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Our teachers are curated for their quality, depth, integrity and alignment with our educational purpose. Since 1982, a distinguished faculty of authors, educators, activists, artists, performers, and practitioners have shared their work at our Cortes Island campus and in Vancouver.

Want to view all our offerings in one place? You may download our digital catalogue or request a paper catalogue in the mail here.

Interested in presenting at Hollyhock? Learn more and submit your program proposal here.

Scholarships are available for most programs, based on financial need. We prioritize Indigenous people, people of colour, people who identify as LGBTQ2IA+, youth, elders, and those who can articulate how their Hollyhock experience will support positive impact in their lives and communities. Learn more here.

2020 Programs Listed by Date

Resident Service Program

Package Dates
Cortes Island
Support our Cortes campus and get an intimate behind- the-scenes Hollyhock experience with our month-long residential program.

2020 Hollyhock Vancouver Season Launch Party

February 19, 2020
The Waldorf Tiki Bar
Join Hollyhock in Vancouver to celebrate the launch of our 2020 season!

Radical Dharma Event

With Reverend angel Kyodo williams and Suzanne Hawkes

February 24, 2020
Home of Dana + Joel Solomon
Hollyhocks Annual Fundraising Soiree. Join us for an enchanting evening under the stars. This multigenerational gathering is the highlight of our season as we celebrate Hollyhock's work, founders, and friends.

Metta Vipassana: Cultivating Love & Wisdom (Vancouver)

With Michele McDonald and Steven Smith

April 17 - 19, 2020
UBC Asian Centre
Take a breath in the city through the practice of silent Vipassana (insight/mindfulness) and Metta (loving kindness) meditation. Join a connected community of new and experienced meditators. Enjoy guided meditations, sitting and walking sessions, Dhamma talks, and meditation instruction.

Geopoetics Artists’ Residency

April 18 - 22, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
This self-directed residency offers uninterrupted time for artists, writers, and scholars to work in a community of creative practice, under the theme of geopoetics. Participants will gather for meals and optional workshops/showings/talks, and are also free to completely focus on their own work.

Metta Vipassana: Awareness as a Path to Liberation

With Michele McDonald and Steven Smith

April 22 - May 6, 2020
Cortes Island
Experience seven days practicing Metta and Vipassana meditation, followed by seven days of cultivating mindfulness. Develop compassionate awareness and a more loving heart with a unique integration of mindful movement.

Hakomi: The Practice of Loving Presence (Vancouver)

With Donna Martin and Georgia Marvin

May 2 - 3, 2020
Granville Island Hotel
Loving Presence represents the heart of Hakomi, a mindfulness-based self-discovery practice. Learn to cultivate open-hearted relating through a well-developed sequence of experiential practices. This program is based on the 2019 publication, “The Practice of Loving Presence” by Ron Kurtz and Donna Martin.

Wim Hof Method, Breathwork & Your True Nature

With Cian Dalton

May 6 - 10, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
Optimize your health with oxygen and cold exposure, reducing inflammation and strengthening your immune system. Learn practical tools to overcome stress, and develop a deeper connection to yourself and nature.

Watercolour as a Path to Awareness

With David McEown

May 6 - 10, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
Explore watercolour’s magical, flowing, spontaneity and learn essential techniques, as you paint directly from nature. Enhance your perception and connection to the earth with this travel-friendly medium. All levels welcome. David McEown has been using watercolour paint to explore earthʼs disappearing wilderness areas for 25+ years.

Hollyhock Sampler May

May 10 - 13, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
3 Perfect Nights - Enjoy a taste of adventure and relaxation with our Hollyhock Sampler: 2 one-hour massage or healing art treatments New! 1 guided stand-up paddle board adventure OR private yoga session Access to Hollyhock amenities Abundant natural beauty, ocean front beach, and hiking trails French intensive garden – ideal setting for photography, painting, meditating Ocean-view hot tubs Complimentary activities: Morning meditation and yoga, naturalist events (morning rows, afternoon guided hikes, garden tours) By-donation Presenter Evenings from visiting faculty *based on weather conditions, stand-up paddle board may be replaced by an additional massage session I have known about Hollyhock for 30 years and it…

The Wisdom of Breath: Holotropic Breathwork® & the Legacy of Stanislav Grof

With Diane Haug, MA, LPCC and William Keepin, PhD

May 10 - 14, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
Using enhanced breathing, evocative music, focused bodywork, and art, Holotropic Breathwork helps to expand consciousness for the purpose of self-exploration, spiritual awareness, and healing. It is an excellent adjunct to psychotherapy, as well as a powerful method of self-care for helping professionals.

