Accessible Yoga Association - Community Forum
Serving Queer & Trans Communities
in Yoga Spaces
June 28th, 2021 | 1pm-3pm Pacific | 4pm-6pm Eastern
Eligible for 2 CEUs through Yoga Alliance.
Replay will be made available for those who cannot attend live. Captions available.
This month, in honor of Pride, we’re celebrating the work of Queer and Trans yoga teachers who are creating accessible and affirming spaces among the LGBTQ+ yoga community.
Join host M Camellia (they/them), Zel Amanzi (they/he) and Puja Singh Titchkosky (they/them) of the Trans Yoga Project, and Kyra Thrilkill (they/she) and Kelly Marshall (they/them) of Transforming Wellness in conversation as they share about their wellness work and provide insight into what Queer-and-Trans-affirming spaces in wellness can—and must—look like.
Continuing Education
Learn about the work Queer and Trans teachers are doing to create accessible and affirming spaces and take cues on how to be a better ally in your own teaching.
Discussion
The LGBTQ+ community is vast and diverse. Learn from our panelists as they discuss the importance of building intersectionality into yoga spaces.
Networking
Get to know the work of those leading the charge for LGBTQ+ inclusion and affirmation in yoga, building out your resource list so you can further your own learning.
Meet The Presenters
Isazela "Zel" Amanzi
(they/them/he/him)
Zel (they/he) is a Black queer nonbinary trans* survivor, sacred energy educator and space holder dedicated to collective and spiritual preparation for divestment from colonial systems of violence and harm.
Their purpose in life is to nourish the trees that bear the fruits of freedom. After earning an M.S.Ed in Social Justice Education and certifications in Yoga, Reiki and Meditation, he followed the call of his ancestors and began curating ancestrally guided communities that accelerate collective healing and ignite fearless expression. Their offerings rest at the intersection of Purpose, Black/Indigenous + Queer/Trans* Liberation and Sacred Energy + Ancestral work.
There are a variety of ways to include Zel in your journey. Get to know them in monthly, sliding-scale, virtual and in-person classes, including collabs with @cutiesla (restinpower.yoga/schedule).
restinpower.yoga | patreon.com/restinpower | @restinpoweryogareiki
transyogaproject.com | patreon.com/transyoga | @transyogaproject
Puja Singh Titchkosky
(they/them)
Mx Puja, aka Puja Singh Titchkosky (they/them), is a queer, non-binary trans, Indian-Canadian, yoga, meditation and music teacher based in Los Angeles, California (born in Vancouver, BC). Their work focuses on helping people tune into the power of the Universe, slow down, practice presence and find their unique voice in order to more fully and joyfully express themselves in any and all areas of their life.
Coming from an Indian background (Punjabi Sikh) and being deeply in love with India from a young age, Puja is constantly learning more about their own lineage and the practices and traditions that come from this beautiful land and culture. Puja’s work is informed by and shared through a lens of decolonization and the dismantling of oppressive systems of power (homophobia, transphobia, racism, sexism, ableism, fat phobia, etc).
Puja teaches private and public asana, meditation + music classes as well as offering workshops on yoga, meditation, kirtan and more. Puja is a co-founder of the Trans Yoga Project.
*Mx (pronounced mix) is a gender neutral prefix used in the same way as Ms, Mrs or Mr.
www.mxpujasingh.com | patreon.com/mxpujasingh | @mxpujasingh
transyogaproject.com | patreon.com/transyoga | @transyogaproject
Kyra Thrilkill
(they/them/she/her)
Kyra Thrilkill was a founding member of the Texas GSA Network and has been a Reiki practitioner since 2007 and a massage therapist since 2011. Shortly after graduating at The Lauterstein-Conway Massage school, she moved to Houston to pursue a clinical focus in post-surgery work, inspiring her to open a private practice for 5 years, focusing on working with post-operative care and professional opera/classical singers.
Since then, she has relocated to Portland, OR. In her free time, she spends a lot of her energy working on her body of watercolor paintings, increasing her repertoire on the violin and cello, studying Yoga and functional movement, and activism/advocacy work for the transgender and LGBTQ community.
She is a RYT 200 Yoga instructor, and graduated from the trauma-informed Waking Yoga teacher training in 2020. Krya is a co-founder and educator for Transforming Wellness.
www.freestylefineart.com | @freestyle_fineart
www.transformingwellness.net | @trans.forming.wellness
Artwork by Kyra - self portrait through the lense of the element earth.
Kelly Marshall
(they/them)
Kelly Marshall is a wellness educator and has worked in varying capacities as a massage therapist since 2007; clinically alongside chiropractors and physical therapists as well as in various spa environments. A registered yoga teacher since 2012, and a certified Yoga Therapist since 2016, they specialize in facilitating a safer space for clients and students to reconnect with their bodies and drop into a deeper state of awareness in order to heal.
With Transforming Wellness, they offer individual and corporate education. As an educator, they focus upon creating a safer space of healing and empowerment for individuals in the LGBTQIA+ population, and those whom are addressing trauma, anxiety/depression, body and gender issues, and more.
With Spectrum Wellness, they offer mindfulness coaching, individual and group yoga instruction and Yoga Therapy.
Kelly is currently pursuing their Master’s in Social Work and anticipates their graduation in 2024.
Community Forum Pricing
We recognize that financial barriers to access are just as real as physical ones. As an organization committed to equity and promoting financial accessibility, we've created three pricing tiers for individual Community Forums. If you do not see a tier that reflects your financial situation, you're invited to apply for a scholarship. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
Accessible Yoga Ambassadors are invited to attend all nine of our 2021 Community Forums for FREE. If you would like to attend multiple Community Forums in 2021, becoming an Ambassador offers you the best price. Sign up today to make your first monthly or annual sustaining contribution to Accessible Yoga (as low as $9/mo. or $108/yr.) and immediately gain access to the free registration link OR register for a single event (below).
Current Ambassadors should log in to their Ambassador dashboard to access their special registration link.
Partner Organizations
Transforming Wellness
Trans Yoga Project
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