Foundation > Emergency Relief for Yoga Professionals
Emergency Relief for Yoga Professionals
PARTNERS
In May 2020, the Yoga Alliance Foundation partnered with the global non-profit Ivy Child International to introduce an Emergency Relief Fund for yoga professionals worldwide experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19. This program was open to yoga professionals across the globe, including Yoga Alliance Members and non-members, and closed to new applications on June 30, 2020.
At the same time, the Yoga Alliance Foundation contributed funding to the Reclamation Ventures Wellness Relief Fund—a separate program also providing financial assistance to U.S.-based yoga professionals experiencing pandemic-induced financial hardship. Visit relief.reclamationventures.co for details on eligibility and application deadlines.
We are now planning for a second phase of assistance in response to COVID-19, focusing on the intersection of economic recovery and yoga service. We will continue to accept donations, which will be used to support as many eligible Relief Fund applicants as possible, and then to expand the impact of our next phase of assistance.
You can read more about the foundational Emergency Fund and its partnerships below.
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A Community-Centered Approach
To ensure a thoughtful and community-centered process, the Foundation assembled an Emergency Relief Fund Advisory Committee representing a cross-section of perspectives and lived experiences. This Committee’s responsibilities included informing the selection criteria of partners, helping to ensure the criteria for the selection of beneficiaries, and helping to ensure an equitable approach to the distribution of funding.
Emergency Relief Fund Partners
In order to assess applications and economic need, award recipients, and administer funds objectively, responsively, and swiftly, the Yoga Alliance Foundation teamed up with strategic partner Ivy Child International. The Yoga Alliance Foundation also contributed to the Reclamation Ventures Wellness Relief Fund, which provides rapid response to yoga professionals facing financial hardship due to COVID-19.
In selecting partners, the Yoga Alliance Foundation prioritized organizations whose work is anchored in yogic values; aligns with the Foundation’s mission of leveraging yoga for social impact; and fosters an expansive, accessible, and equitable yoga community. Foundation partners demonstrate a proven track record of providing financial support to communities and individuals facing monetary hardships, the capacity to execute an equitable and transparent application and disbursement of funding process, and a strong history of financial health.
Our Partners
Ivy Child International
Ivy Child International is a global nonprofit that partners with systems of education and care to enhance well-being through innovative and culturally responsive programs. In our shared vision to create more ways to support the community, Ivy Child joins forces to broaden and build access, equity, and inclusion with its worldwide network of diverse teachers.
Reclamation Ventures Wellness Relief Fund
Reclamation Ventures is an impact investing fund that invests in the development and growth of underestimated entrepreneurs in wellness. It believes that in elevating the capacity of diverse wellness leaders to thrive, we can start to close the wellness gap and increase health equities in communities that need it most. It also supports yoga professionals from historically underserved communities in the U.S.
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Your monetary gift will support yoga professionals’ livelihoods and their important work in sharing this healing practice. We thank you for your contribution in helping us continue to foster the high quality, safe, accessible, and equitable teaching of yoga.
For more information about our Emergency Relief Fund, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions page or send us an email at foundation@yogaalliance.org.