We started hejhej-mats because we were disappointed with the current range of yoga mats on the market. We had not found a mat that could meet our sustainability expectations. So we started hejhej-mats and developed an eco-friendly yoga mat made from recycled materials. At the same time, it is still a closed-loop product. An eco-friendly yoga mat alone does not make a sustainable start-up – but that’s what we aspire to be!
Sustainability is a fancy buzzword. However, as some of you may already know, the term encompasses more than just being eco-friendly and protecting our environment. It also has a social dimension. This also means equal opportunities. This means ensuring equal access to resources for all and many other sub-aspects. So as a company we are equally responsible for the impact we have on the social side as we are for the impact we have on the environment.
It’s not just about an eco-friendly yoga mat
With our production taking place exclusively in Germany, we can ensure that our hejhej-mats are produced under good working conditions and that everyone is paid fairly. Nevertheless, we also wanted to support people who are more disadvantaged than us. People who do not have the opportunity to study, go abroad and do not have regular access to healing yoga classes.
We are only a small start-up and we know that we can only make a small contribution. But we want to make it as high as possible. There are so many NGOs that are worth supporting. We, therefore, had to think carefully about how to make the biggest impact.
Children are the most valuable resource on our planet. Educating children means preventing them from making the same mistakes that our and older generations have made. That’s how we came across the Earth Child Project, an NGO based in Cape Town, South Africa.
The Earth Child Project dedicates its work to support children in disadvantaged communities by providing them with access to yoga classes, environmental education and regular outings in nature. We fell in love with this NGO from the beginning and so we decided to make the Earth Child Project part of our sustainable business and part of our eco-friendly and closed-loop yoga mat.
Sustainability is the foundation of hejhej-mats
We were so happy to actually see the great work that Earth Child Project is doing on the ground. Through regular access to yoga classes, the children are more balanced, less likely to get involved in gang violence and other crimes. The environmental courses included in the curriculum give them a sense of our precious environment and teach them how to manage limited natural resources. The children harvested their own compost from their worm farm – and they were really proud to show us!
We started our support for the Earth Child Project with our crowdfunding campaign. In the campaign, our supporters had the opportunity to support not only hejhej-mats but also the Earth Child Project.
With the money raised, we were able to support a total of 12 children. 6 children can now participate in regular weekly yoga classes for one year and another 6 children can participate in the weekly environmental class for one year.
We look forward to working with the Earth Child Project in the future. With our production in Germany and our cooperation with the NGO in South Africa, we try to make the social impact of our eco-friendly yoga mat as high as possible.
From the first crowdfunding campaign until today, we donate a part to the Earth Child Project. In 2021, the NGO has recorded some new projects and captured them in a video for you. Exact figures on how much we have donated so far can be found in our impact report (at the bottom of the linked page), which we publish regularly.
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