborate to find the best alternatives for improving lives.

Personally, Laura loves the great outdoors: hiking, camping, rock scrambling and all types of dance fitness.