The Earthbody Institute is committed to the cultivation of profound, dynamic and mutual relationships with the natural world and comprehensive, practical training in the emerging field of Somatic Ecotherapy.

Vision

Community

Embodiment

Belonging

The Earthbody Institute is an educational, professional and transformational training forum offering opportunities for diverse populations to incorporate the principles and skills of Somatic Ecotherapy directly into their work.

Through our nature-based programs, we expand new practices for the mental health field and a wide range of allied professions (e.g. education, activism, coaching, ministry).

Training and Certification

Ariana Candell founded The Earthbody Institute to address the need for a step-by-step process to integrate embodied Ecotherapy principles and practices into therapeutic work, and to empower professionals to practice Somatic Ecotherapy with skill and confidence.

Our trainings address three foundational areas:

  • Cultivating a meaningful, personal reciprocal relationship with the natural world

  • Understanding, practicing and developing a range of Somatic Ecotherapy skills

  • Receiving and contributing to the growth of an Earth-honoring community

We believe that the power of a sacred, Earth-honoring community can enhance each person’s unique gifts and catalyze their contributions towards the healing of our world.

Our Land Acknowledgement

The Earthbody Institute was founded in Huchiun, in unceded Lisjan territory, now known as Oakland, California and is currently based in Coast Miwok territory. We are grateful for the ancient redwoods, golden poppies, rolling hills, bay waters, coyotes, red-tailed hawks and all other beings with whom we share these lands. We honor the ten thousand years of stewardship of these lands by the Ohlone and Coast Miwok peoples. We support their present revitalization of culture-their languages, ancestral practices and land restoration.

The Earthbody Institute donates 2% of our profits to the Sogorea Te Land Trust for reparations of the past and continuing colonization and genocide of indigenous peoples. We support their current rematriation effort, which is “the restoration of a people to their rightful place in sacred relationship with their ancestral lands”.

We encourage you to learn more aboutthe Sogorea Te Land Trust and make a donation to support their Rematriation Fund. If you are not living in the East Bay, you can learn more about and uplift the indigenous peoples from the lands you live on here.

The origin of the Institute

As a nature-loving therapist, Ariana Candell recognized the therapeutic value of her time in nature, and developed techniques to make this same kind of recharging, balancing and inspiration available to others. This began in 2008 with a “Movement and Meditation in Nature” series to explore the healing integration of Dance Movement Therapy in connection with nature. The therapeutic results of this combination were so powerful that it became a foundation for developing her Somatic Ecotherapy approach.

We recognize the destructive nature of colonial systems fundamentally built upon values of supremacy which prioritize a privileged few over the many. This shows itself as a multitude of oppressions including speciesism, racism, ableism, cis-heteropatriarcy, etc… which ultimately benefit no one.

We dedicate ourselves to the relief of suffering of all sentient beings through deepening intimacy with the wisdom of the living world.

Our JEDI Statement, Actions and Goals

We acknowledge the past and ongoing devastating impacts of injustice and marginalization throughout the world and strive to make our programs accessible to marginalized communities.

We are committed to values rooted in a sacred connection to the Earth, reciprocity and co-liberation, centering our hearts, spirits, and bodies and co-creating a culture of care.

We strive to create safe spaces for all expressions and experiences of culture and gender.

Our actions and commitments

    • Developing and teaching exclusively BIPOC Ecotherapy trainings, created and taught by BIPOC teachers, with equity pricing for all participants and additional outreach to students to foster connection and inclusion.

    • Ongoing recruitment and support of BIPOC teachers, plus additional income to reflect the complexity of teaching in a multicultural environment.

    • Highlighting the voices of Black, Indigenous and People of Color in our classes and newsletters, including anti-racist, Landback and other materials that speak to racial injustice, cultural appropriation and decolonization.

    • Donating 2% of our profits to the Sogorea Te Land Trust for reparations of the past and continuing colonization and genocide of indigenous peoples as well as their revitalization.

    • Honoring the original stewards of the land by offering land acknowledgements at all our gatherings and trainings, and including statements on our EBI website and teacher emails with encouragement to learn more about and donate to indigenous peoples.

    • Encouraging our students to learn about and support the indigenous peoples of the lands they are living with.

    • Offering Equity Scholarships for our BIPOC classes

    • Offering four partial scholarships in each of our LGBTQIA2S+
      and All Are Welcome classes