Mother, Daughter & the Divine

With Patricia Höglund and Maeve Höglund

May 10 - 15, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
Uncover the mystical magic that can arise in the bond of the mother-daughter relationship. Whether your connection needs healing, deepening, or celebrating, we will journey through rediscovering the divine feminine that is yearning to be unearthed and brought to the forefront of everyday life.

In Relation: Dancing as a Living System

With Laura June Albert and Loretta Laurin

May 10 - 15, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
Experience your body as a living system in relation to nature and our wider social-political landscape. Explore embodiment practices, dance technique, and movement research to expand your range and capacity for interconnection. Elements include western contemporary dance, solo and contact improvisation, anatomy, and nature immersion.

The Way of the Guide: Forest Therapy

With Amos Clifford and Christy Thomson

May 15 - 20, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
Way of the Guide explores a process of working in partnership with the more-than-human world to discover and nurture the unique seeds of medicine carried by each person. Supporting the growth of these seeds calls forth a constellation of gifts that is the person’s way of embodying power and beauty.

Living Awake: Grief, Grace & Gratitude

With Lilli Ruth Rosenberg and Katheryn Trenshaw

May 15 - 20, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
Now is the time to live your most radiant life from a place of resilient well-being. Experience and learn how surrendering into life’s rising and falling cultivates essential happiness and true freedom.

Leading through the Body: Dancing Into Wholeness

With Bettina Rothe

May 15 - 20, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
Lead your life with conscious embodiment. Become more resilient, present, and confident through body-based leadership principles, 5Rhythms® movement, and Japanese wooden sword practices.

Heart of the Condor: Andean Wisdom Teachings

With Jhaimy Alvarez Acosta

May 20 - 24, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
Ground yourself in the wisdom teachings of the Andes while discovering the keys to harmonizing the three bodies of the serpent (mind), puma (body), and condor (soul). Connect to your heart, Mother Earth, and the Cosmos with the support of traditional Andean Indigenous knowledge, passed down through generations since time immemorial.

Harmonizing Yin & Yang: Foundations, Form & Function

With Paul Bromley

May 24 - 29, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
The Chinese Internal Arts of Tai Chi and Qi Gong regulate the constantly transforming balance between Yin and Yang in the body, mind, and spirit. Through solo and partner practice, we deepen our awareness of these polarities and utilize them to increase harmony with ourselves, others, and nature.

Mindful Self-Compassion

With Megan Prager and Martin Thomson-Jones, PhD

May 24 - 29, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
Cultivate the skill of self-compassion in this empirically supported training program. Self-compassion is strongly associated with greater emotional well-being, less anxiety and depression, maintenance of healthy habits, and satisfying relationships.

Sea Kayaking Adventures Aboard Misty Isles

With Jonas Fineman and Kai Harvey

May 29 - June 3, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
Learn to kayak on the pristine and protected waters around Cortes Island, from the comfort of the 43 foot Schooner, Misty Isles. Certified local guides share their knowledge and passion for the coast. All levels of experience welcome. Limited to 12 participants. Jonas Fineman is the seasoned sea captain and owner of Misty Isles. Kai Harvey is a wilderness guide and owner of Cortes Kayaks. They will also be offering this program on Sept 11-16. mistyislesadventures.com

Core Matter: Yamuna® Body Rolling & Pilates Essentials

With Namchi Bazar, BFA

May 29 - June 3, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Mar 31, 2020.
Activate a sense of centered well-being with simple routines easily practiced at home. Learn exercises that gently massage and adjust the whole body - inviting strength, release, and rejuvenation. Let go of unproductive movement patterns and heal injury. Namchi Bazar developed her unique somatic approach with 25+ years as a professional dancer, Pilates Instructor, Yamuna® Body Rolling Practitioner and mother of three.

Discover the Essence of Tantra (Vancouver)

With Yogacharini Maitreyi

June 6 - 7, 2020
UBC Liu Institute, 6476 NW Marine Dr, Vancouver
Traditional Tantra is the way and alchemy of the heart. Dance reality into its true essence by clearing energetic imbalances. Elevate, channel and refine your emotions through Arkaya purification tools from the South Indian mystical traditions. Celebrate the beauty and harmony of reconnection with yourself and in relationships. Stabilize into spiritual maturity with an authentic heart-centred guide. All levels welcome.

