Lara Saguisag was born and raised in Manila, Philippines. She moved to the United States for graduate study in children’s literature, eventually earning a doctorate in Childhood Studies from Rutgers University-Camden. She is currently the Georgiou Chair of Children’s Literature and Literacy at New York University. Through research, teaching, and community service, she approaches children’s narratives as platforms for antiracist education and environmental justice. 

Lara has been practicing yoga consistently for the past decade. She completed her 200-hr Teaching Training through Yogawood as well as the Prison Yoga Project’s Foundational Training: Yoga Through the Lens of Trauma and Incarceration. She was drawn to Yoga 4 Philly’s mission to make yoga accessible to everyone. She is grateful to be part of an organization that sees yoga as a practice not just of self-care, but also of community care.

Lara believes that we can respond to crisis through acts of care, sharing of stories, and recommitment to yogic practices such as non-violence, non-possessiveness, and self-reflection. These practices can help us to value ourselves, feel more connected to and respectful of human and nonhuman forms of life, and allow us to foster reciprocal relationships in our social and natural environments.