2022

Aloha! I am Megan Beatrice Jackson and I am an earth explorer and have travelled to 34 countries and counting! I'm a Canadian citizen & Australian Permanent Resident. I completed my 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training in the jungle, amongst the trees and overlooking the sea in beautiful Goa, India. I studied at the Yoga Therapy Institute in Australia and became a Canadian Registered Yoga Therapist in 2022. You  can find me sipping a cuppa in a cute cafe, making plant based magic in  the kitchen whilst standing in tree pose, or off seeking the unknown on  a new adventure! 

You can contact me at Email: meganbeatricejackson1@gmail.com

Jaya Rose is a spiritual soul living through a reincarnated body on Lady Gaia and using yoga and meditation to live her passion and fulfill her life's purpose. Yogi and avid gardener, lover of birds... fact finder and dispeller of mistruth.

My name is Ashley Drysdale ; holistic healer.   I am owner operator of Devi Healing Center in Georgina Ontario ( 8 years). I offer a  variety of healing services such as yoga, aesthetics, ayurveda and continuing education training.  I have been on a healing journey most of my life and love to help and guide those who need assistance with their soulful purpose and human experience. 

You may reach me at ashley@devihealing.com

Samantha is a Canadian singer-songwriter, artist, yogi, and outdoor enthusiast living a healthy, active lifestyle on the west coast of Vancouver Island, in Victoria, BC. Consciously connecting to yoga as a daily, lifelong practice while giving thanks for the wisdom passed on from valued teachers, Samantha did her RYT-200 training with Yoga and Ayurveda Center and is continuing with a 300-hour training. 

Samantha is continually grateful for the challenge and experience that the practice of yoga presents mentally, physically and spiritually. Navigating the beauty of existence through connection to breath, movement, focus and yoga, Samantha shares her passion with students from all walks of life through her business, Serene Dawn Yoga. Samantha’s perspective is to feel the sunshine and the rain, and to take time to truly experience and enjoy the world through mindfulness and the act of being present. 

https://serenedawnyoga.wixsite.com/home

Jodi opened her holistic wellness business, Wholehearted Sage in 2017 while, at the same time, she completed her 200-hour yoga teacher training at Harmony Tree Studio. She studied Ayurveda through the American Institute of Vedic Studies, the California College of Ayurveda and the Minnesota Institute of Ayurveda. She completed her Yoga Nidra certification through the Sivananda Yoga Farm and Restorative Teacher training at the Yoga Retreat Centre. She also holds a Master’s degree in Environment and a Bachelor’s degree in Biology and has a Certified Organic fruit orchard in Manitoba. She continues to learn and share yoga and Ayurveda as the opportunities present themselves.

Judy is a registered yoga teacher in Hatha, Restorative, Yin and Chair yoga. Having overcome mobility issues in recent years, her focus is on gentler styles of yoga to help rebuild the body and mind.

Having worked in the health and dental insurance industry for twenty years, she is also is also a published mystery author and blogger at mindchatter.blog in her spare time. She is passionate about sharing her knowledge and helping others.

Josephine is an RSSW and Counsellor (Registered OCSWSSW) as well as a certified yoga instructor. She has worked extensively with persons experiencing trauma, chronic pain and sleep issues. An avid yogi, she has joyfully practiced yoga and meditation for over 20 years and facilitates workshops related to self-care, resilience and the benefits of yoga, mindfulness and meditation.

Camran is a Vancouver lawyer, musician and poet who has been practising Yoga for close to 30 years. He can be reached at his website: www.zionyoga.ca.

Debra is a registered yoga teacher based in Toronto. She has just completed a 500-hour certification with the California-based Insight Yoga Institute. She has studied, in depth, with its founders Sarah and Ty Powers, Paul and Suzee Grilley, Bernie Clark and meditation teachers at Insight Meditation Society, as well as John and Jennifer Welwood. She also has a Yoga Alliance 200-hour Vinyasa certification from Toronto’s 889 Yoga. Debra loves silent retreats, self-practice and early morning meditation. She is passionate about all things yogic and poetic and is interested in justice and politics. 

