ABSTRACT
Only two national governments (Uruguay and Canada), along with more than 21 states in the United States, have fully regulated cannabis markets for adult use, and numerous lessons can be gleaned, including how to transition illegal markets to a legal framework while promoting social justice, development, equity and human rights. This chapter explores four main lessons from cannabis regulation: considering a public health approach as a first step accompanied by a development perspective for cultivating communities; integrating social equity or social justice mechanisms including access to capital, licenses and institutional support; the importance of judicial reforms including expungement of criminal convictions, prisoner release and effective decriminalization; and reducing the risk of corporate capture. Future-focused thinking, research and practice require civil society, academics and policymakers to forecast diverse outcomes that put equity-based objectives at the centre to inform prospective initiatives, particularly at an international level. Rather than importing models from others, governments should be flexible in meeting the needs of its populations, with human rights, health and social justice as cross-cutting goals.
