For Laura, yoga goes far beyond the physical asana practice. To her, it is a place where — like her mentor, Clare Nicholls, beautifully says — you have nothing to do, no one to be, and nowhere to go. Laura credits yoga with helping with anxiety, supporting her after the unexpected loss of her father, and nurturing her when she had to learn to let go. When Laura took her first Jivamukti Yoga class, she was inspired by how the method encourages its practitioners to become activists. As a Human Rights Lawyer by training, she has always wanted to contribute to other’s voices being heard. Therefore, with her classes, Laura hopes to not only support her students to come back into the present moment, but also to encourage them to use their voices and be the change. Laura completed her Jivamukti Yoga 300-Hour Teacher Training in 2020 in India with Rima Rabbath, Jules Febre and Martyna Eder and her 500-Hour Apprenticeship Program with Clare Nicholls at Jivamukti Yoga Bern in 2021. Her long-term goal is to build on her experience in the field of international criminal law and to continue to offer donation-based yoga classes with YOGA FOR CHANGE, a non-profit project, which she founded to support Women’s Empowerment, Peacebuilding and International Justice. Striving to make a difference, Laura would love to see how yoga could be a way to help those recovering from trauma. Laura is immensely grateful to her teachers, especially Clare Nicholls and Yogeswari.

For Silvana, yoga means getting involved in every situation in life without prejudice, instead approaching it with love and mindfulness. She has been practicing yoga regularly for over 10 years and is still enthusiastic. She teaches at Hrdayam Bern and Openyoga Bern and would be very happy to see you there to sing mantras with you and do the asanas. She finished her Jivamukti Yoga 300-Hour Teacher Training in 2020 in India and then started the 500-Hour Apprenticeship Program with Céline Ryf in Bern.

Clare’s interest in yoga was ignited as a child when she was introduced to the Mahabharata, she fell in love with the stories and the philosophies woven throughout. Since 2001 Clare has practiced asana and views the physical process as a way of undoing the habits we hold in our bodies and releasing the past to create space for the future. Clare began teaching in 2005 and by 2007 was running a small yoga space in the English Countryside. She began to specialise in teaching yoga for pregnancy and soon became motivated to train as a midwife. In 2010 Clare qualified with a BSc in Midwifery. She moved to London where she continued teaching yoga and practicing as a midwife. It was by the grace of the universe in 2010 she discovered the Jivamutki method and it felt like coming home. From 2013 Clare has taught Jivamukti throughout London and across the UK. In 2014 and 2015 Clare travelled around India, experiencing many sites of pilgrimage and integrating an understanding of the philosophies into her life, practice and teaching. In 2016-2017 she spent 10 months in Mysore chanting the yoga sutras under guidance of the wonderful Dr M.A Jayashree and appreciating the detail of their philosophical themes through studying with Professor Narasimhan. Clare holds the advanced certification in the Jivamutki method, with the blessings of her teachers she hopes to share her love of the darsana of yoga in all it’s elements. Hari Om.