Heart-Centered Yoga

Join senior yoga teacher Barrie Risman and Work That Reconnects facilitator Lydia Violet Harutoonian for an immersive experience combining the Work That Reconnects with postural practice, breathwork, deep relaxation, and meditation.

The Work That Reconnects is Joanna Macy’s experiential group work that, for over 50 years, has helped thousands find clarity of vision and emotional sanctuary while living through this precious and precarious moment on our planet.  

This work brings a fresh way of seeing the world as our larger living body, freeing us from the assumptions and attitudes that threaten the continuity of life on Earth. Joanna Macy’s brilliant model for this lives in us as it lives in the body of Earth. 

The practices of yoga replenish our vitality and profoundly enrich our experience of the Work That Reconnects. By turning our awareness inward and bringing us into harmony with the intelligence at the heart of life, yoga nurtures within us the most critical spiritual evolution of our time: the shift toward collective consciousness.

In this retreat, you will experience:

• The Work That Reconnects framework
• Community singing
• Yoga, postural practice, and breathwork
• Meditation and deep relaxation

Together, the synergy of yoga and the Work That Reconnects expands our awareness beyond the limited narrative of our individual selves, providing a powerful framework for integrating our path of personal growth with our motivation to contribute to a life-sustaining and just society. This weekend is for anyone longing to transform everyday actions into offerings that build life.

Lydia will accessibly incorporate community singing into our weekend. Music can be an excellent way to integrate your internal and relational experiences. For many millennia, music, and specifically music made together in community, has been a crucial way we bolster ourselves in hard times.

Come learn and experience tools for metabolizing your grief, anger, overwhelm, and fear into compassionate connection with our communities. Nourish your compass for the times ahead and strengthen your capacity to take part in the healing of our world. 

NOTE — As you may know, we recently bid farewell to the extraordinary Joanna Macy—scholar, activist, and root teacher of the Work That Reconnects—who passed on July 19, 2025. Our retreat will be a powerful time to honor Joanna's legacy by experiencing the transformative power of her vision.