A Symposium on Cacao, Neuroplasticity, and Integrative Mental Health

A collaborative session bringing together ancestral cacao traditions, emerging neuroscience, and whole-person approaches to mental wellbeing. Speakers will explore how cacao, the gut–brain axis, and integrative practice can support emotional healing, neuroplasticity, and everyday mental health.

Speaker 1 — Dr Corin Storkey (PhD, Medicinal Chemistry)

Bio
Dr Corin Storkey is a medicinal chemist and plant-medicine researcher with more than 20 years of academic and research experience. He specialises in how ancestral plant medicines interact with the brain and body, with a particular focus on ceremonial cacao. Corin leads research that connects Andean and Amazonian traditions with modern biochemical analysis, including work linked to the University of Otago. He is also known for translating this science into practical tools for wellbeing, integration, and conscious living.

Talk title
Cacao, Psychedelics & Neuroplasticity: Ancient Rituals for the Modern Mind

Summary
This talk explores how 7,000-year-old Peruvian cacao traditions meet contemporary neuroscience. Dr Storkey will look at the sacred role of ceremonial cacao — from its origins at sites such as Montegrande through to its use in visionary rites — and how cacao influences brain chemistry, supports neuroplasticity, and can aid emotional healing and expanded awareness. He will introduce current research on neurotransmitter pathways and transformational change, including personalised insights through Cacao Personality Maps developed via biochemical profiling with the University of Otago. The session will also consider how cacao may support the integration of altered states and enhance Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy (PAT), offering a bridge between ancestral cosmovision and practical tools for inner work and mental wellbeing.

Speaker 2 — Dr Zuzana Oravcova-Wheeler (Dr Zuzi)

Bio
Dr Zuzana Oravcova-Wheeler, known as Dr Zuzi, is a medical doctor with a background in general practice and psychiatry. She now specialises in integrative and lifestyle medicine and is the founder of ZIVIO Health. She is particularly interested in complex, persistent health problems that do not fit neatly into conventional medical boxes, including conditions where the interaction between the gut, brain and nervous system is especially apparent, such as disorders of gut–brain interaction. Her approach is grounded in science and curiosity, with a deep respect for the innate wisdom of the body and the natural world. She focuses on understanding the whole person and what may be driving their health problems, rather than treating symptoms or diagnoses in isolation.

Talk title
Beyond the Prescription: Wellbeing Inside and Out

Summary
Dr Zuzi will explore what helps people get well and stay well when mental and physical health are no longer treated as separate worlds. She will look at interconnected factors that shape how we feel and function, including sleep, nutrition, movement, relationships, stress, and nervous-system regulation. The talk will also consider mindfulness and clinical hypnotherapy as practical ways of working with the mind–body connection, and how these approaches can sit alongside — and in some cases provide an alternative to — conventional medical care.

Speaker 3 — Lydia Bucher, PhD candidate

Bio
Lydia holds a Bachelor’s in Biochemistry from the University of Cincinnati (USA) and a Master’s in Biotechnology from Lund University (Sweden). Now based in Dunedin, New Zealand, she is pursuing a PhD in Pharmacology in collaboration with Seleno Health, where her research explores the therapeutic potential of Theobroma cacao for intestinal health and its further applications to mental health. She is passionate about bridging industry and academia, ensuring that food and health products are grounded in rigorous scientific research. Lydia believes in the power of food as medicine and is particularly fascinated by cacao’s role in gut-brain communication and overall wellness.

Talk title
From Bean to Brain: Understanding the Mental Health Benefits of Cacao Through Its Role in the Gut

Summary
Ever wondered if chocolate, or more specifically the cacao it comes from, could do more than just taste good? Cacao has many interesting bioactive compounds, including polyphenols known for their anti-inflammatory effects, but what has not been investigated is cacao's tryptophan content. Lydia’s research investigate cacao for its tryptophan content, because tryptophan is the predominant precursor for serotonin, a vital neurotransmitter which is vital to the regulation of our moods. Interestingly, 90% of serotonin is synthesized in the human intestine, rather than the brain, and is a central physiological mediator of many gastrointestinal functions through modulation of the enteric nervous system. Lydia investigates whether cacao could have an ideal mixture of compounds which aid in reducing inflammation in the intestine and in turn aid in the increase of serotonin.

Hot cacao and maca elixirs provided to attendees. Tickets via Koha online - fund support the bean to brain cacao research program with Otago University (please help us by donating generously).

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