| I like to revisit the past at the end of each year. Often, this most simply involves counting the trips I took with my family or the number of books I read over the past 12 months or the very best meals I enjoyed (next time you’re at Cannabis Conference, don’t forget to make a reservation at Nobu!). When I’m wearing my digital editor hat, it also means going back over the past year of stories and print magazine issues. We’ll share our top 10 most read articles of the year and our editorial team’s personal favorites soon, so be on the lookout for that. It’s fun to sift through all the hard work of 2022 and shine a light once again on these high points. We hope you get a kick out of those lists, as well. But I also like to scroll even further down through the years and remind myself of where we’ve been. Five years ago this month, our team featured Heroes of the Farm founder Patrick Pooler on the cover. I remember that cover shot, because the December 2017 issue is what Editorial Director Noelle Skodzinski handed me when I came into the office for my job interview. That issue set the tone for how I would think about the print magazine to this day. Not for nothing, it’s a great issue: topics range from powdery mildew and root health to tax strategies and automatic irrigation. As much as things change in this business, they also seem to stay the same. “I think people grossly underestimate the amount of work, dedication and risk that the cultivation of cannabis involves,” Pooler told us back then. “For the original members of the community, risk has always been a factor prior to the prohibition ending. With laws changing, cannabis and technology constantly evolving, it is very fluid and in motion. You must be able to adapt and potentially fully change your plans—in some cases—mid-stream. It is, truly: evolve or get crushed by those who are willing to adapt and play the game.” I can’t imagine 2023 will be all that different. Either way, we’ll be following along and sharing important stories about cannabis growers fighting the good fight. -Eric Sandy, Digital Editor | 