How a queer-led yoga community is helping refugees heal & rebuild

"Yoga is often marketed through images of boutique studios, designer mats, and luxury wellness retreats. But in Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Malawi on the continent of Africa, home to more than 60,000 people disrupted by war and political violence, yoga looks very different."

"There are no spa packages or high-end memberships. Instead, yoga classes are free for participants in a modest studio built through grassroots donations. The teachers are refugees themselves and certified yogis. And the purpose is simple: to help people heal, breathe, and self-regulate as they rebuild their lives."

"Today, a team of refugees trained and compensated through a collaboration with JP Centre Yoga in Boston teaches more than 30 yoga classes each week inside the camp. Thousands of refugees participate every month in sessions designed to support physical and mental well-being in a community navigating trauma, poverty, food insecurity, and the long uncertainty of displacement."

"The partnership began in 2023 when Donatien Fundi, a refugee living in Dzaleka, wrote to our Boston studio about the scholarship and fellowship programs that help disadvantaged people become certified yoga instructors. Fundi had discovered yoga on his own and found it deeply healing while coping with the trauma of war and forced migration."

Yoga in Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Malawi operates without luxury marketing, spa packages, or paid memberships. A modest studio built through grassroots donations provides free classes for more than 60,000 people affected by war and political violence. Teachers are refugees themselves and certified yogis, trained and compensated through a collaboration with JP Centre Yoga in Boston. The program delivers over 30 classes each week, with thousands of participants monthly. Sessions support physical and mental well-being amid trauma, poverty, food insecurity, and the uncertainty of displacement. The partnership began in 2023 when a refugee wrote to the Boston studio seeking scholarship and fellowship opportunities to become certified and help others rebuild health and well-being.

Read at Advocate.com