Shareef is a life-long resident of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region that was integral in the current wave of cannabis proliferation seen across the globe. As early as 2003, he was participating in the Prop 215 medical market which peaked his entrepreneurial spirit. After graduating UC Davis with a B.S. in Managerial Economics, he began managing Garden of Eden, one of the oldest continuously active licensed dispensaries in the Country. Using Garden of Eden as a foundation, he founded multiple ventures spanning cultivation, analytical testing, extraction, manufacturing, and eventually software.

Some successes, many failures, and tons of lessons under his belt, Shareef went on to co-found Treez with John Yang. A venture that pulled him away from the plant for some years but taught him a lifetime of lessons in modern entrepreneurship. The time at Treez helped to define a clear purpose of improving cannabis compatibility amongst users. This goal spans multiple disciplines but fundamentally relies on data driven product suggestions based on accurate chemical composition being delivered to users at the point of purchase but most importantly at their initial interaction with the plant.

With the data capture, product labeling, and improved insights well under way in the cannatech world, it was time to turn work towards scaling a standardized supply chain of novel plant derived inputs. His current company, Terpene Belt, is the global leader in cannabis essential oil poised to establish a new paradigm in the space as federal regulation begins to thaw.

In his personal life,  he organizes an internationally recognized burning man camp, The Kazbah, where he lives out his passions for BBQ and gifting. IYKYK. A father to be and husband to a beautiful Wife.