Meet Polly
This amazing practice called Yoga helped to dig Polly out of the depths of a lifelong anxiety disorder, mild depression and low self worth. Yoga brought her back to herself with a new sense of freedom and peace she didn’t know possible. Polly is passionate about creating a nurturing space for others to heal and discover more about their own true nature. She is dedicated to her own continual practice as well as professional development and has a Certificate in Holistic Counselling (The Awakening Group), 500 hour Advanced Teacher Training from the Byron Yoga Centre, 30 Hr Yin Yoga Teacher Training with Jo Phee, 100 hour Embodied Mindfulness Teacher Training with Tina Nance, 30 hrs of Yoga Psychology online training with Ashley Turner and is currently studying Yoga Therapy with Adore Yoga. Polly is particularly interested in empowering women along their spiritual journey.
• Warm ups to open the body
• Correct alignment in foundational yoga postures
• How and when to use props
• Breathing techniques (pranayama) to create heat and clear the mind
• How to sit in stillness and be
• And the 8 limbs of yoga (how to take your yoga off the mat)
We will combine what you have learnt into a 30 minute class. This is when your practice will truly integrate, and then close with a short Yoga Nidra (guided relaxation). Join us for this friendly, fun and relaxed workshop, which will leave you feeling confident about attending yoga classes. Wear comfortable clothing. No equipment is required – everything is provided at our studio. Spots are limited to 12 people!
Meet Leah
Leah is The Collective studio owner and teacher. She is a passionate yogi, human rights activist and storyteller. Drawing on the inspiration of sages, poets and freethinking minds, Leah’s classes are fuelled with purpose. Linking the physical body with the intellect, breath and spirit, Leah uses her skills in storytelling to create a class that takes her students’ practice off the mat and to empower positive change. She is an eternal student to the practice who has shared her love of yoga with men, women and children in Australia and London, as well as with refugee women as a way of healing. She found her spot on the mat more than 10 years ago and has been mentored by Mardi Bell, Mary-Lousie Parkinson, Joy Kunkanit, Ricardo Martin, Kat Clayton and Noelle Connolly in Ashtanga, Hatha, Vinyasa, and Pre-Natal and Post-Natal Yoga. During Leah’s classes, all levels of experience are respected. You will be guided through the movement of postures, while linking the breath, the drishti (point of gaze) and the body’s bandhas (energy locks). Combining a flow of movement with relaxation, you will learn to better understand who you are and how you connect with the world.
What is your relationship to nature? When do you feel the most connected to nature? Do you notice your body is affected by seasons and moon phases?
Do you desire a sisterhood of like minded and open hearted women, and a space where you can express yourself fully? Our monthly Women’s Circle is an invitation to do just that – to come together as a collective to be seen and to be heard, and to realise we are not alone. We will start each circle, with sharing, as we each share our experiences or challenges on the monthly topic of choice. There is always the option to not share and to simply hear what others have to say. We will then support the circle and nourish our bodies with a Yoga practice taught from a tradition known as Womb Yoga. This is a Yoga practice to support women’s health and vital energy. You will practice techniques to nurture, and build the feminine energy Shakti for the healing and benefit of you as a woman, no matter what stage in your cycle or life.
This practice is a fluid and gentle practice (yet powerful in it’s benefits!) and is suitable for most women, with the ability to move with ease on and off the floor. Each month we will explore a different theme in our circle and practice. This will be a great way to connect to yourself and to other likeminded women in our community.
“Such a delicious soul!!! Polly is truly in her element teaching feminine yoga and facilitating deep heart felt connection. She has a presence of humility, wisdom and inner strength with a dash of vulnerability; this instantly opens your heart space. Her insight, energy vibrations and cheeky sense of humour warm you to the core…. I honestly can’t recommend Polly highly enough!”- Jess.
Meet Polly
This amazing practice called Yoga helped to dig Polly out of the depths of a lifelong anxiety disorder, mild depression and low self worth. Yoga brought her back to herself with a new sense of freedom and peace she didn’t know possible. Polly is passionate about creating a nurturing space for others to heal and discover more about their own true nature. She is dedicated to her own continual practice as well as professional development and has a Certificate in Holistic Counselling (The Awakening Group), 500 hour Advanced Teacher Training from the Byron Yoga Centre, 30 Hr Yin Yoga Teacher Training with Jo Phee, 100 hour Embodied Mindfulness Teacher Training with Tina Nance, 30 hrs of Yoga Psychology online training with Ashley Turner and is currently studying Yoga Therapy with Adore Yoga. Polly is particularly interested in empowering women along their spiritual journey.
