The Ashok Tree Foundation was established based upon the inspiration, drive and vision of the founder, Yogi Ashokananda. Yogi's vision is simple: drive human development to reduce human vulnerability. It's our chosen charity for this years London Wellbeing festival.
This simple concept is not easily realised when there are many vulnerable people whose situation is compounded by their living conditions due to extreme poverty or a physical or a mental disability or all of these challenges. The drive to provide a better future for the individuals and their communities centres on the requirements for a balanced education, access to health care and services to address social needs. For these services to be effective and transformative they must by design be sustainable, so we identified that we must engage with the community to co-own the lifecycle of the services.
We have been inspired to build a team of like-minded people, who share our belief in the Ashok Tree Foundation’s mission, vision and projects, as well as having a sense of community as their own core belief, working together centrally and within the community to ensure effectiveness of our projects.
We are equally inspired to provide a service to the foundation’s supporters and community by providing a yoga, meditation or well-being offering in a public location, an intimate home setting or in an office/corporate setting: we firmly believe that by building a strong, healthy community of supporters, we can offer a better service in the communities where we serve.
Our Projects
Our Projects address the needs of communities living in extreme poverty and individuals with mental, physical or financial difficulties. The projects drive human development while reducing human vulnerability. We are delivering comprehensive services in the Indian village of Paliapattu, Tamil Nadu, structured around schools, community outreach and community projects. Working in collaboration with the local community, we have defined several initial services required, including a primary school, adult education programme and a health clinic. We plan the use of sustainable materials for any future building construction. We provide specific services to communities in need, in India as well as in our neighbourhoods, by offering community yoga classes in London to those suffering with mental or physical disabilities or for those who do not have the financial means to acquire directly. We ensure that Yoga and Meditation is accessible to everyone who wants to participate.Community Outreach
The foundation provides specific services globally to people living with mental or physical disabilities or who are financially challenged. Community classes are open to all in the areas of yoga and meditation to help manage stress and improve general overall mental and physical health. In London, we offer community classes, including weekly yoga classes, monthly in house meditation evenings, quarterly public meditation events and regular stress management classes are available for companies, including British Airways. We are continuing to look for premises to offer additional community classes. The adult education program in India focuses on a basic understanding of health, hygiene, creation of a social bond and medical exchange forum to build awareness of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), recycling, yoga and meditation classes, nutrition and dietary requirements, and alcohol and substance abuse.
Our School
The Sita Devi School in Paliapattu, Tamil Nadu is providing an education for 52 4-7 year old children over 3 classes. The school will have an annual intake of 22-25 more children, with 7 classrooms planned. Key to the students’ development is the improvement of their health consciousness. We do this by teaching yoga, meditation, natural health and hygiene alongside the national curriculum. They receive a healthy and nutritional meal every school day. Classrooms are inclusive; attendance is regardless of gender, caste, religion and economic status. Their parents participate in regular teacher meetings to discuss progress.
