Yoga & the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Written By SANDI

In this post I’m looking broadly at the contemporary yoga industry in relation to sustainable development as it is defined globally by the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

How does the yoga industry support and/or conflict with the SDGs and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development?

Originating thousands of years ago in the spiritual traditions of India, yoga practices are currently trending throughout the world (including 16 million* adults in the USA alone) through a multi-billion dollar global consumer industry centered on individual self-care, fitness, leisure and mind-body therapeutics (Quilty, Saper, Goldstein, Khalsa 2013). *Now estimated at closer to 36 million people in the USA.

However, yoga is not just about individual care and mind-body therapeutics. The ethics and observances of traditional yoga philosophy (yama and niyama) are also about collective care and ecological therapeutics, and we, as yoga practitioners and/or participants in the yoga industry have the power to re-center and expand the healing power of yoga to more fully embrace the well-being of the environment. In so doing, we can contribute proactively and preemptively to the global goals of sustainable development while helping to slow down and stop the current acceleration of global ecological crises. The development of a sustainable relationship with the natural world is an integral, if a neglected, part of yoga practice and it’s clearly time to bring more attention where it’s needed.

“Environmental sustainability is not frequently promoted by modern yoga teachers and studios in Western countries. Modern yoga is synonymous with the development of the physical body, with an emphasis on asana, the poses and fitness. In the face of the myriad environmental problems currently plaguing our planet (Hill, 2020; Zafeiroudi, 2020), the notion of ecology and protection of nature appears to be directly associated with the philosophy of yoga and the yogic way of life. The teachings of yoga include principles and practices of both the mind and body that, when applied, can change how people treat the environment. Can practicing yoga help make the world a better place to live? Can yoga inspire environmental consciousness for a better Earth?” (Zafeiroudi, Pipinia, Yfantiou, Georgomanos, 2021)

Although very complex, it is also simply phenomenal that the United Nations has brought together so many different countries and cultures of the world to agree on a common list of unified goals, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), for improving human civilization on Earth and creating a better world for all by 2030!

While it is worth considering a longer study of the relationship of the yoga industry to all the 17 SDGs and the 2030 Agenda, this mini-study looks at the following three:

  • SDG 3 to “Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages”

  • SDG 12 to “Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns”

  • SDG 14 to “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development”

In general we can say that the contemporary yoga industry supports the advancement of SDG 3 to “Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages”. In particular, the mind-body health and wellness benefits of yoga practice have been shown to directly support Target 3.4 “By 2030, reduce by one third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through prevention and treatment and promote mental health and well-being”. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, yoga has been one of the top 10 Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAMs) therapies utilized by millions of adults in the USA. (Quilty, Saper, Goldstein, Khalsa 2013)

However, the contemporary yoga industry conflicts with SDG 12 to “Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns''. One example of this conflict is the production, consumption, and disposal of yoga mats, props, and apparel that contain toxic materials that pollute the environment around their manufacturing and disposal (Ecology Center 2019).

It’s important to note that hidden toxic chemicals in popular yoga apparel also detract from aforementioned SDG 3 by posing long term health threats to the people who are absorbing these chemicals through their skin (Landserk 2022).

Another example of conflict with the SDGs is the sale and consumption of single-use plastic bottles for hydration in relation to yoga classes. The top 3 plastic polluter companies worldwide causing hundreds of thousands of tons of plastic to end up in the ocean every year are bottled beverage companies. (Aquablu 2023). In direct correlation, the contemporary yoga industry also conflicts with SDG 14, to “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development”, especially Target 14.1 “By 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, in particular from land-based activities, including marine debris and nutrient pollution”.

Instead of selling single-use plastic bottles, yoga studios and spaces would better align with and support SDG 14 by installing fountains or providing refilling water stations in their spaces and by only permitting beverages to be consumed on-site in reusable bottles.

While the yoga industry is generally an ally of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development through its promotion of good health and well-being (SDG 3), it is also in conflict with the Sustainable Development Goals through, for example, its propagation of unsustainable consumption and production patterns (conflicting with SDG 12) and its corollary contribution to marine pollution (conflicting with SDG 14). These conflicts need to be resolved and industry standards need to be realigned if the zeitgeist of 'More Yoga Better World' is to have any integrity.

