The Himalayas are a place where it looks and feels like the earth is meeting the sky. Yogis have been drawn here for millennia for the clarity life in these mountains brings.
My friend Esha Chhabra writes about sustainability and social enterprises for The Guardian, Forbes magazine and the New York Times. She has traveled the globe doing so. In the Himalayas, she found women’s groups that she says, “produce skin-loving ingredients on their farms.” She has decided to build her own mission-driven small enterprise to support these women’s groups and is developing a natural skincare company called Alaya.
Read on to find out how you can join Chhabra on an upcoming trip to the source of her inspiration where you’ll learn about social entrepreneurship and do yoga with Himalayan nature as your backdrop.
Chhabra says, “Rather than working with labs, middlemen, and large farms to source ingredients, I wanted to see if I could build a business, working with women’s groups in the Himalayas.” Taking people to the source of inspiration for the Alaya brand will help people, “understand why organic farming is important, introduce them to the lovely women who are the backbone of the agricultural community, and illustrate how the products we use everyday can help preserve the environment and support amazing women.”
She has partnered with blogger/entrepreneur, Valeria Hinojosa, who is also passionate about these issues and the pair are offering a trip to the Himalayas where guests will get to meet the farmers, stay in eco-conscious properties and learn about farming, natural skincare, and the local ecology. “I promise it’ll be an amazing trip, with lots of beautiful vistas, inspiring stories, and a reminder that there are good people in the world fighting the good fight. We’ll also be making a donation to the women’s groups we visit.”
If you’d like to be part of this small group – less than 12 people – sign up here.
There’s no time like the present to be spontaneous! The trip is December 1 to 10, 2017.
Photo credits to Binsar Forest Retreat and the interior shot to Sitla Estate.