Hollyhock Sampler June

June 7 - 10, 2020
Cortes Island
3 Perfect Nights - Enjoy a taste of adventure and relaxation with our Hollyhock Sampler: 2 one-hour massage or healing art treatments New! 1 guided stand-up paddle board adventure OR private yoga session Access to Hollyhock amenities Abundant natural beauty, ocean front beach, and hiking trails French intensive garden – ideal setting for photography, painting, meditating Ocean-view hot tubs Complimentary activities: Morning meditation and yoga, naturalist events (morning rows, afternoon guided hikes, garden tours) By-donation Presenter Evenings from visiting faculty *based on weather conditions, stand-up paddle board may be replaced by an additional massage session I have known about Hollyhock for 30 years and it has been…

Luminous Threshold: The Art of the Personal Altar

With Lisa Gibbons

June 7 - 11, 2020
Cortes Island
What do you find sacred and how do you express it? Create a personal altar and learn techniques such as creating antiqued surfaces, acrylic painting, collage, assemblage, and using beeswax and gold leaf. Deepen your experience with meditation, journalling, and guided nature inquiry. Art materials provided.

Beekeeping & Hive Health

With Steve Sheppard, PhD

June 7 - 12, 2020
Cortes Island
Honey bees and humans have interacted for thousands of years. Use your senses fully to engage in a process that strives to build a mutually beneficial relationship with them. Awareness of the complexity of this highly social organism is key to appreciating the art of mindful beekeeping. All experience levels welcome.

Fostering Resilience for Health Professionals

With Mark Lau, PhD and Andrea Grabovac, MD

June 7 - 12, 2020
Cortes Island
Revitalize, restore, and build resilience during this Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) meditation retreat for physicians, health professionals, and their partners. This retreat includes teacher-guided mindfulness practice and discussion, with a focus on meditation technique. Drs. Lau and Grabovac, MBCT mentors with the UCSD Mindfulness-Based Professional Training Institute, also offer a 5-day MBCT Professional Training at Hollyhock, Sep 25-30.

Going Under the Words: Creating Fiction & Memoir

With Shaena Lambert

June 12 - 17, 2020
Cortes Island
Creating fiction and memoir is part craft, part mystery. Discover ways to shuck the skin of your words, to find the beating heart. Connect with your voice, and wind drama and action into your writing’s DNA. Experience the creative thrill of going deeper.

Summer Solstice: Yoga, Ritual, Meditation

With Mara Branscombe

June 17 - 21, 2020
Cortes Island
Summer solstice honours the earth’s most dynamic time of expansion, growth, and abundance. Join the celebration with the art of breath, the healing of yoga, mindful meditation, and shamanic practices. Luminously integrate heart, body, and mind.

Tools for Awesome Living

With Maritza Schafer

June 21 - 25, 2020
Cortes Island
Transform the physical, mental, emotional, sexual, and spiritual aspects of yourself and your life using joy, courage, action, truth, and faith as your guiding principles. Learn and immediately apply effective tools for awesome living. Embrace practices that have the biggest impact on your overall well-being.

Write From Power: Accessing Your Stories

With Janelle Hanchett

June 29 - July 3, 2020
Cortes Island
Feeling blocked or bored by your writing? Or wanting to get back into writing after a long hiatus? Discuss how to write in spite of fear, doubt, and the ever-looming sense of not being a “real” writer. Learn to tell the difference between useless and valuable feedback and how to justify writing as a priority even if you don’t “make money” at it.

Informed by Cancer: Yoga Therapy for Integration

With Anne Pitman

June 29 - July 3, 2020
Cortes Island
Cancer changes us. Join with community in reflection and recovery and as we explore breath, embodied movement, storytelling, and stepping into this "more time". Offer generous listening to the lingering shock of diagnosis, and the anxiety and fear of recurrence. Find agency, authenticity, and a trued path to walk in your post-cancer days, informed by body, breath and soul.

Tantra for Couples: Cultivating Sacred Intimacy

With Devi Ward Erickson and Chris Erickson, PhD

June 29 - July 3, 2020
Tantra is an ancient spiritual science designed to activate, heal, and enrich every area of life. Learn practical and effective Tantric methods to cultivate a deeply sacred, utterly joyful, and profoundly pleasurable intimate connection - in and out of the bedroom.

