YOGA IMPACT CHARITY • ESTB 2016
Improving psychological & physical wellbeing through evidence based, trauma informed yoga trainings and programs in diverse communities.
Our Trauma Informed Yoga teaching team partners with not-for-profit organisations, government, and schools to share Yoga programs with:
frontline healthcare workers
refugees & asylum seekers
survivors of domestic violence
families of the Defence Forces
veterans
people in detention
people experiencing homelessness
First Nations people
Yoga Impact Charity Impact
385 Community Yoga Programs
3,927 People Impacted
34 Trauma Informed Yoga Teachers Trained
4 Full Scholarships
Our Impact Evaluations have been featured at:
The International Journal of Yoga Therapy (2021)
Symposium on Yoga Research (2021)
The Australasian Conference on Traumatic Stress (2021)
The Australasian Yoga Therapy Conference, Sydney (2018)
The North American Refugee Health Conference, Portland (2018)
The Yoga Australia Conference, Melbourne (2018)
The North American Refugee Health Conference, Toronto (2017)
Settlement Services International from Settlement to Belonging, Sydney (2017)
The Australia & New Zealand Refugee Trauma Conference, Sydney (2017)
The Ingham Institute for Medical Research Innovation Conference, Sydney (2016)
The North American Refugee Health Conference, New York (2016)
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The Yoga Impact Charity has brought trauma informed yoga to the healthcare sector, designing programs to meet the unique demands and stresses healthcare workers face. Using evidence based movement and breathing techniques, our sessions help regulate the nervous system, calm the mind, and provide a much needed pause during demanding workdays.
What participants say
Healthcare workers report profound benefits from our classes:
97% felt more physically relaxed after yoga
93% felt calmer
70% felt better able to cope with their workday
These results show how small, intentional practices can create meaningful change in wellbeing, resilience, and focus. Contact us to learn more about these programs and their impact.
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The Yoga Impact Charity has been sharing trauma informed yoga with the refugee and asylum seeking communities since 2015.
We partner with not-for-profit organisations, government, and schools to share in person and virtual Yoga with refugee and asylum seeker communities around the world, including:
Sydney
Melbourne
Vienna
Amsterdam
Munich
Iraq
Uganda
Our Refugee Yoga programs have been evaluated by the New South Wales Service for the Treatment & Rehabilitation of Torture & Trauma Survivors and led to a reduction in PTSD symptoms within 9 classes and a reduction in Depression within 12 classes.
We also support scholarships for people from refugee and asylum seeking backgrounds to become trauma informed yoga teachers.
For a long time I felt like I didn't have choices or deserve good things. Through Yoga and Prayer I have connected to a part of myself that is positive, strong and powerful. Connecting to this part of myself shows me that I'm free to make good choices for myself and my children. I know that I deserve the best.”
- Iraqi Women's Yoga Group Participant
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The Yoga Impact Charity has been sharing trauma informed yoga with first nations people since 2019.
We also support full scholarships for people from First Nations communities to become Trauma Informed Yoga Teachers themselves.
Aboriginal Foster Carers who participated in our 8 week Pilot Yoga program in Sydney reported reduced stress & improved sleep as a result of participating in Yoga.
"It has helped me immensely with pain management." - KARI Yoga Group Participant
"I love the feeling I have after Yoga - focused and relaxed.” - KARI Yoga Group Participant
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Since 2015, we have been sharing yoga with people of all ages inside detention centres, including:
Refugee and asylum seeking women
Men in maximum security detention centres
Teenage girls in juvenile justice facilities
Participants in our detention programs have reported:
Improved sleep
Reduced pain
A greater sense of calm and relaxation
These programs demonstrate the transformative potential of trauma informed yoga in even the most challenging environments.
"I don't feel like I'm in detention. I feel normal.” - Villawood Detention Centre Women's group participant
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We partner with not-for-profit organisations, government agencies, and schools to deliver in person and virtual yoga programs for survivors of domestic violence.
In addition, The Yoga Impact Charity offers monthly trauma informed yoga classes in a retreat setting for survivors, in partnership with Govinda Valley Retreat Centre.
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Since 2015, The Yoga Impact Charity has been providing inclusive, evidence based yoga programs to thousands of people.
We recognise the profound impact yoga can have on psychological and physical wellbeing, supported by a growing body of research. Our methodology combines the wisdom of yoga with the latest science on mental health, informed by our program evaluations.
Our teachers are trained to teach people, not postures, and can tailor classes so that everyone feels comfortable participating. As we like to say: if you can breathe, you can do yoga.
We offer 10-week virtual and in person Staff Wellbeing Programs for workplaces. Each class runs for one hour at a time that suits your team, and programs are tailored to your workplace needs with impact carefully evaluated.
"I experienced improved mindset at the beginning of the day, or when I found that I did a session after work, I found it was a good way to transition out of work mode." - Batyr Staff Member
The Yoga Impact Charity Approach
The Yoga Impact Charity has been providing inclusive, evidence based trauma informed yoga in the community to over 21,000 people since 2016.
We recognise the powerful impact yoga can have on psychological and physical wellbeing, supported by a growing body of evidence.
Our teaching team has all completed the Body Mind Heart Training® 200-Hour Trauma Informed Yoga Teacher Training. This methodology integrates yoga, somatic therapy, and psychology, and is grounded in the latest research and our program evaluations.
Our approach is trauma informed, recognising that trauma can profoundly affect both psychological and physiological wellbeing, increasing the risk of re-traumatisation, mental ill-health, and chronic disease. As yoga teachers, we are committed to creating safe, supportive environments for healing and to being mindful of how we relate to and hold space for those we work with.
We are deeply grateful to the Vasudhara Foundation for their support and for the innovative, strategic guidance they have provided.
Our yoga programs reduce PTSD within 9 classes and reduce depression within 12 classes.
Our Founder - Danielle Begg
Yoga Impact Charity Co-Founder, MSc, BPschSc(Hons), E-RYT
Danielle Begg has an academic background in psychology, with a Master of Science from the University of Oxford and a Postgraduate Certificate in Global Mental Health from Harvard Medical School. She brings this expertise together with extensive experience teaching evidence based, trauma informed yoga as Co Founder and CEO of The Yoga Impact Charity.
Danielle is the creator and Lead Trainer of the Body Mind Heart Training® 200 Hour Trauma Informed Yoga Teacher Training. She facilitates trauma informed yoga workshops and retreats globally, teaches yoga programs in Sydney with people recovering from trauma, and offers private consultation and mentoring.
Through her work, Danielle empowers women to spark meaningful change in their own lives and in the world. She works with healthcare professionals and community leaders who want to bring calm, clarity, and care into their work, using practical, science grounded mind body techniques to help create supportive spaces for both those they serve and themselves.
She is an advocate of the inclusion of yoga within healthcare and has been invited to speak at conferences around the world, including: The Australasian Conference on Traumatic Stress, The International Journal of Yoga Therapy's Research Symposium, The Australasian Yoga Therapy Conference, The Yoga Australia Conference, The North American Refugee Health Conference, and Australia New Zealand Refugee Trauma Conference. She has been published and featured in The International Journal of Yoga Therapy, The Sydney Morning Herald, ABC News, SBS, The Australian Yoga Journal, Yoga Today Magazine, and WellBeing Magazine.
OUR VISION
To improve the mental and physical health of people who have experienced trauma through world class evidence based Trauma Informed Yoga Trainings and Programs.