Mexico - Zihuatanejo
A Journey to Zero Waste
Reconnecting to the Earth with Lauren Singer
23-28 February 2019 >
(deposit required at time of booking. To pay 30% deposit, please use code MEXICO2019 at checkout)
WE ARE is proud to announce its next adventure to Playa Viva, Mexico--where we will be partnering with Lauren Singer for a unique zero waste adventure. This trip is for the woman who wants to reconnect their mind, body, and spirit with the natural world. We will take care of our bodies in a new and healthy way--through local organically grown produce and daily meditation. We will find new ways to move our body while we partake in a series of yoga workshops as we watch the sunset over the pacific. In the coastal jungle of Playa Viva we will reconnect with our bodies in nature.
We will practice letting go of our ego as we immerse ourselves in the local community with giving back projects. We will focus our attention on the people in the area as well as the problems that they and the environment have been challenged with--as we do this we will be able to shed the weight of our everyday burdens and the big picture of happiness will become clearer.
Join us and lets disconnect from all distractions and reconnect with your intuition while we immerse in all the elements a new adventure has to offer. Reset and rejuvenate your mind, body, and soul with this all encompassing journey to tap into our true individual potential when we come together as a community of like-minded women from around the world. Get inspired and help redefine what it means to be beautiful.
DAY 1 - Welcome circle
DAY2 - Volunteer at the Turtle Sanctuary + Beach Clean Up
DAY 3 - Local soup kitchen & community garden and Lagoon Kayak Tour / Paddle board (optional)
DAY 4 - Temazcal Ceremony at Playa Large. Experience a local indigenous purification tradition, the
“Temazcal” sweat lodge ceremony. Enter the handcrafted ceramic dome to sweat it out, set intentions, and connect with the earth and the fire, guided by a local woman who helped to create this sacred space. Offerings of ceremonial songs and flowers are made as the fire heats the interior. Come ready to sweat and smile.
DAY 5 - Giving Back Project with local school
DAY 6 - Goodbye
PICTURE YOUR DAY:
Morning Yoga
Breakfast
Beach Time + Relaxation
Lunch + Free Time
Creative Workshop or Giving Back
Free Time + Appetizers and juices
Sunset workshop
Dinner
Free Time + bonfire and night circle
A more detailed itinerary will be sent to confirmed guests closed to date.
WHAT'S INCLUDED
Beachfront accommodation, 6 days/5 nights-
Healthy meals for all 6 days (breakfast, lunch, & dinner + snacks)
All taxis + group shuttle to/from Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo (ZIH)
Zero waste workshop with Lauren Singer
Optional Daily Yoga with Giulia Bacci, WE ARE founder
Access to private beach / Turtle sanctuary
Conscious consumption with use of plant-based soaps, sunscreen, shampoo + conditioner for minimal environmental impact
- Temazcal Ceremony
WHAT'S NOT INCLUDED
Airfare
Travel Insurance
Alcoholic beverages
FLIGHT - HOW TO GET THERE
Flights should be booked to Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo (ZIH) Airport - Arrival Time - approx. between 11am - 6pm Departure Time - approx. 10-12pm
AMBASSADOR
LAUREN SINGER - Environmentalist
Lauren began her Zero Waste Journey as an Environmental Studies major in College and has always been interested in the environment, but she made the conscious decision to live Zero Waste in 2012 when a fellow Environmental Studies classmate would bring lunch to class every week in a single use plastic bag, a disposable water bottle, and a plastic takeout container. She would sit there and think, we are supposed to be the future of this planet and here we are with our trash, messing it up.
GIULIA BACCI - Founder of WE ARE and Yoga teacher
Born and raised in Florence, Italy Giulia has been on her personal pursuit of what creates and maintains happiness. Giulia's kind heart and creative spirit shine through her work and are showcased in the giving back projects WE ARE does abroad. When she is not trying to find the key to happiness Giulia is a certified Hatha Yoga instructor and a lover of any adventure; from snowboarding on the slopes to dancing on water while surfing you will find her with a big smile and open heart.
Accommodation
PLAYA VIVA (Zihuatanejo)
Combining simple elegance with natural beauty and a commitment to improving the environment and the local community, Playa Viva is a sustainable boutique hotel located on the western coast of Mexico, just 35 minutes south of Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa International Airport. Nestled between the sparkling waters of the Pacific Ocean and the majestic Sierra Madre Mountains near the village of Juluchuca, Playa Viva is situated on a mile of pristine and private beach.
The property’s nearly 200 acres includes an estuary, an Aztec archeological site, turtle sanctuary, and a coastal forest and mangrove ecosystem which supports an array of stunning wildlife. Playa Viva is close enough to the trappings of modernity yet worlds away providing immersion into the wonders of nature and escape to utter private relaxation.
The surrounding community - Juluchuca
Juluchuca is a small rural town with about roughly 350-400 inhabitants. Agriculture and cattle ranching dominate the majority of the local economy, with some residents engaged in subsistence fishing and a few small industries (e.g. the coconut sweets factory and the salt flats). Like many rural areas of Mexico, Juluchuca has unfortunately suffered the consequences of a lack of a strong central government and misguided development.
Most households live on about 7 USD per day, and with average household size of 4 people, that is about $1.90 per day per person.
Lack of reliable water service, waste management, quality education and health services has left the town in a despondent state. As part of Playa Viva's central mission, they are working to regenerate the surrounding community (economically, socially and environmentally) by restoring what has been lost by extractive industries.
Community Part I
One of the foundational principles of WE ARE’s mission is the desire to give back to the destinations visited; redefining how we answer call to travel.
We will be partnering with a local soup kitchen & community garden in Playa Viva. The overall goal of community garden and nutrition awareness project is to foster greater physical and emotional well-being for the residents of Juluchuca by improving food access (school & community gardens), nutritional education (monthly cooking workshops and talks), and mind/body awareness through yoga and meditation (classes in the community, adults and children). Currently farm interns have installed an organic vertical garden for the comedor comunitario (community kitchen) in Juluchuca and we are working to expand the vertical garden into a permanent garden space. This space along with the home garden at the volunteer house in town are to serve as learning centers for healthy eating and ecological farming. They also hold nutritional cooking workshops each month at the soup kitchen, through the support of the Eco Vegan Cooperative in Zihuatanejo. Support is always needed for maintaining this project as well as expanding the project to create new gardens in the community and conduct more workshops on nutrition, health and wellness & that is where we come in!
Community PArt II
We have teamed up with non-profit “Pack for a Purpose” to support the local elementary school Juluchuca. Giving back to the community is easy, and giving to benefit children is one of the best ways to help. The local elementary school in Juluchuca, would benefit greatly from some things that may be in your donation pile. Instead, pack it in your suitcase and bring it to children who often do not have proper clothes or shoes to wear, paper to do lessons with and few books in their classrooms.
Earth
We will also clean up every beach we set foot in - a small and simple effort, that shines a light on the issues of waste, particularly when it pours directly into our oceans.
For every attendee, WE ARE plants a tree through the international movement, Treedom in order to help rebuild forests, capture CO2 emissions, improve air quality and create a tangible symbol for the WE ARE Mission.