Hollyhock Sampler July

July 3 - 6, 2020
Cortes Island
3 Perfect Nights - Enjoy a taste of adventure and relaxation with our Hollyhock Sampler: 2 one-hour massage or healing art treatments New! 1 guided stand-up paddle board adventure OR private yoga session Access to Hollyhock amenities Abundant natural beauty, ocean front beach, and hiking trails French intensive garden – ideal setting for photography, painting, meditating Ocean-view hot tubs Complimentary activities: Morning meditation and yoga, naturalist events (morning rows, afternoon guided hikes, garden tours) By-donation Presenter Evenings from visiting faculty *based on weather conditions, stand-up paddle board may be replaced by an additional massage session I have known about Hollyhock for 30 years and it has been…

Joy of Ukulele | Two Programs for Beginners and for Advancing Mastery

With Kimo Hussey

July 3 - 8, 2020
Cortes Island
Move beyond basic ukulele technique and establish effective practice strategies to master this joyful instrument. Explore fretboard geography, embellished chords, signature progressions, melodies, harmonies, and critical listening. Kanikapalu (jam sessions) and optional hula lessons culminate in a final performance.

Discover Cortes: Nature Adventures

With Bill Ophoff

July 3 - 8, 2020
Cortes Island
With birds and wildflowers at their vibrant peak, explore Cortes Island’s magnificent rainforest and teeming waters. Learn about the stars, the sea stars, and everything in between on this adventure of inspiring hikes, kayaking, beach walks, and a sailing excursion to Mitlenatch Island – the “Galapagos” of the Georgia Strait. Limit of 12 participants.

Stand Up Paddle Board (SUP) Yoga

With Marie Soleil Boisvert

July 8 - 12, 2020
Imagine practicing yoga while floating on the clear ocean water surrounding Cortes Island. Trade in your yoga mat for a stand-up paddleboard and challenge your sense of balance! Find your centre; practicing awareness, mindfulness, and presence. Expect the unexpected, and lots of laughter! Limited to 12 participants.

The Future of Children: Transforming the Educational Paradigm

With Phillip Moore, Gabriela Masala and Solomon Masala

July 8 - 12, 2020
Cortes Island
Experience a new educational paradigm and activate the wisdom of the inner child. Connect with self, community, and nature through awakening to love-based ways of exploring, learning, and teaching. Expand awareness through imagination, songs, stories, and meditation. Ages 14+

Eat Real to Heal: Boost Immunity & Reverse Chronic Disease

With Nicolette Richer

July 8 - 12, 2020
Cortes Island
Eat Real to Heal is a new way of eating and living based on a 100-year-old metabolic nutritional therapy. Rebuild your metabolism, kick-start your immune system, regenerate your tissues, and heal your body from the inside out.

Drawing Towards the Earth: Making Journals for Life

With S. Portico Bowman

July 12 - 16, 2020
Cortes Island
Learn how to draw with graphite, charcoal, red ocher, and other earth elements. Drawing from the life and works of Paulus Berensohn (1933-2017), you’ll also create a coptic stitch Arcadia Playshop journal and a bookmark in the Bargello tapestry technique. Berensohn’s healing arcadia frames the path to ecological recovery on a global scale.

Metamorphosis: Unlocking Unconscious Tension

With Cindy Silverlock

July 16 - 19, 2020
Cortes Island
Unconscious tension is the chaotic energy underneath abuse, addiction, relationship issues, global dilemmas, and the inability to move past grief or trauma. Change your life by easing deep tension with awareness and a gentle touch practice - for use on self, others, and animals.

Horse Play for Families

With Oriane Lee Johnston

July 16 - 19, 2020
Make friends with the horses on a farm near Hollyhock. Learn to groom, lead, and communicate with them, and to play in the field with empathy and self-assurance. Kids ages 9+, with an adult. Limited to 12 participants.

Aung Medical Qi Gong

With Dr. Steven K.H. Aung, CM, MD, OMD, PhD

July 16 - 19, 2020
Cortes Island
Realign vital energies with this ancient Chinese wellness practice of breath work, concentration, and movement. Learn hands-on how to intuit, assess, harmonize, and heal vital Qi for yourself and loved ones.

The Mystery of the Soul

With Margie Gillis and Thomas Atum O'Kane, PhD

July 19 - 24, 2020
Cortes Island
The mystery of the soul can be embraced, experienced, danced, and explored, but never exhausted or diminished. Reclaim and celebrate the mystery of your soul with dance and spiritual teachings.

Healing Family & Ancestors: Ritual and Resonant Family Constellations

With Jill Purce

July 24 - 29, 2020
Cortes Island
Transform inherited patterns into magical blessings. Jill’s unique ceremonial, shamanic healing rites, using chant and family constellations, restore coherence within family fields in oracular ways, unavailable in normal therapy. Excluded relations are reintegrated as powerful allies. Relatives do not need to be living. Individuals and families welcome.

