Inclusivity & Community
A Welcoming Community for All
Since Circle Yoga's founding in 2003, we have been focused on being a welcoming community for all. Beginning in 2018, we began the process of intentionally and effectively creating a more inclusive, equitable, and anti-racist community. We have continued to ask tough questions and pursue honest conversations, learning from teachers with diverse backgrounds and listening to those who typically have less access to or representation within yoga and mindfulness communities in the West.
In 2022, we began working with Michelle Cassandra Johnson, a nationally recognized author, anti-racism consultant and trainer, and yoga teacher and practitioner. With Michelle’s guidance and with the continuing efforts of our own Racial Equity Team and studio leadership, we persist in our goal of continually creating a yoga community where all can find connection, ease, and belonging.
What I know to be true of the work of creating inclusive and liberatory spaces is that the “work” is actually a practice, which suggests it is ongoing and we will learn along the way. — Michelle Cassandra Johnson
The Work of the Racial Equity Team
While this is a continually evolving process, we invite you to follow the links below and explore how Circle Yoga's Racial Equity Team has approached this work so far and how we are translating it into action in our studio community. We are sharing it here in hopes that it will provide helpful frameworks and ideas for yoga studios and other groups to focus on equity work within their own communities.
Photo: Racial Equity Team members with author Sonya Renee Taylor at Circle Yoga for The Body Is Not An Apology book club event in September 2023.
In addition to the work of the Racial Equity Team, here are some other ways that Circle Yoga is making our community more accessible and equitable:
If you would like to connect with our Racial Equity Team or learn more about our equity work at the studio, contact us.
Racial Equity Team 2023-2025
