In between slurps of soup and sips of coffee, Jindřich Vobořil tells a story of his youth that would sell out a Broadway theater. He lived on and off the streets in his hometown of Brno, Czechoslovakia, running with local gangs. By age 12, he was burning through 30 cigarettes a day and says he moved on to hard drugs by his teenage years. By the mid-’80s, Vobořil was a 17-year-old dropout who played guitar in a rock band and had joined the nation’s preeminent anti-communist organization, Charter 77, before becoming … a Catholic, organizing underground religious activities — back then, religious people were persecuted by the government.

Friends, meet the unlikeliest top-level bureaucrat on planet Earth.

Should we regulate cannabis and, if so, how? While there is no one-size-fits-all solution, inspiration for answers can be found in the stories of communities that have dared to try something different. Catalonia, an autonomous region of Spain, has created health- and rights-based drug policy that not only reduces the harms of drugs, but also creates new opportunities for public health, security, economic growth, and a thriving civil society.

CASPER, Wyo. — After more than a year of writing and rewriting, organizers behind a medical marijuana ballot measure believe they’re close to finalizing the proposal.

The initative needs only a few minor changes before the Wyoming Secretary of State staff gives it preliminary approval, said Chris Christian, of the Wyoming chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. Approval would allow supporters across across the state to begin gathering more than 25,000 signatures required before Feb. 8, the deadline for it to appear on the November 2016 ballot.

The Wyoming Secretary of State’s staff could not say whether NORML will obtain the preliminary approval, since it has yet to review the latest version.

BERLIN — A conservative politician who crossed the aisle and has joined the German Green Party’s campaign to legalize marijuana has revived a long-running debate about the drug in Europe’s largest economy.

In many respects, Colorado is leading all cannabis states into the 21st century of cannabis regulation. On a seemingly monthly basis, Colorado confronts first impression cannabis issues with which other states have yet to grapple. One of those emerging issues is how to regulate edibles and marijuana-infused products. Washington and other states are really just beginning to visit this topic, but Colorado already has a deep love/hate, “we get it”/”we have no idea” relationship with regulations for infused marijuana products.

Rabat – Hamid Chabat, Secretary General of the Istiqlal Party, one of Morocco’s major opposition political parties, has again called for amnesty for Cannabis growers.

Speaking during a pre-election rally over the weekend in Ouzzane, northern Morocco, Hamid Chabat called for the adoption of a bill granting amnesty to small cannabis growers in the north of the kingdom.

He said that nearly 80,000 cannabis growers are released on bail and risk going back to prison at any moment because of their involvement in the cultivation of cannabis, while “corrupt and money launderers enjoy amnesty.” He added that the majority of these small growers lack identity documents and cannot exercise their voting rights.

ALBANY, N.Y. — The 10-year-old girl stood smiling at the governor's side as he signed a medical marijuana bill into law last July.

Amanda Houser was so excited for the event, her mother said, her health problems — a rare form of epilepsy — were nearly forgotten for the day. And the photo from the New York City event of Amanda bashfully holding her cheeks next to Gov. Andrew Cuomo is one of the more memorable images from his time in office.

But the good feelings from the event have gradually subsided, and ill patients are increasingly frustrated that, nearly a year later, they still can't access medical marijuana in New York.

Federal lawmakers are looking to expedite the approval process for marijuana research. Earlier last week, the U.S. House Appropriations Committee approved a measure that would force the Drug Enforcement Administration to develop accelerated procedures for researchers seeking permission to study cannabis.

The DEA’s meticulous demands have been sandbagging cannabis researchers for decades, but the approval of this legislation would put an end to this by forcing the agency to "review all relevant DEA rules governing research on the medical efficacy of marijuana and determine ways to facilitate further research through streamlining the DEA approval process.”

The Home Office is set to publish plans to ban the dangerous synthetic drugs, according to government insiders.

It would spell the end for so-called 'head shops', which sell legal highs including nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas.

The news will be welcomed by the Local Government Association (LGA), who last week called for a ban on the sale of every psychoactive drug except tobacco and alcohol.

It came after a group of students were rushed to hospital after taking a legal high – initially thought to be the outlawed cannabis substitute Spice.

Cllr Ann Lucas of the LGA said: "We need an outright ban on legal highs that will enable the closure of head shops and protect the public from devastating consequences.

Rabat- Hamid Chabat, Secretary General of the Istiqlal Party, one of Morocco’s major opposition political parties, has once again called for the legalization of Cannabis.

Chabat called over weekend for the legalization of cannabis and the reorientation of its cultivation to the pharmaceutical industries.

He called for the outright legalization of cannabis, calling the government’s proposal to replace the cultivation of the plant by raising goats, a ‘lie’.

This call comes just few months before the municipal elections scheduled for next September. The Istiqlal party denies any attempt to use the issue for electoral purposes.