Scoria World 

Playfulness, Imagination, Story Telling

These three simple, yet powerful, principles embody the work that Yara Komal is doing with Scoria, and it’s bound to resonate with many of you.

After falling into a Depression, Yara delved deep into researching the ways in which children’s play, thinking and creativity could help promote wellness and soon discovered a drastic improvement in her well-being.

Yara is now on a mission to inspire us all to reconnect with the “playful, creative & imaginative qualities we had [as] children.”

A quick peek at her website will have you fawning over beautifully illustrated, cork yoga mats and accessories, but look a little closer, and you’ll notice the playful touches dusted around Scoria’s website and social media accounts. While practicing yoga can certainly feel inaccessible and anxiety-provoking, Yara has managed to make it feel approachable and fun, without the pressure to practice a particular way. They even carry a play-mat version for kids!

Beyond yoga, Scoria has partnered with Feeding Children Everywhere, a Non-Profit organization providing plant-based, sustainable meals to children in need. Every purchase of a yoga mat donates 10 meals to the organization.

All around, embracing playfulness and creating is something I think all of us should be leaning into, and Yara and her team provide such a great reminder that being silly and playful can be an important tool for self care.
 

Backcountry Wok

What began as a week eating bland, plastic-wrapped backpacking meals begged the question “why are we contributing to plastic waste while we’re outdoors appreciating nature?”. A powerful reflection I think many of us can relate to.

From there, Melanie Ang, Founder of Backcountry Wok, began a journey to completely re-think backpacking meals all-together. She and her incredible team were determined to integrate three values into their meals:

(1) Eco-Friendly,
(2) Multi-cultural and
(3) Locally Sourced.

Not only were dehydrated meals on the market wrapped in layers of wasteful materials like plastic and aluminum foil, but they didn’t reflect the diversity of individuals exploring the outdoors. This small business with a mighty mission is tackling all of this head-on.

Not only have they introduced three dehydrated Asian meals to date, but they’re vegan, too, appealing to a wider demographic. Their packaging is 100% compostable, setting the stage for others to follow suit and showing that it is, in fact, possible.

Sourcing their ingredients locally also means supporting their community and preventing food waste by using food that may otherwise be discarded.

Codezilla Kids 

“Kids should learn how to code [along] with the alphabet!”

When I think of real, powerful change, I think of those who occupy the younger generations, and I feel an important responsibility to give them the tools they need to make a difference.

Sherri Allian and her incredible powerhouse of a team are making amazing waves in youth education by teaching STEM and coding skills to children as young as 4 years old! The fun and educational programming Codezilla provides encompass a plethora of age groups and teach these often-intimidating skills in an empowering and approachable way.

They host coding parties, camps, after school programs and even STEM nights, and are working hard to make learning imperative skills like coding as accessible as possible. Currently, they’re offering subsidized spots within their programming and teach their programs in elementary and middle schools all across the Greater Toronto Area.

As our world becomes increasingly tech-centred, creating accessible programs in which children- and especially young girls- can learn STEM skills is important for their success.

Consistently inspired by her two young daughters, it’s evident that the innovation and approachability of Codezilla’s initiatives are far-reaching, and will continue to grow across Canada.