We are animals that evolved through movement. Science now confirms how subtly intertwined is movement with body-mind development. Movement positively affects our own health, emotional moods, focused attention, memory and learning process to name just some.

On the contrary, all our “developed” societies have become primarily sedentary. We spend the majority of our time sitting, and consequently we have developed what has initially been called “diseases of captivity” because of the close similarities with the diseases suffered by animals in captivity. Actually, they are called “diseases of affluence” because they are generally suffered by the part of societies who have become wealthier and who can afford to “outsource” its vital movements, (e.g. movements related to food, transport, shelter, etc.), on someone else or something else.

The list of diseases of affluence related to our lifestyle go from obesity, heart diseases, diabetes, osteoporosis, cerebrovascular disease, some types of cancer, as well as attention deficit disorder, depression, anxiety, etc., etc.

THE ECOLOGICAL BODY practice wants to bring awareness over all of these with the purpose of empowering ourselves through the joy of movement. 

First of all, a change of perspective will allow us to bring movement into our everyday life, and not just as exercise at the end of a working day. Life offers plenty of opportunities to opt for movement: we can positively affect the design of our living environment (our homes, offices, clothes, transport, etc) as well as our everyday life choices. 

It becomes empowering because it brings awareness precisely of the choices we have. More importantly, what we choose regarding movement will affect our life and also the life of other human and non human beings. 

As a corpus of practices we will use a variety of elements going from  Tai Chi, to Contact Improvisation, Tango and Physical theatre. Tai chi provides dynamic grounding and softness. Contact and Tango: the possibility to relate with others via music, touch and play. And Physical theatre proposals will provide possibilities of affirmative expression and creativity. 

To read and analyse our practice, we will bring together elements from Biomecanics, Ecology and Bionergetics. From these perspectives we will ask ourselves how our movements affect our biology? What could be e.g the consequences in short and long term of a specific movement? 

We want to become movement gatherers so as to track the consequences of what we physically do in our muscles, bones, tendons, emotions, brains, society and Nature.  We want to trace the continuum between a physical movement and its progressive echoes going through our body-mind into the rest of the world