Kia ora. Where does it begin? Early in life...Sitting outside at night as a child communing with hedgehogs and enthralled by the wind in the huge weeping willow tree? Training as a St John ambulance cadet and working voluntarily for hundreds of hours as a nurse aide as an early teen and sitting holding the hand of an elderly woman as she passed away?

So many moments and experiences shape us. Moving to a huge, bustling Indonesian city at 16, and then to a remote mountain hut, Aspiring, at 20. An ethno-botanical research expedition in Sumatra, and a sea turtle anti-slaughter campaign.

Pregnancy, motherhood, yoga and natural medicine. Three years study in herbal medicine and over 20 years practice with a focus on women’s reproductive health. Immersing into the native bush, living with the land...

Community conservation projects, birthing Moontime Menstrual Cloths, co-producing a feature film exploring climate justice...all the threads that bring me here, now, living in a remote mountain valley tending a special homestead and gardens, and hosting guests who are encouraged to deeply touch into this beautiful land...

I am a herbalist, yogini – student and teacher, poet and grandmother. I started my yoga exploration 35 years ago when pregnant, and for several years learnt in the foundational Iyengar yoga style. Whilst working as a naturopathic advisor at Chiva Som, a high-end health resort in Thailand, I discovered the Ashtanga way, a dynamic, sequenced method which really lit the fire in my belly.

From 2009 I was involved in the production of a feature length film about climate justice and for several years I was intensely involved in climate change work, attending conferences all over the world and seeing impacts of the changes in developing countries. The stresses were tremendous. It was deeply confronting on both a physical and soul level, and it was only my yoga practice that got me through that time.

Following this I was offered a place on the three-year, 2,000 hour 'Compassionate Practitioner' training with my beloved teacher Dena Kingsberg in Australia, the rigour and breadth of which strengthened both my personal practice and teaching skills. This key training gave me a foundational strength imparting courage, clarity and vibrant health. In recent years I have studied in the transformative teachings from the Śakta-Śaiva tradition of Kashmir.

I love the bright joy that arises in me and sharing that spark through my teaching. I offer group or private sessions to impart calm, clear guidance, and support to integrate yoga into daily life. The yoga branch of my work beautifully complements my vocation as a medical herbalist spanning over two decades.