{"id":94277,"date":"2017-06-07T22:47:37","date_gmt":"2017-06-07T20:47:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/yoga-is-bringing-well-being-and-employment-to-young-people-in-africa-the-conversation\/"},"modified":"2017-06-07T22:47:37","modified_gmt":"2017-06-07T20:47:37","slug":"yoga-is-bringing-well-being-and-employment-to-young-people-in-africa-the-conversation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/yoga-is-bringing-well-being-and-employment-to-young-people-in-africa-the-conversation\/","title":{"rendered":"Yoga is bringing well-being and employment to young people in Africa | The Conversation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yoga is bringing well-being and employment to young people in Africa<\/a>: <\/p>\n

The Africa Yoga Project has educated, empowered and expanded the employability of youth in 15 African countries.<\/span> Shutterstock<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Yoga is a 5,000-year-old physical mind and body practice. Most present day practices share some variation of yoga poses (asana), breathing exercises (pranayama), relaxation, and meditation. <\/p>\n

Research indicates that one of yoga\u2019s most powerful effects is to regulate the effects of stress. It increases behaviours associated with well-being \u2013 such as healthier eating, improved sleep behaviour \u2013 and increases socialisation. There is also evidence that it decreases behaviours \u2013 such as smoking or substance abuse \u2013 that are associated with non-communicable diseases. Additional benefits include increased flexibility and strength, and enhanced awareness of the body and emotions. <\/p>\n

In acknowledgement of these benefits of yoga practice, in 2014 the United Nations General Assembly declared June 21st as the International Day of Yoga. <\/p>\n

In Africa, the Africa Yoga Project has helped to expand the practice of yoga across the continent. Since 2006, it has educated, empowered and expanded the employability of youth in 15 African countries: Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Sierra Leone, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mali, Namibia, Botswana, Nigeria, South Sudan, Ghana and Somalia.<\/p>\n

Africa Yoga Project<\/h2>\n

It began when the founder and executive director, Paige Elenson, was on a safari with her family in Kenya and shared handstands and yoga with a team of acrobats. Encouraged by the Kenyan acrobats, Paige came back to teach yoga in Nairobi\u2019s informal settlements where 42% of its population, of 44 million, live below the poverty line.<\/p>\n

Paige discovered that one of the root causes of abject poverty was youth unemployment. About 70% of Kenya\u2019s youth are unemployed. She turned this challenge into an opportunity, forming the Africa Yoga Project with Baron Baptiste, an international yoga teacher and trainer. The project now trains youth to teach yoga and is funded mostly by individual donations.<\/p>\n

To date the project has trained 244 young people, seen more than 200 earn a salary and seen more than 300 free community outreach classes brought to 6,000 people in 80 locations, from schools to prisons. <\/p>\n

In 2012, I met Paige at yoga teacher training. I had just finished a research study on a kid\u2019s camp for youth in poverty and children with disabilities using a methodology called \u201cConcept Mapping\u201d. This methodology is what we call mixed method. It uses descriptive techniques \u2013 these honour the perceptions and voices of the participants as primary sources of information \u2013 and methods that count and quantify data. <\/p>\n

Impact of yoga<\/h2>\n

I offered to bring my team to Kenya to study the impact of the Africa Yoga Project using the concept mapping method which is ideal for studying unique, or one of a kind experiences.<\/p>\n

In July of 2013, we collected data for three Africa Yoga Project studies based on experiences of the yoga teachers, child students and adult students. The research team was a mix of psychologists, doctoral students, a psychiatrist, and seasoned yoga teachers. <\/p>\n

In the first set of studies we asked the teachers and students in what ways the practice and teaching of yoga had affected what they think, feel, and do. The findings detailed all the ways that the Africa Yoga Project had changed their lives.<\/p>\n

The teachers\u2019 top three answers were:<\/p>\n