Kiona Foundation Inc. · 501(c)(3) Public Charity
In honor of those we have lost. In service of those still here.
We advance rigorous, IRB-registered research into the endocannabinoid system, pursued through the FDA Botanical Drug Development pathway, in search of less toxic, more effective options for patients where conventional therapy has been inadequate.
Who We Are
Kiona Foundation Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity advancing novel botanical drug discovery, anchored in pharmacognosy, the study of medicines derived from natural sources. We pursue the FDA Botanical Drug Development pathway in search of less toxic, more effective options for patients where conventional therapy has been inadequate.
IRB-registered clinical research under OHRP Federal-Wide Assurance FWA00034558, including the active KF-ECS-2025 endocannabinoid system study.
Regenerative agriculture and Indigenous land partnerships across Wayne County, New York and eleven international ecosystem nodes.
Founded in 2003 in honor of Kiona Tejan Jenkins. We carry the work forward for the children, and for the families still walking the road.
Our Science
Our framing is deliberate and sequential. Each stage disciplines the next, so that traditional botanical knowledge is carried forward as rigorous, regulatable science rather than unsupported claim.
The scientific study of medicines derived from natural sources, our foundation and first discipline.
Identifying and characterizing plant-derived candidates with genuine therapeutic potential.
Advancing candidates through the FDA Botanical Drug Development pathway, the regulatory standard for botanicals.
Human-subjects research under federal assurance, studying endocannabinoid system modulation.
Directing the science toward health, agricultural, and Indigenous equity outcomes.
Active Research
Our active, IRB-approved study examines endocannabinoid system deficiency across general, clinical, and medically authorized adult and pediatric populations. It is conducted under federal human-subjects protections and led by an independent research team.
Study Title
Endocannabinoid System Deficiency: A Comprehensive Study of General, Clinical, and Medically Authorized Adult and Pediatric Populations.
Approved September 2024. Informed consent offered in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole, so that participation is not gated by language.
Traditional Naturopath and Clinical Herbalist with more than two decades in botanical medicine, systems-based health, and health equity.
LinkedIn →Tenured Associate Professor, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. Founding Director, Global Cannabis & Psychedelics Research Collaboratory.
LinkedIn →Founding Director, MediRootz Medical Group, Queens, New York.
LinkedIn →Human-subjects protections are overseen by an independent Institutional Review Board under the Foundation's federal-wide assurance, safeguarding participant welfare and research integrity.
Initiatives
Our programs translate the science into land, policy, and community, from a research campus in New York to international policy advocacy.
A unified research, cultivation, processing, and clinical campus in Wayne County, developed with state and federal partners across two tracks: industrial hemp and medical Cannabis research. A Finger Lakes restoration story rooted in Erie Canal agricultural heritage.
Formal policy advocacy providing the scientific, clinical, and regulatory foundation for sovereign botanical development, submitted to national leadership in 2026 as part of a broader international research network.
A community campaign in loving memory of Carlene Omega Janae Samuels, known as Carly, supporting families facing pediatric illness where conventional care falls short. Follow the campaign at @coinsforcarly.
The Gift of Life
Independent research needs independent support. Your gift funds IRB-registered study, community programs, and the equity work at the center of our mission.
Donations are securely processed through Givebutter, our verified giving platform. One-time and recurring gifts support our research and programs directly.
Donate on GivebutterKiona Foundation Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity, EIN 20-0977421. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.