Throughout September, Roots & Shoots groups from around the world celebrate Peace Day and honour the UN International Day of Peace observed annually on September 21st. Dr Jane Goodall has been a UN Messenger of Peace since 2002 where she continues to inspire us all to live in harmony with nature and each other.
This year, our Victorian team joined together with Melbourne Zoo to celebrate Peace Day with a very special yoga class hosted by Lola Berry. Lola Berry is an accredited yoga instructor, nutritionist, author and presenter who helped us to find peace within.
Yoga has physical, emotional and spiritual benefits. It has been practiced for centuries and uses breathing techniques, exercise and meditation to increase happiness and find inner peace.
Lola Berry is a nutritionist, yoga teacher and bestselling author. She inspired participants to quieten their minds and incorporate mindfulness into their everyday lifestyle.
This wonderful event was opened by one of our young Roots & Shoots members, Isaac, who at 9 years of age, already possesses the qualities of a compassionate leader.
Isaac (pictured above) is 9 years old and opened up the Peace Day festivities with a compassionate and inspired speech. He is a young leader in the making!
Following the yoga class, our Roots & Shoots members along with Youth at the Zoo (YATZ) members participated in some fun and educational peace-themed activities. The youth were invited to design peace messages on enrichment ‘gifts’ that were filled with popcorn and given to the gorillas. This was an exciting activity for everyone watching on!
Participants engaged in arts and craft activities. The drawing and colouring pictured above encourages mindfulness which is fitting for Peace Day 2018.
Youth participants created enrichments gifts for gorillas at the zoo. What a great way to connect people with animals!
Other activities included a scavenger hunt around the Zoo where they learned ways of providing peace towards different animals and creating a tote bag out of old t-shirts that they were able to take home to use in the place of single-use plastic bags.
Reusable Bag Making
We are very grateful to the Melbourne Zoo team, including the Zoo Membership team and YATZ, for helping us to make this Peace Day celebration so special and to Lola Berry for an incredible yoga class. We also want to thank our amazing members who came along to celebrate with us and for their dedication in making a positive difference to our world.
JGIA acknowledges the Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of this nation. We acknowledge the traditional custodians of the lands and pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present.