13 Mindful Nonprofits to Donate to This Holiday

Want to give the gift of mindfulness this year? Celebrate the season by supporting organizations that bring greater awareness and compassion into the world.

One way to celebrate the season of giving is by “helping the helpers” who do good work in our communities, schools, and society. Here are 13 mindful nonprofits we think are worthy of your attention and donations.

13 Mindful Nonprofits Worthy of Your Attention

1) WholeSchool Mindfulness
Working with schools across the US to co-create an education system that advances well-being, community, and justice through mindfulness by establishing and supporting the position of a “Mindfulness Director” in schools. A Mindfulness Director is a school or district staff member whose role is to integrate mindfulness practices within their community.  


2) Mindful Life Project 
Working diligently to support the mental and emotional wellness of students, teachers, staff, leaders, and families through mindfulness programming. Creating a foundation of well-being at the individual level that leads to a connected school culture.


3) Inward Bound Mindfulness Education
Providing in-depth, highly relational mindfulness programming for youth and the parents and professionals who support them. Supporting future generations of heart-centered, diverse leaders who are prepared to respond to the challenges of their time.


4) Ivy Child International
A multicultural, multilingual and international nonprofit devoted to cultivating resilience and leadership in children, youth, families and communities through universal mindfulness education, prioritizing often overlooked populations.


5) Calmer Choice 
Serving school and communities in Cape Cod, grounded in current academic and scientific research on the benefits of social emotional learning, coupled with mindful awareness training for cognitive, emotional, physical, and social well-being and health.


6) Inner Explorer 
An audio-guided mindfulness program for education formatted on the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) protocol. Providing daily mindfulness practice for kids that builds the skills of attention, self awareness, emotional regulation.


7) Holistic Life Foundation
Serving yoga and mindfulness education to underserved residents in the Baltimore community and beyond. Helping children develop their inner lives through yoga, mindfulness, and self-care, committed to improving community well-being through evidence-based programs.


8) Urban Yoga Foundation 
Educating and empowering communities to be proactive about issues affecting their health. Integrating equity and diversity into mindfulness and yoga programs, encouraging individuals in communities to manage stress, and develop justice and health consciousness.


9)  Evolving Minds
A Baltimore, MD-based nonprofit that empowers leaders through teaching a mindfulness and resilience framework that builds community, centers well-being, and nurtures organizational cultures of care. Also offers leadership and resilience trainings that are tailored to university students. 


10) Foundation for a Mindful Society
A mindful nonprofit think tank working to bring about a more mindful world, fostering individual wellness, healthy relationships, and a more caring society. Supporting sector and community education, public policy advocacy, and social innovation initiatives.

11) Peace in Schools
Serving hundreds of teens every year Created Mindful Studies, a research-backed and for-credit class for teens in Portland, OR’s public high schools, as well as mindfulness trainings for adult professionals serving youth. Partners with Johns Hopkins University to study the impact of mindfulness for youth for Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). 

12) The Mindful Birthing and Parenting Foundation
An evidence-based mindfulness program for expectant parents, helping parents navigate the transformational processes of pregnancy and childbirth, as well as the intense, joyful, and sometimes stressful experiences of being a parent.

13) The Metta Institute
Advocates for reclaiming the soul in caregiving and restoring a life affirming and transformative relationship to dying. Establishing a national network of educators, advocates and guides for those facing life-threatening illness and the individuals and systems that serve them.


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