Our mission is to fight human trafficking and sexual exploitation by empowering global, impoverished communities through efforts of education and entrepreneurship.

This year, Yoga Medicine’s Seva Foundation is working with Her Future Coalition and Rescue Foundation to establish a new shelter 45 miles outside of New Delhi, near a Red Light District. This newly constructed shelter is scheduled to open its doors to survivors of human trafficking in 2017 and will house over 100 women and children.

Click on a tab FOR MORE INFO ON HOW to get involved.

The Yoga Medicine Seva Foundation works with local anti-trafficking organizations Her Future Coalition (formerly known as Made By Survivors) and the  Rescue Foundation. Together we provide counseling, food, shelter, medical care and most importantly, traditional and vocational education to empower women and children to care for and support themselves.

We are passionate about providing and sustaining education that empowers survivors to rebuild their lives and support their families. These educational programs give survivors the tools they need to become leaders in their families and communities, uplifting others and passing on the virtue of self-worth. In a culture where women are thought to have little value, educating and empowering them ensures freedom forever.

Over the past two years we:

• Raised over $40,000 to support 15 shelters in the slums and Red Light Districts of Kolkata
• Contributed over 80+ volunteer hours at shelters in India
• Provided direct assistance to over 500 women and children
• Met with 2014 Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Kailash Satyarthi, to discuss his global activism fighting for children to be free
• Collaborated with founder of The Women’s Interlink Foundation, Aloka Mitra and Co-Founder & Director of Her Future Coalition, Sarah Symmons, to raise funds to support their shelters
• Met with founders, educators & rescue teams from Bal Ashram, a successful rehabilitation and training center for victims of child labor

The Yoga Medicine Seva Foundation was established to address the severity of India’s human trafficking crisis. We are funded by Yoga Medicine members and people like YOU. We are independent of any political ideology, economic interest or religion. Our belief is that no situation is beyond hope and India being the birthplace of yoga, we believe it is our duty to give back to a culture that has given us so much.

Why India?

• Everyday 400 women and children go missing in India – many remain untraced
• India has the highest number of people enslaved, with approximately 18 million people in modern slavery.
• Each year, millions of women and children are trafficked in India.
• 1 child goes missing somewhere in the country every 8 minutes.
• Almost 80 percent of all worldwide trafficking is for sexual exploitation, with an estimated 1.2 million children being bought and sold into sexual slavery every year.

Every other year the Seva Foundation travels to India. We have no middleman; giving us the opportunity to hand-deliver funds ourselves. This ensures your donations get into the right hands and are spent on what matters most – food, shelter and education.

During our visits to the shelters, we spend time with the women and children. Our presence lets them know that someone, somewhere cares. By immersing into their culture our desire to help and their desire to dream, multiplies.

Team members who raise a minimum of $5000.00 will have the opportunity to join us on our 2018 trip to New Delhi. If you are interested in more details, click here. Questions can be directed to our Seva Coordinator, Amanda Bonfiglio-Cunningham, at seva@yogamedicine.com.