Is the universe aware of itself, or is consciousness just a side effect of brain activity? What do Indigenous shamanism and theories like panpsychism have in common? Why is psychology blind to its huge limitations? And can dieting master plants show us what it's really like to be a bat?

Dr Peter Sjöstedt-Hughes is a philosopher, specialising in the philosophy of mind and metaphysics, and in fields relating to panpsychism, pantheism, and altered states of consciousness. 

He lectures at The University of Exeter where he is a lead on the new Master’s programme in Psychedelics: Mind, Medicine, and Culture, the first of its kind in the world. Peter is also co-director of Europe’s largest psychedelics conference, Breaking Convention; author of two books, and co-editor of Philosophy and Psychedelics (Bloomsbury 2022); and the speaker of a popular TEDx Talk on ‘Consciousness and Psychedelics’.

*** We are now recruiting for the next cohort of our 6-month accredited Psychedelic Mentorship Training programme, beginning in April. For more information and to find out how to enroll, visit Onaya's website and use the code 'INTHROUGH10' for a special 10% discount. ***

This podcast is part of Onaya’s Breaking Convention series, spotlighting speakers at the intersection of science and spirituality in the run up to the conference. For a 10% discount on your ticket purchase to Breaking Convention (17-19 April at the University of Exeter), you can use our code 'ONAYA10' at the checkout: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/breakingconvention.