Just as a posture (asana) in yoga practice requires a certain alignment in order for it to be held with steadiness (sthira) and ease (sukham), the goals of Sustainable Development need a certain alignment in order to be achieved. This alignment can be summarized by the triple bottom line of People, Planet, and Profit.

In other words, the yoga industry needs to ensure a foundation of Social Sustainability, Environmental Sustainability, and Economic Sustainability (not just one or the other) in order to develop sustainably and contribute to the global SDGs. To do so, we can check our alignment with each aspect of the triple bottom line. For example, here are a few questions to start… Please share more questions (and reflections) in the comments!

People: are the people representing the key stakeholders in the yoga industry receiving the human rights and social dignity that they deserve? How can we ensure that yoga teachers make a sustainable living wage? How can we ensure that all people have access to learning and practicing yoga? How can we ensure that the people manufacturing yoga products are working in safe conditions and are themselves receiving a sustainable living wage? How can we know if the yoga products that we’re using have chemicals that are harmful to people’s health?

Planet: how is the environment and the ocean being harmed by the production and consumption of yoga products and the use of resources in yoga facilities? How can we prevent the ocean from being polluted by the plastic bottles that are being sold at yoga classes? How can we stop toxins from poisoning the environment and people in the manufacturing of yoga mats, props, and clothes? How can we create yoga products and yoga facilities that contribute positively to a circular relationship with the environment?

Profit: which companies are making the majority of the billions of dollars in this multi-billion dollar industry and how can we ensure that they are committed to sustainable standards? How can yoga teachers make a sustainable profit from their services and still provide affordable and equitable yoga classes? How can yoga studios and space owners make a sustainable profit without doing so at the expense of their teachers and staff and the sustainable standards of their supplies and facilities?

Collaboration and consent between all stakeholders in the yoga industry is necessary to answer these questions in a way that establishes their foundation in the triple bottom line and aligns with the SDGs.

Key stakeholders in the industry of yoga include: the practitioners, students, teachers, schools, studios, and space owners where yoga is learned and practiced; all consumers of yoga products; all manufacturers of yoga products; the companies resourcing and processing the materials of yoga products (i.e. PVC); the people and animals who live and work in and near the factories where yoga products are manufactured; people and animals who live in and near the land where some yoga materials (ie. Rubber, Jute, Cork) are sourced; the product vendors and advertisers; the people and animals who live in and around the areas that yoga products are eventually discarded, i.e. landfills, waterways, and the ocean. The government, local and national, is also a key stakeholder in the regulation of sustainable patterns of production and consumption.

“Click on a yoga mat site and there is a bombardment of Earth-friendly bona fides: green, sustainable, eco-friendly. However, there is no sheriff in town setting standards or regulations, leaving ‘eco-friendly’ pretty much a self-defining term. ‘There is a lack of regulation; yogis need to research what brands are saying, what the mat is made of and how it is disposed of,” said James Armitage, founder and chief executive of Liforme, an online retailer of yoga gear.’” (Billard, Mary 2019)

It is also possible that a collective shift in the education of yoga, the very backbone of the yoga industry, could in and of itself significantly help everyone to better align with conscious environmental stewardship. For this reason it is essential for yoga teachers and trainers to include environmental stewardship in our teaching and continuing education. Environmental consciousness should be a part of every discussion and application of the yoga sutra philosophy of Ashtanga Yoga, for example, in order to re-center yoga culture in its true ecological framework: practically aware, transparently proactive, and genuinely invested in our global interconnectedness.

In this way, the whole yoga industry could become an integral ally and harmonious support to the global 2030 Agenda and the longterm goals of Sustainable Development.

References:

SANDI

Sandi Higgins is a mind-body educator with expertise teaching Ashtanga Yoga and Aquatic Fitness. Also a filmmaker, writer, translator, and performing artist, Sandi is currently completing a documentary about Indian Classical Music. Her poetry book, Tramping The Water Street Between 2 Cities, was published in 2002 in Paris, France. In 2006, Sandi wrote and performed the first authorized American English translation of Italian Nobel laureate Dario Fo and Franca Rame’s dramatic text, Una Madre (A Mother). An advocate for plant-based wellness and healing with Nature, Sandi founded Aquamarine Yoga in 2023 to explore the intersections of mindfulness, creativity, and sustainability.

Previous

AQMY Community Letter -Summer 2023
Next

Duhkhatraya and the end of suffering?