As the Green Yoga movement spreads across the country, let us all pay proper attention.
As yoga studios everywhere don a clean, non-toxic coat of eco-consciousness, we take a look at some leading earth-friendly practice spaces. These eight studios have stretched themselves to work for ahimsa (non-violence) and good health for practitioner and planet. If you’re a practitioner, but not the owner, these guidelines will help you gauge your local studio’s efforts for the earth. A studio doesn’t have to meet all these guidelines to be green—every small effort reduces environmental impact, and positive reinforcement makes a difference. If you’re a regular, be sure to let the studio owner or manager know that you notice—and that you care.
EARTH-FRIENDLY STUDIO CHECKLIST
? Engages in environmentally responsible business practices by: implementing a recycling program; printing schedules and flyers on recycled or tree-free paper; adopting energy-saving and water-saving measures (such as optimizing natural light, switching to compact fluorescent lightbulbs, installing low-flow plumbing fixtures)
? Uses eco-friendly (PVC-free!) mats and props; sells sustainable, non-toxic, fair-trade items in the retail area
? Uses all-natural, earth-friendly cleaning products throughout the studio, and recycled paper products in the bathrooms (organic cotton hand towels go a long way, too)
? Obtains sustainable or reclaimed materials for any remodeling or building projects (including flooring); chooses non-toxic paints and sealers
? Encourages students to use alternate forms of transportation by installing a bike rack and offering car-pooling incentives
? Raises awareness among students and the community about environmental issues and sustainable choices (by putting up signage, offering educational workshops, and infusing asana instruction with reverence for nature)
Comprising an integrative medicine clinic, a meditation hall, and a yoga studio offering classes in a range of styles, this center features recycled furniture, windows, and doors, low-wattage halogen lighting, cork flooring, wool carpeting, and clay-based paint. It offers discounts to patients and students commuting via alternative transportation, and 5 percent of profits is donated to local organizations such as the Boulder Institute of Sustainability. 303.440.8254
Offering classes in a range of styles from Vinyasa to Jivamukti, Flow has extended its existing eco-friendly elements such as bamboo and Marmoleum floors, low-flush toilets, and recycled doors into a new expansion just completed with the help of both a green architect and a LEED contractor. Every time you buy a 20-class pass, they plant trees with Trees for the Future, and 6 percent of their earned income goes to other charitable causes. 202.462.FLOW
Sharon Gannon and David Life’s new 12,000 sq ft Union Square facility features bamboo floors, 80 percent recycled furniture (from the coat racks to the benches), and a boutique filled with eco-conscious, fair-trade goodies. Only earth-friendly products are used for cleaning, only potted plants and flowers are used on the altars, and the staff wears bamboo and organic cotton uniforms. 212.353.0214
Could paradise on earth be any color other than green? Built using all natural, non-toxic materials on 13 acres of rain forest property overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Maya Yoga is 100 percent off the grid, relying solely on solar energy and rainwater. After a vigorous Ashtanga class, students can shop for organic apparel, or sip young coconuts while strolling through the organic orchards and veggie gardens adjacent to the studio. 808.572.6951
This rural educational retreat center embodies “compassionate action.” Yogic practices are integrated into programs in creative arts, wilderness awareness, onservation, and farming. Plus: bamboo flooring, a woodstove fed with local, sustainably harvested wood, EcoYoga mats, and locally sourced organic food. 802.453.8111
With classes ranging from Ashtanga to Forrest Yoga, the studio at the Gold Coast location has renewable bamboo floors, wall insulation made from recycled denim jeans, CF lightbulbs, and a bike rack. Potted plants and earthen cob sculptures signal the earth-friendly intentions. 312.280.9642
Designed using feng shui principles to be harmonious with the environment, this studio hosts a range of yoga styles—and even workshops about renewable energy sources—on its anti-microbial, sustainable cork floors. The paper is exclusively recycled, the lightbulbs are energy-saving, and the boutique products are organic, fair-trade, and local, when possible. 262.781.8102
The Bay Area seedbed of the Green Yoga Association has sprouted four Yoga Tree studios primarily, but not exclusively, teaching Vinyasa Flow. Day-to-day choices made with nature in mind: printing on 100 percent recycled paper, selling Klean Kanteens for bottling their filtered water, and renovating with reclaimed materials. 415.701.YOGA
Yoga + Joyful Living
Nov/Dec 2007
Issue 98
