Lauren Wood on Why Yogi Tea’s Foundation Isn’t Just About Giving Back – It’s About Inspiring a Better Future

Lauren Wood introduces her re-energized Yogi Foundation, signaling a new chapter of philanthropic support for global good. Historically a business-to-business tea company for over 50 years, Yogi has evolved into a direct-to-consumer brand with a strong, values-driven voice. In this interview, Wood highlights the company’s deep integrity, demonstrated through sustainable sourcing, B Corp certification, and awards for religious freedom and employer choice.

The Foundation is committed to innovative storytelling, particularly through a new series of films that reimagine the narrative of farming communities from which Yogi sources spices like ginger, cinnamon and cardamom in India, Sri Lanka and Guatemala. These films co-created with communities and elevated by “people of influence” (celebrities) aim to foster appreciation and connection to the origins of ingredients.

The Yogi Foundation’s next chapter seeks to fill a gap in the philanthropic landscape by focusing on inspiring possibility and making good visible. Rather than reinventing solutions for issues like climate change, the foundation plans to partner with existing, well-funded expert organizations. Its core mission is to elevate positive examples and reframe global challenges, believing that focusing on good expands it, ultimately inspiring a reimagined future.