When you talk about your mission with Bindu, you often bring up the concept of Dharma - a yogic principle. Please explain.

Alesha Carmela: Dharma is a profound and multifaceted concept in Eastern philosophy, often translated as duty, purpose, or path. But in the context of Non-Dual Tantric philosophy, Dharma isn’t something external we need to seek—it is already alive within us, an innate expression of our deepest truth. It’s not a rigid set of rules but a dynamic force that emerges when we align with our essence.

At Bindu Institute, our mission is deeply intertwined with this idea. In many ways, Bindu itself is the Dharma of each of us as co-founders. The vision for Bindu lived within Suzanne for over a decade before she shared it with us—a culmination of her life’s work. When she brought it to me, I felt an immediate calling. Each of us—Suzanne, Vanina, and I—bring something unique to this shared purpose: Suzanne’s PhD in Psychology and deep expertise in education, Vanina and my corporate backgrounds, and our collective commitment to wellbeing.

Together, we are weaving a new paradigm of healing and leadership education—one that integrates the best of Western medicine with the depth of traditional wisdom practices. We’ve personally experienced the power of this fusion, and we know the world is ready to heal. Our Dharma is to help guide that transformation by educating the next generation of leaders in holistic health.

From your observations: What is the current state of Holistic Health Sciences in the world?

Alesha Carmela: Great question, and one that doesn’t have a simple answer. Holistic Health Sciences remain quite fragmented, and in many ways, they are still catching up. Access to holistic health options varies significantly by country and by practitioner.

Some countries, like Canada and Switzerland, are leading the way in integrating holistic health into their healthcare systems. Having lived in Switzerland for nearly a decade, I experienced firsthand the breadth of professionals available—every specialty was represented, from naturopathy to osteopathy to Chinese medicine. If you had extended insurance coverage for alternative health, up to 80% of natural treatment costs were reimbursed. I’ve heard that Canada offers similar integrative options within its healthcare system.

However, even in these more progressive environments, most practitioners remain highly specialized. What I personally seek—and what I believe is key to true holistic health—is professionals who have studied beyond their primary field. The most effective healers are those who understand the body as an interconnected system rather than as isolated parts. In contrast, many allopathic practitioners are trained to view each system separately, missing the intricate relationships that drive overall health.

The exciting part is that modern science is now validating what ancient wisdom traditions have known for centuries. Take fascia, for example—the connective tissue that Western medicine once saw as merely structural. Only recently has science confirmed what Eastern traditions have long understood: fascia is a dynamic, conductive network that moves energy throughout the body. This discovery directly aligns with the concepts of Meridians in Chinese medicine and Nadis in Yogic science.

Similarly, in the realm of women’s health—especially perimenopause—modern research is still in its infancy. Science is just beginning to uncover what holistic and traditional medicine have known for generations. In many ways, modern medicine is in "catch-up mode," making this a pivotal time to bridge ancient wisdom with scientific advancements. By doing so, we can create more effective approaches to both healing and prevention.

You have set a significant goal in bringing holistic health into the formal framework of a Masters Program. Please share some of the challenges you faced along the way and how you overcame them.

Alesha Carmela: Yes, our vision is bold, and we see this as a legacy project—something that will continue for generations to come. However, bringing holistic health into a formal academic framework has been an evolving journey, shaped by both challenges and realizations.

One of our most significant challenges was running out of funding. After our initial seed investment, we hit the ground running, building a small team and developing an extensive range of offerings for our e-learning platform. In hindsight, we had thrown ourselves into rapid expansion without realizing that we were drifting out of alignment with our core values. We created over 30 programs and multiple launches, but the model we were pursuing wasn’t truly reflective of our mission.

We exhausted our resources—time, energy, and funding. At that moment, it felt like a major setback. But in reality, it was a necessary pause—one that forced us to step back, realign, and reassess our path. As co-founders, we reconnected with our values and used the very tools we teach, including Human Design, to understand our strengths and how we best function as a team. This introspection led to a breakthrough realization: we weren’t meant to be another platform offering generalized wellness programs. Our expertise was in higher education—training professionals and leaders.

This shift in perspective led us to develop the concept of B2P—Business to Professionals. Instead of focusing solely on consumer education, we saw the greater impact in equipping professionals—particularly medical practitioners—with holistic tools that could complement allopathic medicine. Conversations with doctors confirmed the growing need for an integrative approach to healthcare, reinforcing our direction. Additionally, our corporate backgrounds revealed another opportunity: supporting organizations in building cultures of well-being.

In the end, what seemed like a major obstacle became our greatest learning moment. Challenges are inevitable, but they hold the potential to refine and strengthen our mission. Our journey with Bindu has been proof that setbacks are often the stepping stones to alignment and clarity.

The expertise of your faculty board members ranges from yogic sciences to Eastern philosophy, meditation, mystic arts, holistic medicine, psychology, traditional Chinese medicine, organizational well-being, and other fascinating areas in the world of wellness and holistic health. What was the process of bringing your faculty together?

