Cannabis in Consolidation? Investment, Operating Pressures, and Anti-Competitive Characteristics in the Cannabis Industry
Michael Polson, Staff Researcher
Environmental Science, Policy and Management
Applications for Fall 2024 are closed for this project.
Students will be working to support a project on the cannabis industry and the general work of the Cannabis Research Center in disseminating research and engaging the public.
The project, overall, is a mixed method investigation of: 1) anti-competitive and monopolistic practices of cannabis investors and owner-operators; 2) protective factors enabling small business and social equity operators to weather these behaviors; 3) patterns of investment and ownership at state, national and international levels that may threaten the competitive landscape of California’s cannabis economy; and 4) current and potential policies effective in preventing anti-competitive behaviors and protecting small business. We couple a top-down social-economic network analysis of statewide investment patterns with bottom-up ethnography of investor-operator relations, in California and beyond with an emphasis on protective strategies of small/equity businesses.
Role: Undergraduate researchers will conduct surveillance and produce briefings on various aspects of the cannabis industry's investors and operators, with a critical eye cast toward the pressurized relationship between finance capital and a complex, emergent industry still operating under the shadow of the War on Drugs, a sizable illicit market, and unique regulations that seek a modicum of social equity through the market.
The project will take place in the wake of a cannabis market crash that has caused massive industry disruption and potential trends toward monopolization, anti-competitive behaviors, and industrial consolidation. Tasks may include tracking social media discussions of the pitfalls and debates around social equity policies, mapping business mergers and acquisitions, and producing briefs on various cannabis investment groups and forums, like conferences and roundtables. Students will work with Dr. Michael Polson of Environmental Science, Policy & Management and Dr. Nathan Sayre of Geography, and will be part of a multi-campus team of undergraduate researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University and Cal State Long Beach.
Students will also help with supporting the Cannabis Research Center at UC Berkeley, an interdisciplinary hub of research on issues related to cannabis cultivation. This may includ research on pending legislation, assisting with preparations for research briefings, assistance with crowdfunding and logo contest campaigns, and formatting fact sheets for public education.
Qualifications: Students should have:
- good writing skills (required)
- an ability to sift through large amounts of information and summarize effectively (required)
- training in economic/industry analysis (preferred)
- knowledge of the cannabis industry (preferred)
- knowledge of business, industrial forms, and markets (preferred)
- interest in capitalism, social justice, regulation and markets (preferred).
Hours: to be negotiated
Off-Campus Research Site: Most meetings will be virtual except for possibly one or two in-person meetings with Dr. Polson at key check-in moments in the semester.
Related website: http://crc.berkeley.edu
Related website: http://www.michaelpolson.com