In 1997 Henk Poncin and a few members of a group known as the “Green Prisoners Release” decided to do some community service and so they created a public information centre regarding all the beneficial aspects of the beautiful Cannabis sativa L. plant. After a year of hard work and renovation, a new Cannabis info centre and flowering organic garden filled a local monument-status canal house in the heart of Amsterdam.

The projected opening date was to be 1998; however, the city government refused the creators a sales permit. Despite the fact that the group’s initial investment had been consumed by the renovation of the building they continued undaunted, now faced with the challenge of recovering funds. However the original goal remained: to provide information and extend Cannabis activism.

Finally they found a ray of hope. Eddie, one of the main seed breeders in Holland, was brought in as a partner. As an honest and organic breeder Eddie felt a certain responsibility to the industry, stating, “I earned my money for 35 years [through] working with this plant; this is something I have to do in return.” The dedication of Henk Poncin, the Green Prisoners Release, Eddie and an enthusiastic group of young volunteers combined to form the Cannabis College Amsterdam, a professional information centre with free admission.

This year the Cannabis College will be celebrating 10 fantastic and successful years of providing information.

Since our early days the College has experienced a few major changes. In the summer of 2002 we lost the entire information centre to a fire. After a few hard months of renovation we finally managed to re-open with a fresh look a few months later.

With a brand new garden, merchandise and website, please be sure to stop by and check out our new format. We hope to completely renovate the info centre upstairs in the near future, adding more computer terminals and lecture capabilities. We are also hoping to increase as well as to update our product displays, and as always will gladly accept any donations that will enhance our information centre and call attention to your hemp- or Cannabis-related business. Our long-term goals include opening Cannabis College “campuses” around the world.