Time of Transition

With Thomas Atum O'Kane, PhD

July 24 - 29, 2020
Cortes Island
Life changes are times of passion and opportunity. Working with teachings from Jungian psychology and various spiritual traditions, detach and break free from old roles and expectations. Ritual, reflection, and wisdom guide your journey and passage toward your new sense of self. Thomas Atum O’Kane, PhD, holds a doctorate degree in transpersonal psychology and is a former senior teacher in the Sufi Order International. atumokane.com

Dancing from the Inside Out

With Margie Gillis

July 24 - 29, 2020
Cortes Island
Move into your body’s experiential wisdom to reveal the soul in motion. Listen to your body’s inner impulses, conversations, and emotions to deepen your well-being along with your artistic and creative expression. An exceptional opportunity. All levels welcome. -- Margie Gillis is an internationally acclaimed dancer/choreographer, performing for 40+ years, and is an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Song of the Drum, Dance of Life

With Gordy Ryan and Zoë Ryan

July 24 - 29, 2020
Bumbamba! Join us in a celebration of the 30th Anniversary of the music and dance of the Olatunji Drums of Passion at Hollyhock. Activate the fire in your hands, the beat in your feet, and the song in your heart on a soulful journey to the well of inspiration in our reunion at the Olatunji Hall.

Singing in the Vocal River

With Rhiannon

July 28 - August 2, 2020
Rhiannon’s expertise lies with the connection between body and voice, teaching the invention of melody, harmony, rhythm, language, and story while guiding the singer towards the heart and soul of their musical self.

Science & Spiritual Practices

With Rupert Sheldrake, Merlin Sheldrake and Cosmo Sheldrake

July 29 - August 2, 2020
Science sheds new light on many spiritual practices, including rituals, pilgrimage, meditation, chanting, and rites of passage. Explore spiritual traditions and reconnect with the natural world through singing, listening, looking, telling stories, thinking, and having fun.

Building a Vocal Community™

With Ysaÿe Barnwell, PhD

July 30 - August 2, 2020
An awesome power emerges when uncommon voices are blended for the common good. Experience traditional African music, African American spirituals, and civil rights anthems while learning about their extraordinary historical, social, and political context. Everyone welcome.

Weaving Embodied Liberation

With Yvette Murrell, Jennifer Moore and Michelle Phillips

August 2 - 7, 2020
Cortes Island
Conjure a liberatory vibration that integrates ritual and play. Co-create movement, story, and sound for designing intuitive loveships with ourselves, each other, and the land. Let’s dream together with radical imagination toward Liberation!

Fearless Abstract Painting

With Samantha daSilva

August 7 - 12, 2020
Cortes Island
The process of creating evolves into ideas. Ditch the fear and approach your next blank canvas with excitement and creative energy! Using rollers, tables, acrylics, canvas manipulation, plaster, sand, and wood shavings, create ethereal textured abstracts and become the fearless artist of your dreams! No previous experience necessary.

Spoken Song: Discover Your Musical Mind

With Chloë Goodchild and Rebecca Nash

August 7 - 12, 2020
Cortes Island
Discover the art of spoken and sung voice as creative metaphors for everyday life. Experience the richness of your own authentic vocal expression; inspired by improvisation, world music, classical, jazz, folk, ecstatic poetry, devotional chant, breathwork, and a shared love of silence. For amateurs and professionals alike.

Falling Awake: The Ecology of Wonder

With David Abram

August 7 - 12, 2020
Awaken your animal intelligence, shake your senses free from outmoded concepts, and invigorate your felt experience. Through elemental encounters with the land, creaturely shapeshifting, and heartfelt conversation, open a new relationship between your body and the breathing earth.

Sharing the Path: For Couples

With Judith Ansara & Robert Gass

August 12 - 17, 2020
Cortes Island
Rediscover and deepen the joy and intimacy of your loving partnership. Break free from negative patterns while learning practices of authenticity, self-responsibility, empathy, deep listening, problem solving, and sacred sexuality. Enjoy a deeply connecting time together and take home profound tools to support your life as a couple.

