The Hotbox with Dustin Hoxworth isn’t your polished PR interview. It’s me getting stoned and asking people the questions they probably aren’t ready for. These aren’t cold reads or copy-paste Q&As; I sit with my guests, usually multiple times, and I’ve likely met them in person, which gives me a window to learn who they really are before I ever send the questions. By the time the words hit the page, it’s smoke-thick honesty, not surface-level bullshit. These are cannabis conversations that showcase the voices, stories, and truths that won’t show up in the boardroom.
The Hotbox with Þórunn Þórs Jónsdóttir
Founder, Hemp for the Future | Co-Founder, Reykjavík Hemp
In this edition of The Hotbox, we sit down with Þórunn Þórs Jónsdóttir, a visionary hemp leader from Iceland who’s turning raw land and bold ideas into a global movement. She’s the force behind Hemp for the Future, the international conference that’s bringing scientists, farmers, policymakers, and entrepreneurs into the same room to reimagine what this plant can do. We’re here to talk politics, power, culture, and the uncomfortable truths that come with leading a plant-based revolution. Let’s get into it.
Þórunn Þórs Jónsdóttir is one of the most influential international voices pushing hemp into the future. Based in Reykjavík, she is the Founder of Hemp for the Future, Iceland’s leading international hemp and cannabis conference, and a relentless advocate for harnessing hemp as a tool for sustainability, medicine, and innovation.
As a co-founder of Reykjavík Hemp and a driving force in the Icelandic Hemp Association, Þórunn has dedicated her career to breaking stigma, building infrastructure, and opening doors for a global hemp economy. Her work sits at the intersection of science, culture, and entrepreneurship by bringing farmers, policy-makers, innovators, and activists into the same room to move the conversation forward.
From advancing regenerative agriculture to championing hemp-based building materials, textiles, and bioplastics, Þórunn is proving that this plant is more than an industry; it’s a pathway to resilience in the face of climate change. Her leadership has already positioned Iceland as a surprising hub for hemp innovation, and her international collaborations continue to expand the impact of her mission.
For Þórunn, hemp isn’t just a crop; it’s a movement. One rooted in community, sustainability, and the belief that hemp can help write a better future for both people and the planet.
The HotBox: 5 Questions with Þórunn Þórs Jónsdóttir
1: Iceland has always been seen as clean, pure, and progressive. But when it comes to cannabis and hemp, the laws are still restrictive. Do you think your government is holding back progress, and if so, why?
Absolutely. Iceland sells itself as green and forward-thinking, yet when it comes to hemp and cannabis, we’re stuck in outdated fear. Our government is still clinging to prohibition-era policies that make no sense in 2025. Hemp is not a threat — it’s a tool for medicine, for sustainable materials, for agriculture that heals the soil. But stigma and political caution are holding us back. That’s why we created Hemp4Future: to show policymakers that the rest of the world is already moving forward, and Iceland risks being left behind if we don’t wake up.
2: Big corporations and billionaires are circling hemp the same way they circled cannabis. Do you see them as partners in scaling this plant, or predators waiting to take it from the people who built it?
Both. The scale of investment that hemp needs can’t come from small players alone. But the danger is very real: if big industry takes over, hemp becomes just another commodity stripped of its roots in community and culture. At Hemp4Future we put farmers, scientists, and grassroots leaders in the same room with investors and policymakers to set boundaries: hemp must remain regenerative, fair, and accessible. If we give it all to the billionaires, we’ve lost the soul of the plant.
3: Hemp gets labeled as an “industrial crop,” but for many, it’s part of culture, medicine, and identity. How do you balance the soul of hemp with the business of hemp?
By refusing to separate them. Hemp is an ancient plant with deep cultural, medicinal, and spiritual roots. But it’s also the foundation of textiles, paper, building materials, and bioplastics. The danger is when we reduce it to one dimension — only profit, or only tradition. My work is about integration. At Hemp4Future we host panels that connect science, health, and culture with regenerative farming, sustainability, and industry innovation. That balance is what keeps hemp alive as a movement, not just a market.
4: The world loves to talk about sustainability, but most of it is greenwashing. What’s the biggest lie you’ve seen in the sustainability space, and how does hemp expose it?
The biggest lie is that endless consumption can ever be sustainable. Companies slap “eco” labels on products while still poisoning soil and water, exploiting workers, and burning carbon. Hemp exposes that lie because it’s one of the few plants that can actually give back more than it takes — it sequesters carbon, restores soil, replaces plastics, and creates medicine. But only if we grow it and use it responsibly. Hemp is a mirror: it shows whether you’re serious about change or just selling another greenwashed product.
5: If you had a chance to sit in a smoke-filled room with global leaders and demand one radical change in policy tomorrow, what would it be, and how would it change the future?
I’d demand the removal of hemp and cannabis from outdated drug schedules worldwide. The criminalization of this plant is the single biggest barrier to progress. Change that one law and you unleash medicine, sustainable industry, and jobs that communities desperately need. You also end decades of stigma and criminalization that have punished ordinary people while industries pollute with impunity. That single act would open the door for hemp to do what it does best: heal.
From Reykjavík’s windswept landscapes to the global stage, Þórunn Þórs Jónsdóttir isn’t just talking about hemp, she’s forcing the world to reckon with its potential. Her fire is proof that this plant isn’t a novelty, it’s a necessity.
