Chief Deposit Officer at Union Bank | Strategic leader in banking growth and compliance

Owner of Double Up Wholesale and Co-Owner of MN Roots

Elizabeth is a Certified Ganjier, community integrator, advocate, and geriatric toddler mom who is deeply dedicated to expanding the cannabis industry's potential in a holistic, inclusive way. She leads Sage Advice, a business focused on educating and empowering industry professionals—from facilitating mentorship and skill-building within exclusive communities to providing expert consulting to support sustainable growth in the cannabis sector. 

With an extensive background in business leadership from some of the most prominent names in business, Elizabeth is a disruptor and connector who champions the power of plant medicine, seeking to break stigmas and drive impactful change through knowledge, community, responsible advocacy, and a lot of humor and fun. Her work is a testament to her mission of creating access to wellness through whole-plant approaches and guiding others to find both personal and professional fulfillment in this evolving industry.

Jason Tarasek serves as counsel at Vicente LLP and manages the firm's Minnesota office. He assists hemp, cannabinoid, medical marijuana and adult-use cannabis clients throughout the Upper Midwest region. With nearly 20 years of legal experience as a transactional attorney and litigator, he has handled hundreds of civil litigation matters and first-chaired several trials in state courts and federal courts throughout the Upper Midwest.

Jen Randolph Reise is a leading Minnesota cannabis industry lawyer. A transactional business attorney by training, she is Head of Business and Cannabis Law at North Star Law Group PLLC in St. Paul, Minnesota [www.northstarlaw.com], where she advises business owners on formation, equity arrangements, regulatory compliance, and other corporate issues. Jen has been profiled in the Star Tribune, Minneapolis St.-Paul Business Journal, and Racket.MN (which dubbed her the “weed lady lawyer”), and frequently speaks on podcasts, CLEs, and panels on cannabis law and policy. 

A securities attorney by training, she is passionate about helping founders manage risk proactively and maintain control while raising the capital they need. 

Leili lives in a multiverse: multidisciplinary, multidimensional, and multilevel ideas and strategies. She takes a 360-degree approach that uses every tool and channel available—and, often, creates new ones—to effect change and deliver results. Leili loves digging deep into complex issues and delivering electoral, legislative, and public relations wins in high-stakes situations. At Blunt, Leili works with diverse stakeholders across sectors to advance strong policies to grow Minnesota’s emerging cannabis industry.

Matt DeLong is an editor on the Minnesota Star Tribune's audience team. He writes Nuggets, a free, weekly email newsletter about legal cannabis in Minnesota. DeLong also oversees the Minnesota Poll and has written numerous reader-focused guides and FAQ articles on a wide range of topics.

Prior to joining the Star Tribune in late 2014, DeLong was a digital editor on the national desk at the Washington Post, where he was part of the team awarded the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for coverage of the National Security Agency’s secret surveillance programs. A native of upstate New York, DeLong currently lives in Minneapolis. 

He can be reached on the encrypted messaging app Signal at 612-643-0344.

Attorney at North Star Law Group PLLC