Wanda James is a nationally recognized entrepreneur, public policy strategist, elected official, and cannabis industry pioneer. Along with her husband, Chef Scott Durrah, they became the first African Americans in the United States legally licensed to own a cannabis dispensary, cultivation facility, and edibles company.

For more than 17 years, Wanda has been a leading national voice on cannabis policy, social equity, entrepreneurship, and criminal justice reform. Her work has helped shape conversations around legalization, regulation, ownership, and the economic impact of the War on Drugs.

Wanda was named one of the 100 Most Influential People in Cannabis by High Times and one of the 50 Most Important Women in the Cannabis Industry by Cannabis Business Executive. Her work and leadership have been featured by the BBC, The Atlantic, MSNBC, CNBC, CBS Sunday Morning, Democracy Now!, VICE, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, and numerous other national and international media outlets.

A former United States Naval officer and longtime political strategist, Wanda brings a rare perspective to conversations about leadership, power, public policy, entrepreneurship, and what it takes to create change inside industries and institutions that were not built with everyone in mind.