Our Green Business Commitment
Traditionally, yoga is about balance and a respect for nature. At Barefoot Yoga, we have grown increasingly concerned that many of the products used in modern yoga practice are not in harmony with that natural balance, and in fact have a negative impact on the health of our planet.
As a result, several years ago we committed ourselves to offering more earth-friendly yoga product options and to encouraging yoga practitioners to choose these healthier alternatives whenever possible.
We created our Eco Yoga Products section to feature non-toxic, sustainable and organic yoga products. We continue to expand this section as we find more green yoga products that meet our high standards.
Our commitment to reducing yoga's footprint on the earth does not end with the products we sell. We also looked closely at the impact of our daily business practices and committed ourselves to operating as a green business: reducing solid waste, using recycled products and improving energy efficiency in our office.
Specifically we:
- Seek out recycled furniture to use in our office instead of buying new furniture.
- Use only scrap paper for note taking, and only use recycled paper for printing.
- Reuse newspaper and recycled packing material for shipping our orders.
- Use only energy efficient lighting.
- Use individual cloth towels for hand washing instead of paper towels.
- Recycle almost everything we use in our office.
- And produce only one small garbage bag a week.
We take seriously our commitment to being a socially and environmentally responsible company. We welcome your ideas for how we can become an even greener business, and what else we can do to encourage yoga practitioners to make earth-friendly choices that support the environmental movement.
Email us at info@barefootyoga.com.
What You Can Do to Practice
Lightly on the Earth
For Yoga Practitioners
- Walk, bike, bus or carpool to class.
- Bring a reusable water bottle to class.
- Reuse rather than discard your old yoga mats and other props (see ideas for reusing old yoga mats).
- Seek out yoga products and clothing that are produced without using toxic chemicals, pesticides or nonrenewable resources.
- Encourage your local studio to offer non-toxic yoga products and organic clothing, and commit to the list below.
- Learn more about the traditional yoga principal of "ahimsa" (non-harm) and how you can apply this in practice in your life.
For Yoga Studios and Teachers
- Consistent with the yoga principal of ahimsa, commit your studio to policies, products and actions that minimize or eliminate environmental harm.
- Use energy efficient lighting.
- Reduce waste by recycling and reusing as much as possible.
- Print schedules, announcements and forms on recycled paper.
- Stock earth-friendly yoga mats and props.
- Offer clothing made from organic cotton, hemp or bamboo.
- Clean studio mats with non-toxic sprays.
- In bathrooms, use biodegradable soaps and toilet tissue made from recycled paper.
- Install water-saving devices on faucets and toilets.
- Encourage your students to walk, carpool, bus or bike to class.
- Encourage your students to bring reusable water bottles.
- Stock water coolers with biodegradable cups and place recycling bins near the cooler (or sell reusable water bottles).
Send us your ideas to: info@barefootyoga.com.