Hollyhock Sampler August

August 17 - 20, 2020
Cortes Island
3 Perfect Nights - Enjoy a taste of adventure and relaxation with our Hollyhock Sampler: 2 one-hour massage or healing art treatments New! 1 guided stand-up paddle board adventure OR private yoga session Access to Hollyhock amenities Abundant natural beauty, ocean front beach, and hiking trails French intensive garden – ideal setting for photography, painting, meditating Ocean-view hot tubs Complimentary activities: Morning meditation and yoga, naturalist events (morning rows, afternoon guided hikes, garden tours) By-donation Presenter Evenings from visiting faculty *based on weather conditions, stand-up paddle board may be replaced by an additional massage session I have known about Hollyhock for 30 years and it has been…

iPhone Photography for Everyone

With Dr. Charles Steinberg

August 17 - 22, 2020
Cortes Island
A high-quality camera is almost always in your bag or pocket! Learn how to use it to create artful images. Forget bulky gear and challenging editing. Go way beyond snapshots. Inspire your creativity, improve your skills, and learn the amazing functions of your phone camera with beautiful Cortes Island as your subject.

Discover Cortes: Nature Adventures

With Bill Ophoff

August 17 - 22, 2020
Cortes Island
With birds and wildflowers at their vibrant peak, explore Cortes Island’s magnificent rainforest and teeming waters. Learn about the stars, the sea stars, and everything in between on this adventure of inspiring hikes, kayaking, beach walks, and a sailing excursion to Mitlenatch Island – the “Galapagos” of the Georgia Strait. Limit of 12 participants.

Improv Your Life – For Life

With Joshua Townshend-Zellner

August 17 - 22, 2020
Cortes Island
Through harnessing the power of the creative process and deepening our commitment to “sound and movement,” we access new worlds. Work with unique theatrical techniques, writing, breathing exercises, and more, in order to allow your true self to emerge with fuller expression.

Sensory Awareness: Rediscovering Experiencing

With Judyth Weaver, PhD

August 22 - 27, 2020
Cortes Island
How can you know another until you know yourself? If you do not fully experience your own feelings, how can you understand the feelings of others? Sensory Awareness is the practice of deeply exploring your sensations and feeling your actions, reactions, and interactions from the inside out. Return to your natural resources and discover more authenticity and vitality.

The Art of Spiritual Guidance: Year Two

With Thomas Atum O'Kane, PhD

August 22 - 27, 2020
Cortes Island
Spiritual Guidance is an art, a gift, and a calling that has been long practiced in contemplative traditions to support spiritual development and personal transformation. This in-depth training takes an interfaith approach while encompassing insights from transpersonal and Jungian psychology. Open for new registrations in 2021.

Writing as a Spiritual Practice: The Healing Power of Telling Your Story

With Mark Matousek

August 22 - 27, 2020
Cortes Island
Memoir is a path of self-knowledge. Learn to tell the whole truth and your essential stories will emerge, bringing insight and transpersonal wisdom. Writing exercises and group dialogue guide you toward creative discovery, increased mindfulness, and better composition. Everyone welcome.

Hollyhock Sampler September

September 1 - 4, 2020
Cortes Island
3 Perfect Nights - Enjoy a taste of adventure and relaxation with our Hollyhock Sampler: 2 one-hour massage or healing art treatments New! 1 guided stand-up paddle board adventure OR private yoga session Access to Hollyhock amenities Abundant natural beauty, ocean front beach, and hiking trails French intensive garden – ideal setting for photography, painting, meditating Ocean-view hot tubs Complimentary activities: Morning meditation and yoga, naturalist events (morning rows, afternoon guided hikes, garden tours) By-donation Presenter Evenings from visiting faculty *based on weather conditions, stand-up paddle board may be replaced by an additional massage session I have known about Hollyhock for 30 years and it has been…

A Journey of Sound, Movement & Breath

With Michael Mayzel & Ayi Wong and Maria Filippone

September 1 - 6, 2020
Cortes Island
Connect to your inner process with therapeutic Sound Journeys, and learn about the foundations of sound healing. Enjoy grounding and dynamic yoga practices, and combine chanting with movement. Auditory vibration, movement, stillness, and breath provide the groundwork for healing and transformation.

Forest to Sea: Earth Based Medicine

With Yarrow Willard

September 1 - 6, 2020
Cortes Island
Awaken your inner herbalist and deepen your connection to the healing power of nature. Learn to create lasting health practices, make herbal medicines, and sharpen your senses as you build relationships with the plants, mushrooms, and seaweeds of the West Coast.

Vibrant Pastel Landscapes

With David Shkolny

September 6 - 11, 2020
Cortes Island
Create vibrant landscapes in soft pastel, a versatile and expressive medium. Using photo references as well as plein air outings, experience the unique opportunities that pastel provides. No prior experience necessary, suitable for all skill levels. A supply list will be provided.