Before becoming a yoga teacher, Debra was, to paraphrase Star Wars, in a time long, long ago and far, far, away, a reporter for the Toronto Star. She turned to yoga, yin and meditation to deal with the stress of daily reporting and her life changed 

Debra believes in the idea that “small is beautiful” and prefers to teach small independent classes where students can dive deeply into the practice and learn not just about a pose but also the philosophy of yin, mindfulness meditation, Buddhism and Taoism. She hopes to spread her love of yin and meditation to her students.

debrazina@hotmail.com

Violet Pasztor  (Seven Shepherd)  lives a life practicing yoga, is a mother of a beautiful son CJ; founded Canadian Yoga Alliance in 2002 ; she enjoys photography, cooking, making Kambucha,  enjoys making cultured vegetables and  home-made kefir; loves gardening and adores traveling  in India. She lives in the mountains in beautiful Whistler British Columbia ; hikes and bikes daily.

Jivasu, Director of Naturality, CYA-RMS 

Jivasu is an Indian-Canadian teacher, writer and founder of the Naturality movement. He is also an advisor for Canadian Yoga Alliance. Jivasu is the author of many books, including: Naturality, Meditation: A Path of Relaxation, Awareness and Expansion of Awareness, Naturality of Kundalini Awakening, Offerings in Longing and Love. 

To learn more about Naturality and Jivasu's teachings, please visit https://naturalitypath.com

Roxanna Gumiela, CYA-RYT 200 

Always active throughout her life, Roxanna found yoga 7 years ago. Two years ago Roxanna decided to pursue her Yoga Teacher Certification and completed that at Rebirth Yoga Studio in December 2018. Roxanna enjoys teaching Power Flow and Deep Stretch Hatha Yoga classes. Roxanna enjoys teaching yoga to older adults and spreading the benefits yoga has to bring to that population. She is passionate about the health of the mind, body, and spirit that a yoga practice can support.

Nicky Kulvinder Sehra CYA-RYT 200

Nicky has been teaching yoga since 2014. Her yoga journey began at White Lotus Foundation, in Santa Barbara, California. There, she completed the 200-hour teacher training program for Hatha Yoga. 

Nicky is a wanderlust and modern-day spiritual woman who enjoys the simple pleasures of life. She thrives on helping others and making a difference in the world. Her yoga style is heart centered as she infuses inspiration throughout her practice. She is also an avid writer and traveler who desires to inspire humanity through her writings. Her aim is to leave everyone she meets with a sparkle of kindness, peace and love. 

Lynda Neil CYA-RYT 200, Registered Nurse, Diploma in Adult Education

Linda has always been amazed by the mind-body connection. Her journey began almost 20 years ago when she mastered the 3 Levels of Therapeutic Touch. Several years later, she witnessed the wellness benefits of yoga — both mentally and physically. Working as a Registered Nurse, yoga allowed her to decrease her stress, improve her flexibility and aid her overall wellness. This inspired Linda to continue her education in the field of yoga. Restorative yoga is a passion of hers, allowing the body to rejuvenate through postures and breathing techniques. 

Linda’s vision is for yoga to be accessible for everyone — no matter their athletic ability, previous injuries or experience. Drawing on her nursing knowledge, she can assist students in finding modifications of poses that work for them. She is located in St. Thomas, Ontario and works with individuals, either beginner or seasoned practitioner, as part of their healing journey in small groups &/or private sessions. 

www.warmearthyoga.com

warmearthyoga@gmail.com 

Facebook: Warm Earth Yoga

Vadivambal Rajagopal, PhD, CYA-RYT 200 

Dr. Vadivambal Rajagopal is an internationally certified advanced Hatha Yoga teacher. She has trained in the practice of pranayama (breathing techniques) with various renowned yoga gurus from India. She has a Doctoral degree in Biosystems Engineering from the University of Manitoba. 

She is the founder of Aagna Yoga School in Winnipeg and teaches yoga for various age groups ranging from kids to adults and seniors. She also conducts workshops on yoga, pranayama and healthy living. 

