BLOG Archives - Page 8 of 8 - Model Environment

WWOOFers / Grass Valley, CA

May 6, 2018January 29, 2013

If you do not know what a WWOOFer is? Start here!

Now meet Emily Vuong. Emily studied Nutritional Science at UC Berkeley. She is dedicating her life to living as peacefully as possible. We think her example of living is soo ME. Emily along with her friends Phil, Hannah and photographer Cory Goldberg show us a piece of daily life at the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Farm. To find organic gardening volunteer opportunities search WWOOF-USA or WWOOF-International.

ME: Emily how are you helping the world?

EV: Right now I am in the process of cultivating and practicing a positive attitude towards everything. Positive energy allows me to focus my energy on problems bigger than my own worries. It empowers me to see problems as challenges to learn from and to dedicate my life to something meaningful and greater than myself. My journey to inner peace and self-realization takes a lot of focus- I meditate daily and practice yoga to help. I like to use environmentally friendly household products like toothpaste, laundry detergent, etc. I rarely eat meat, My diet is mainly vegetarian. I never drink water bottles, they are a waste of plastic. Instead I carry a reusable canteen. I prefer to walk or bike rather than drive and I sort my trash, which is mainly compost because I only buy things I need and reuse as much as possible. I smile and pick flowers to give away. I was walking in Golden Gate Park and offered daisies to an elderly woman who was also walking along. A smile and flowers can really make someone’s day sweeter. I am curious and enlightened by all things- I think it makes life a lot brighter and joyful when you see ordinary things as beautiful and magnificent. That is why I am drawn to karma yoga, which means selfless service. We spend time in the garden everyday taking care of it and giving love to the vegetables and plants. It’s community living and everyone shares the work.

ME: Who are your role models?

EV: My mentor Nurredina, she is an amazing human being, with compassion and intelligence that she channels to serve others and peace leaders Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi.

ME: If you could give 10k to three causes which would it be?

EV: World Peace, education, and green energy.

ME: What are your top three environmental good deeds you wish the world would practice?

EV: Grow organic, eat organic, and local and eat mindfully. Health is wealth, and diet is a huge part of that.

Amy Hixson / Creating Opportunities

July 3, 2014December 29, 2012

Amy Hixson is a successful model that is now lending her influence to help build Create LA.

Amy has established herself in the modeling world and is now using her gifts and kind heartedness to help at-risk kids turn art into a career, as the new ambassador to Create LA; a non-profit organization that provides an environment and instructors to nurture many different kinds of artistic expression while also teaching the children how to curate a show so they can potentially turn their art into a career.

Create LA’s home is at the multi-artist Keystone Studios in Echo Park. Keystone has 40+ in house artist that hold quarterly shows in their 50k sq. ft. space. The proceeds from these shows go to fund Create LA and to continue to build out the space where the children will have their art classes. The artist have the opportunity to be instructors to the children, offering their unique skills and ideas, something much more than your average water color/egg carton crafts one may experience in common classroom settings.

Amy is an artist at Keystone. She was brought on as an ambassador for Create LA to further spread the program. She participates in the quarterly shows and continues to look for ways to reach more children. In 2013 Create LA will be introducing the program to the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles to bring the classroom opportunities to their side. Amy also plans to bring the program to more cities in the future. If you would like to donate funds or materials to help this great cause click here.

Amy often salvages the materials she uses in her pieces.
Recycled paper, rags, twine and acrylic paint are used to create art.

Closer look – old t-shirt, miscellaneous paper and yarn.

Three questions for fun:

ME/ If you could give 10k dollars to three charitable causes which ones would it be?

• ASPCA

• Kiva

• Cancer research

ME/ What three environmental good deeds do you wish everyone in the world would follow?

• Recycle (in many forms)

• Filter water instead of buying bottled

• Use hybrid cars

ME/ What did you learn in 2012?

I learned to listen to my heart and to speak my soul.

Jasmina Hdagha / Picks It Up in Venice

July 3, 2014December 7, 2012

Jasmina Hdagha is an exceptional person who finds time in her busy schedule to clean the neighborhoods that she lives and works in. Good for the rest of us! Jasmina was born in Croatia and raised in Morocco. At the age of 16 she was scouted by a model agent and was sent to Milan where she began working with the most prestigious fashion clients. She has enjoyed a successful career as a model. She lives in LA, is a level two Ashtanga yogi, practices parkour, and is preparing herself for her next role as an elite ninja assassin.