Alesha Carmela: This was one of the most organic and effortless parts of our journey—though I’m sure it will continue to evolve as we grow. Each of us as co-founders has spent decades immersed in the world of wellness, building strong relationships with incredible teachers and facilitators along the way. In particular, Suzanne has an extraordinary breadth of connections with renowned faculty and experts across various disciplines.

What makes our faculty truly special is that they don’t just teach holistic health—they embody it. Each of them has spent years, often decades, studying multiple modalities, deepening their own knowledge through immersive training, advanced education, and direct experience. Because of this, many of them are able to teach across multiple subject areas, offering a truly integrative perspective.

To gain foundational knowledge in all of the disciplines we cover, one would typically need to undertake years of study across numerous programs. What we offer in our Holistic Master’s Program is a rare opportunity—bringing together these incredible minds and teachings into one unified, comprehensive curriculum. Witnessing this faculty come together has been an awe-inspiring experience, and we know their collective wisdom will shape the next generation of leaders in holistic health.

What are the Mystic arts?

Alesha Carmela: The Mystical Arts study area is one that I personally love because it weaves together ancient wisdom, spiritual sciences, and transformative healing practices into a cohesive and deeply impactful discipline. At Bindu Institute, we take a rigorous academic and experiential approach, exploring shamanic wisdom, plant medicine traditions, ceremonial facilitation, sound and energy healing, somatic integration, breathwork, and movement.

One of the most fascinating aspects of this field is its historical and philosophical depth—we examine how mystical traditions evolved, how the scientific revolution shaped perceptions of consciousness and healing, and how these wisdom holders and sacred lineages navigated societal shifts. Our students learn not just the practices themselves but also the context, ethics, and cultural responsibility needed to engage with these traditions in a way that is both respectful and impactful in modern healing spaces.

In recent years, there has been a surge of interest in plant medicines, but having spent years immersed in this space, I’ve seen firsthand how critical it is to have a knowledgeable and experienced facilitator guiding the process. A ceremony is just the beginning—the real transformation happens in the integration phase, when individuals take their insights and truly apply them to their lives, healing, and personal development. This is why we ensure our students gain not only mystical and shamanic training but also foundational knowledge in psychology, trauma-informed care, and holistic wellness—giving them the tools to support and guide others through the full arc of healing and self-discovery.

Ultimately, Mystical Arts is about bridging ancient and modern approaches to well-being. Our graduates emerge as skilled practitioners, facilitators, and guides, capable of working in ceremonial, therapeutic, and wellness settings. Whether it’s through energy work, vibrational healing, movement, or altered states of consciousness, this field offers a profound way to explore the depths of human transformation and evolution.

How does your traditional formal education as an engineer, and your MBA help you achieve your entrepreneurial goals in the wellness and education industry today?

Alesha Carmela: My education and work in engineering taught me the importance of structure, form, and the inquisitive process of science—all essential elements of our reality and the systems that shape our world. I grew up with a very traditional mindset: excel in school, get a degree, secure a stable job with benefits and a pension. I even remember a school exercise that asked, Which is the better job: a trash collector or a rock star? The “correct” answer was the trash collector—because of the steady paycheck, health benefits, and financial security. That mindset shaped my early choices, and my natural skill in math and science led me down the path of engineering.

It wasn’t until my MBA at IMD that I was introduced to entrepreneurship, and it completely shifted my perspective. I found it fascinating to see an idea take form and become a reality, but I had no idea at the time that I would one day venture into this space myself. What truly transformed me during my MBA was an unexpected dive into personal development. IMD offered a unique elective—one-on-one Jungian therapy sessions—which encouraged us to go beneath the surface of social constructs and begin to uncover our true essence. I never expected to enjoy exploring my psyche so much, and the revelations I had during that year completely altered my trajectory.

This was the beginning of my personal journey, and when I later discovered the yogic lens of psychology, everything clicked. Yoga and dance had already been a huge part of my life for decades, cultivating my deep awe and reverence for movement, the human body, and the magic that unfolds when we truly connect them. Over time, I realized how my formal education and corporate experience could merge with my passion for well-being, creating a solid foundation for what would eventually become Bindu Institute.

I left the corporate world after my daughter was born, choosing to grow my family while also nurturing my first entrepreneurial venture, Gather Yoga. This was my first deep dive into building something from the ground up, and it came with invaluable lessons in resilience, trust, and evolution. More than just practicing and teaching, I found myself fostering a global community around well-being. Ultimately, that journey taught me two of the most profound entrepreneurial lessons:

1. The need for strong support to bring a vision to life—nothing is built alone.
2. The importance of timing—ideas flourish when the conditions are right.

Looking back, I can see how my path—from engineering to business, personal transformation, and wellness entrepreneurship—has woven together perfectly. Bindu Institute is the culmination of all these experiences, built on a foundation that balances structure with creativity, knowledge with wisdom, and logic with intuition.

Thank you!

#PRontheGO