Meet Mardi
Mardi gained her initial teaching accreditation in 1992 in Integral Yoga (Asana, Pranayama, Bandhas, Mudra, Meditation,Kriya) and continued her studies and gained further teaching credentials in Jivamukti Yoga with David Life (New York), Mandala Flow with Shiva Rea (Bali) Anatomy of Hatha Yoga with Bimone Borg-Oliver Synergy Yoga (Sydney) Ashtanga Yoga Primary Sequence Sri. K. Pattabhi Jois (Mysor India) and further training workshops with Clive Sheridan Hatha Yoga, Pranayama & Meditation (Goa India & Sydney) Rodney Yea Hatha Yoga (Sydney), Shandor Remit Shadow Yoga (Melbourne & Sydney) Donna Farhi Vinyasa Yoga (Sydney & Auckland) Manjui Jois Ashtanga Yoga (Bali) David Swenson Ashtanga Yoga (Goa India), John Scott Ashtanga Yoga (Sydney),Twee Meridan Mandala Flow Yoga & Adjust, Assist, Enhance (Sydney)
Mardi has taught both nationally and internationally, gaining her teaching experience in Hatha, Ashtanga, Vinyasa and Restorative style teaching in Australia, New Zealand, Bali, Nepal, India and Bhutan. She hopes to create space for students to connect, listen and nourish their ‘whole’ selves in this moment, gaining the tools for acceptance, gratitude and humility.
In honour of World Refugee Day on June 20th, please join us at the studio for this very special community event. Our guest Pemba Amuri is an incredibly gifted, compassionate and brave human being who has found himself in more difficult circumstances than most encounter in a lifetime. Amuri is a refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) who will join us to share his story of challenge, resilience and new beginnings since fleeing Tanzania with his family (his mum, dad, five brothers and four sisters) in 1996 when the First Congo War broke out. Since the age of nine, Amuri has lived in Nyarugusu refugee camp in Kigoma – one of the world’s largest settlements sheltering some 300,000 people who have been forcibly displaced from all over Africa. Today Amuri lives near Brisbane in Queensland far away from his home, his community, and his normal after being granted a permanent protection visa in 2016 when his life was once again threatened. The label of ‘refugee’ has followed Amuri throughout the years, and today living in Australia is no exception. Despite the challenges, Amuri has not let this label define his engagement with the world around him.
Come gather at the studio for an evening of storytelling, music, chai and discussion on what it means to belong and to be safe.
All proceeds will go to the social enterprise Kilimanjaro Krafts that invests in projects to improve the lives of refugees and some of the most disadvantaged groups in Africa. In particular, funds will be directed to the Van Norman Clinic in Burundi, which desperately needs an incubator to reduce infant mortality rates, as well as providing recreational activities to children in Nyarugusu refugee camp in Tanzania.
**This event is brought to you by Freethinker Co.
Meet Amuri
Amuri is a dedicated peace and pro-democracy activist and he dreams to be part of a peaceful world where people are able to speak out freely.
* He is the founder of the Tumaini (Hope) Sports Academy, an NGO he started from within the camp, which uses sports and music as a medium to create cultural, civic rights awareness and understanding among young people.
* He was the MasterPeace National Coordinator in the DRC and Tanzania, which has reached over 345,000 people in schools, universities, communities, and churches, and has been adopted by 15 local organisations.
* He managed the European Union funded Partnership for Peace project for two years to promote dialogue between Congolese and Southern Sudanese youth to share their experiences and build resilience against armed group recruitments.
* He has been selected by many highly competitive fellowships and trainings including, but not limited to: Oxfam International Youth Partnerships (OIYP), the Do school (Germany), Mandela Washington Fellowship (U.S.A) where he met Barack and Michelle Obama, Westerwelle (Germany), Respectif Foundation (The Netherlands), and Safe Space (Kenya)
* Today is is the founder and creative director of Kilimanjaro Krafts, a social enterprise that invests in projects to improve the lives of refugees and some of the most disadvantaged groups in Africa.
Yin Yoga follows the wisdom of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), where water is the primary element of winter, and relates to the Kidneys. According to TCM, the kidneys are the powerhouse of the body, supplying reserve energy to any organ running low on Qi (life force) so this month’s sequence is designed to target the kidney and urinary bladder meridians to replenish our vital energy, and to take us deep inside for inner reflection and nourishment of all layers of our being.
Meet Polly
This amazing practice called Yoga helped to dig Polly out of the depths of a lifelong anxiety disorder, mild depression and low self worth. Yoga brought her back to herself with a new sense of freedom and peace she didn’t know possible. Polly is passionate about creating a nurturing space for others to heal and discover more about their own true nature. She is dedicated to her own continual practice as well as professional development and has a Certificate in Holistic Counselling (The Awakening Group), 500 hour Advanced Teacher Training from the Byron Yoga Centre, 30 Hr Yin Yoga Teacher Training with Jo Phee, 100 hour Embodied Mindfulness Teacher Training with Tina Nance, 30 hrs of Yoga Psychology online training with Ashley Turner and is currently studying Yoga Therapy with Adore Yoga. Polly is particularly interested in empowering women along their spiritual journey.