2.4
October 5, 2009

Green Yoga rocks it out at the 14th Annual Yoga Journal Colorado Conference. ~ via Paige Wyatt

As I sit in the airport waiting for my delayed flight back to California…

…from the YJ Conference at YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park, Colorado, I am inspired to contemplate the past week.

Myself and a team of Green Yogis headed to Estes Park Colorado this past week to help “green” Yoga Journal’s amazing annual eonference. Thanks to an outpouring of energy from Green Yoga’s own Alan Zucker, Yoga Journal invited us to help keep 8,000 plastic water bottles from being shipped in to hydrate their thirsty participants. Instead, we brought water filtration systems from Denver and  brought stainless steel water bottles for those who forgot to bring their own. People responded with huge smiles, “thank you” and graciously donated money to help us continue our fight to keep plastic out of our ecosystem and work toward more sustainable gatherings.

With a fabulous cast of volunteers, including Vail’s yoga and AcroYoga teacher Rachel Nelson, Denver’s yoga and Kirtan artist Ryan Hader, San Diego Yogini Katharine Turkle, the entire YogaSlacker team, elephant’s Waylon Lewis and REFRESH agency’s Sandja Brügmann from Boulder. Our days were filled with yoga and lots of talking to participants, vendors and presenters about why Green Yoga was there. Our nights were filled with making meals, deepening friendships and lots of AcroYoga fun!

As I write about our work of many years come to fruition, I can feel the emotion welling up inside. I’m usually one prone to tears, and those tears have been scarce this week (oh, I had my moments). There were times this week when I was so tired, I wondered why we were doing this. But a flash of the North Pacific Gyre and its mat of plastic, twice the size of Texas, floating in our beautiful ocean reminded me, I want to make a difference.

Thank you Alan, thank you Yoga Journal and thank you to everyone who donated money to help us succeed in sustaining our dream to green this conference, and the many more to come. If you attended the conference and were pleased with what we were doing, please let Yoga Journal know on your evaluation form. Please take a breath for peace, a breath for health of our planet and a breath for the change in our culture that will surely lead us to a sustainable way of being.

For more information on Paige Wyatt or for contact information, please visit her website.

Read 5 Comments and Reply
X

Read 5 comments and reply

Reply to Sharon cancel

Top Contributors Latest

Elephant Journal  |  Contribution: 1,510,385