Flying SOULO: Your Story on Stage

With Tracey Erin Smith

September 6 - 11, 2020
Cortes Island
Transform your life’s stories into a Solo Theatre Show or Keynote. Through improvisation, writing exercises, and one-on-one coaching, uncover the stories that need to be told and reveal your truth in a powerful and entertaining show. Culminates in a short performance of the work created in class.

Move Without Pain: Essential Somatics (Sept 6)

With Martha Peterson

September 6 - 11, 2020
Cortes Island
This program is also offered on Sept 11-16, click here.
Learn to use your brain to reverse the physical effects of stress, restore brain to muscle connection, and defy creaky old age. Create a routine of easy, safe, and essential Somatic Movements to eliminate chronic pain and keep you moving fluidly and effortlessly throughout your life.

Sea Kayaking Adventures Aboard Misty Isles

With Jonas Fineman and Kai Harvey

September 11 - 16, 2020
Cortes Island
Learn to kayak on the pristine and protected waters around Cortes Island, from the comfort of the 43 foot Schooner, Misty Isles. Certified local guides share their knowledge and passion for the coast. All levels of experience welcome. Limited to 12 participants. Jonas Fineman is the seasoned sea captain and owner of Misty Isles. Kai Harvey is a wilderness guide and owner of Cortes Kayaks. They will also be offering this program on May 29-June 3 mistyislesadventures.com

Writing the Other

With Nisi Shawl and K. Tempest Bradford

September 11 - 16, 2020
Cortes Island
Writers know it’s important to include characters from different identities in their work. Many are afraid to create characters whose identity differs from their own and worry about getting it offensively wrong. But representation is too important to ignore. Learn how to do it well

Move Without Pain: Essential Somatics (Sept 11)

With Martha Peterson

September 11 - 16, 2020
Cortes Island
This program is also offered on Sept 6-11, click here.
Learn to use your brain to reverse the physical effects of stress, restore brain to muscle connection, and defy creaky old age. Create a routine of easy, safe, and essential Somatic Movements to eliminate chronic pain and keep you moving fluidly and effortlessly throughout your life.

Earth Wisdom, Horse Wisdom: A Nature Retreat with Horses

With Oriane Lee Johnston and Kera Willis

September 11 - 14, 2020
Cortes Island
Journey into the heart of the world with horses as our guides. Practice breath and body meditation, hands-on touch, joyful play with the herd, and a journey ride on horseback. Limited to 12 participants.

Your Soul’s Plan: Awakening to Your Life Purpose (Vancouver)

With Robert Schwartz

September 12 - 13, 2020
UBC Liu Institute
What soul plan did you make before you were born? What circumstances and relationships did you choose and why? Find the answers in a “Between Lives Soul Regression,” along with insight, healing, and a greater capacity for joy. Recognize life’s challenges as the great teachers and healers your soul intended them to be.

Psoma Yoga Therapy

With Donna Martin & Shelley Winton

September 20 - 25, 2020
Cortes Island
Experience a gentle body-mind/spirit practice for healing that can be integrated with Hakomi (mindfulness-based self-discovery). Learn how habitual tension and movement patterns may have psychological meaning, discover and transform the roots of unnecessary suffering, and find the keys to true health and freedom. No experience is necessary.

Beyond Interfaith: From Spiritual Misfits to Interconnected Communities

With Shahar Rabi, PhD

September 20 - 25, 2020
Cortes Island
Learn the tools and skills needed to establish trauma-informed methods of developing long-lasting and sustainable spiritual communities. Engage in meaningful dialogue about the future intersection of faith, psychology, and science. Bring home essential practices for today's diverse and complex world, and embody the heart of your contemplative life.

Peace, Poetry & Prayer

With Farah Nazarali

September 20 - 25, 2020
Peace is at the core of our being. Peace visionaries know that bringing peace into the world involves courage, collective action, and renewal of the spirit. This program combines peace, poetry, yogic practices, and universal prayers and rituals to dedicate ourselves to inner harmony, family reconciliation, reverence for the Earth, and peace in our world.

Mindfulness Meditation

With Robert Beatty

September 25 - 30, 2020
Cortes Island
Wake up from the trance of everyday life. You are not your moods, anxiety, compulsions, past wounds, or addictions. Awaken to the freedom, love, compassion, and joy that is your natural state. This program is held in silence (except sessions) — common areas on campus are shared spaces.

Ayurveda for Modern Life

With Insiya Rasiwala-Finn

September 30 - October 4, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Jul 31, 2020.
Experience the transformational wisdom of Ayurveda, India’s self-healing science. Up-level your vitality, purpose, and joy with yoga study, self-care, and mindful food practices. Ayurveda helps us live in true harmony with the rhythms of nature and the flow of life, so that we can experience authentic mind, body, and spirit well-being.

