On behalf of the Committee of Management and the members of IYTA, I would like to honour the amazing and tireless work of Mary-Louise Parkinson as IYTA President from 2013 to 2017.

Mary-Louise, as Vice President, moved into the position of President when Mary Shellens moved to the UK before the AGM. Over the past 4 years you will have noticed that IYTA has moved into the modern world to have a much larger online presence.

We have a facebook account, twitter, instagram and a brand new website. Our backend databases were moved from excel spreadsheets to a more sophisticated platform along with our accounting records. IYTA transitioned to online banking and more efficient on line payments with credit card and paypal.

All of these improvements were due to the vision of Mary-Louise and with full support of the COM. Without her drive and energy much of this would not have happened and I for one am most grateful to have worked so closely with a yoga teacher of such great business acumen yet being humble in her manner.

Mary-Louise to some would seem a formidable force, however, she has always been willing to listen to everyone’s views and change direction if needed. Mary- Louise was exactly what IYTA needed to grow and consolidate our Teacher Training courses and has been a key developer in our Post Graduate Courses. Although Mary-Louise is stepping down from the COM to have a well deserved break, I will be looking forward to her advice over the next few years.

Astrid Pickup

President, IYTA

Pictured: Astrid Pickup (left) and Mary-Louise Parkinson (right)
Image credit: Ali Shambrook