Betty Pierce, CYA-E-RYT Gold 

Betty Pierce is a retired Social Worker, after 29 years service. Betty has practiced and taught Yoga for over 40 years.  She began her practice in the early 70s, when yoga was initially introduced to Western culture. She has studied with Swami Vishnu-devananda, Swami Rama, Marie Paulyn and Axel Molema. In 1974, Betty became a member of the first organized Federation of Yoga Teachers (FOYT), which then became The Yoga Network.  

Yoga is a lifestyle for Betty, who continues to practice and teach a number of classes in her community.  Her goal is to inspire her students to practice yoga on a regular basis and to teach them 5 basic steps:   asanas, pranayama, savananda and proper mental attitude, along with a healthy diet.

Samantha Howick CYA-E-RYT500

Samantha was born in Montreal and now lives in Lebanon. She holds yoga workshops and classes internationally. She began practicing yoga and meditation in her late teens and has been teaching since 2000. She is an avid practitioner who respects the core technique of the Krisnamarcharya lineage.

Her study is one rooted deeply in traditional yogic teachings while being true to many streams of influence, which have deepened her experience of yoga. Tantra, Kundalini, Bhakti, Tao Shiatsu and Shamanic healing arts—many gurus of the past and present shine light along her path.

A student of both Eastern and Western philosophy, she incorporates various traditions into her classes while always being true to traditional wisdom. From the scriptures to the yoga mat, Samantha’s creativity and sense of joy can be seen reflected in her training and teaching.

A mother of four young children, the candles of awareness, balance, harmony, intuition, acceptance and freedom light her journey… In her teaching she strongly relies on her own practice, intuition, philosophy and spirituality as influences. She intuitively fuses her knowledge of the past to innovatively and spontaneously illuminate her present.

Alongside yoga, she holds a B.F.A. in Fine Arts, from France, and works as a painter and sculptor. This artistic ability is part of what makes her workshops and classes unique. She is an innovator. Her works such as Chakra Cleanse, Yoga Nidra, Tibetan Tantra, Gong Bath are some of her many ideas which are being widely used and adapted for their healing and transformative abilities.

She is a co-founder of One Yoga Academy (formerly Shiva Shakti Yoga Academy), a comprehensive yoga teacher training program, providing internationally recognized certification—the first of its kind in Lebanon. Training is available in Montreal, U.K. & Lebanon.

  At 78 years young, Sandra has taught Yoga for 45 + years. Along the way, she trained hundreds of Yoga teachers, founded Yoga Outreach, bringing Yoga to those without access, and co-founded the American Yoga Alliance. She now supports the Canadian Yoga Alliance. The dedicated mother of three, stepmother of two and grandmother of seven, Sandra, and the love of her life, Bob Berger, have been together for 30 years. To see more of Sandra, subscribe to her YouTube channel, Sammartino Yoga, and visit www.sammartinoyoga.com

  Oda has been teaching yoga for about two decades. She studied yoga in India, Europe and North America and loves philosophy, pranayama and movement. She is a yoga teacher, in the lineage of TKV Desikachar, and therapist who lives in Niagara on the Lake, Ontario. She can be reached at odayoga@gmail.com

 Shyam is a scholar of South Asia, translation expert, and professional philosopher. He is a member of the Department of Philosophy at York University in Toronto, and the York Center for Asian Research. He is translator and commentator of Patañjali's Yoga Sūtra (Penguin 2008), editor of The Bloomsbury Research Handbook of Indian Ethics, author of Hinduism: A Contemporary Philosophical Investigation (Routledge 2019), and over 50 peer-reviewed, yoga related articles. 

Shyam is an experienced teacher of students of various degrees of exposure to philosophy and yoga. Shyam holds an MA in South Asian Studies, an MA and PhD in philosophy, and is a CYA-E-RYTGOLD yoga teacher. He founded Yoga Philosophy (yogaphilosophy.com) in 2019 to fill a void of rigorous and research-based knowledge of yoga philosophy in the world of practicing yogis. Yoga Philosophy is a registered yoga school (CYA-RYSGOLD). Yoga Philosophy offers continuing education support for yogis and teacher training programs, and offers a one of a kind teacher training program for teaching yoga philosophy.