Whole Human Health: Functional Medicine 2.0

With Dr. Lawrence Cheng and Dr. Devon Christie

September 30 - October 5, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Jul 31, 2020.
Embody your well-being potential! Create your own personalized optimal wellness plan for lasting health and happiness informed by a synthesis of integrative and functional medicine, mind-body medicine, and leading-edge neurobiology. For anyone seeking an empowered approach to their own personal health.

From Age-ing to Sage-ing®: Deepening the Sage Within

With Annie Klein and Nancy Gray-Hemstock

October 5 - 9, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Jul 31, 2020.
“Sage-ing” is a new approach to growing older. Discover skills, philosophies, perspectives, and tools to improve the second half of your life. Recognize the value of experience, and learn to respond in practical and positive ways to the changes that occur as we age.

Wild Mushrooms & the Mycology of Consciousness

With Paul Stamets, D.Sc (Hon.)

October 5 - 9, 2020
Cortes Island
Save the world, one mushroom at a time. Fungi offer powerful, practical solutions to enhance both human and ecosystem health. Roam the wilds of Cortes Island and learn mushroom identification, easy-to-grow cultivation methods, as well as various culinary and medicinal applications. -- Paul Stamets, D.Sc., is a renowned, award-winning mycologist. The Star Trek Discovery series recently named a character - Astromycologist Starfleet Lt. Commander Stamets - in his honour.

Hollyhock Sampler October

October 9 - 12, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Jul 31, 2020.
3 Perfect Nights - Enjoy a taste of adventure and relaxation with our Hollyhock Sampler: 2 one-hour massage or healing art treatments New! 1 guided stand-up paddle board adventure OR private yoga session Access to Hollyhock amenities Abundant natural beauty, ocean front beach, and hiking trails French intensive garden – ideal setting for photography, painting, meditating Ocean-view hot tubs Complimentary activities: Morning meditation and yoga, naturalist events (morning rows, afternoon guided hikes, garden tours) By-donation Presenter Evenings from visiting faculty *based on weather conditions, stand-up paddle board may be replaced by an additional massage session I have known about Hollyhock for 30 years and it has been…

The Gift of Gratitude: Fall Yoga Retreat

With Fiji McAlpine

October 9 - 14, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Jul 31, 2020.
Gratitude enhances and enlivens every aspect of our life, and can be intentionally brought into our daily routines. Celebrate this season of gratitude with dynamic flow and nourishing yin yoga practices. Learn to mindfully connect to the present, allowing yourself the opportunity to ground and appreciate all that is.

Inner Economics: Your Relationship with Money

With Karen McAllister

October 9 - 14, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Jul 31, 2020.
Free yourself from your blocks around money! This personal inner work will benefit your community, relationships, and career or business. Achieve the financial results you need to thrive, not just survive, while staying in integrity with yourself and others along the way.

Wild Mushrooms & the Mycology of Consciousness

With Paul Stamets, D.Sc (Hon.)

October 14 - 18, 2020
Cortes Island
Save the world, one mushroom at a time. Fungi offer powerful, practical solutions to enhance both human and ecosystem health. Roam the wilds of Cortes Island and learn mushroom identification, easy-to-grow cultivation methods, as well as various culinary and medicinal applications. -- Paul Stamets, D.Sc., is a renowned, award-winning mycologist. The Star Trek Discovery series named a character - Astromycologist Starfleet Lt. Commander Stamets - in his honour.

Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) Levels 1-2 (Vancouver)

With Alina Frank & Dr. Craig Weiner

October 16 - 18, 2020
Blue Horizon Hotel, Garibaldi Room (31st floor)
Learn powerful evidence-based Clinical EFT tapping techniques to quickly and effectively create changes in negative emotions, thoughts, beliefs, and behaviours. This training is for individuals looking to use EFT for self-help, and to integrate it safely into professional client-based practices. -- Alina Frank & Dr. Craig Weiner, DC, are internationally respected EFT trainers and directors of the EFT Tapping Training Institute.

Alchemy of Forest Therapy: Week-Long Immersion

With Amos Clifford and Christy Thomson

October 18 - 25, 2020
Cortes Island
Book now and get 15% off listed prices. Offer valid until Jul 31, 2020.
When the discursive mind becomes quieter and the intelligence of the heart comes to the foreground, a new consciousness emerges. Forest Alchemy is our ongoing exploration of what happens when we connect head, heart, and body in the crucible of the forest.