Close-up of a smiling woman with short, tousled black hair, wearing a gray shirt and small hoop earrings.

My story

The short story

I am a veteran of community legal centres, where I advocated as a lawyer for social justice, supporting people navigating systems not built for them. Over time, I have expanded my energy toward environmental justice. My work with the NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment, and Water and my studies in Environmental Management at the University of NSW led me to Deep Ecology, and in 2023 I began working closely with John Seed, the ‘Australian Father’ of Deep Ecology.

I now serve as a Director of the Institute for Deep Ecology, contributing to the organisation’s mission to advance ecological consciousness, community practice, and transformative education. As a facilitator, I have led more than 20+ Deep Ecology workshops in Sydney, Hobart, Perth, Zaragoza (Spain), and the USA, supporting participants to reconnect with Earth, each other, and our ecological identity.

The long story

My vocation sits at the intersection of activism, social justice, and ecological (re)awakening. Originally trained as a lawyer in commercial litigation, I later moved into advocacy and communications roles with community legal centres, supporting people navigating systems not built for them. I volunteered as a lawyer with Redfern Legal Centre, providing free legal advice, and worked with Inner City Legal Centre (an LGBTIQ rights advocacy centre) as their communications advocate during pivotal moments including the 2017 same-sex marriage equality campaign and the establishment of Australia’s first free Transgender Legal Service in 2018. During this time, I worked and spoke alongside the Honourable Justice Michael Kirby (Australian High Court Judge and international jurist) and Honourable Chief Justice Lucy McCallum. Alongside this work, I spent several years as an international conference producer, travelling across Australia, the USA, and South Africa.

Yet, throughout this time, there were what the poet David Whyte calls these “questions that have no right to go away,” and for me, there was one question that would not leave me; a quiet whisper of my heart: How can I live a life of meaning and purpose?

In 2019-20, after the dystopian-like bushfires in Australia and the death of some 1.25 billion animal kin, something in me shifted. I turned my attention toward biodiversity conservation and took on a role within the NSW Government environment sector. In 2023, I began my Master of Environmental Management at the University of NSW. That same year, I was offered a role as a casual teaching assistant (one of the many positions I still hold today). It was through UNSW that a visionary Professor, Tema Milstein, a leader in ecocultural communication and transformation, invited and introduced me to a Deep Ecology workshop at Narara Ecovillage. It was the first time I came across the work of Deep Ecology and John Seed - and I felt a deep gratitude for what felt like an invitation from life itself, inviting me to step into co-creation and participation with Gaia. It was sitting in the Truth Mandala for the first time that I experienced what I would describe as “my awakening”, and the quiet whisper of my heart grew louder - the questions of belonging, ecological longing, and a search for deeper meaning became hard to ignore.

I often describe this period as the moment I “stopped sleepwalking through my life.” Three months later, I would co-facilitate my first Deep Ecology workshop. A year later, in 2024, I immersed myself in a 10-day Vipassana silent meditation, and the quiet whisper of my heart became even louder. Professor Arne Naess, Professor of Philosophy at Oslo University, who coined Deep Ecology, gave only one definition of Deep Ecology: It was to ask deeper questions. My question was no longer simply, 'how can I live a life of meaning and purpose?' rather, it deepened to ask: “how can I live a life of meaning and purpose in a time of spiritual, social, and ecological crisis?”

Since then, I’ve continued to reorient myself toward ‘answering’ that question that would not go away; I began to peel back the layers of coping and conditioning shaped by a dominant culture that prioritises economics over nature. Later that year I travelled to Colombia and undertook plant medicine and womb healing ceremony. For the past 3 years, I have worked closely with John Seed, attending over 20 workshops and facilitating a dozen of those. I now serve as a Director of the Institute for Deep Ecology. I have facilitated Deep Ecology workshops and immersive group processes across Sydney, Hobart, Perth, Zaragoza (Spain), and the USA, supporting participants to reconnect with Earth, each other, and their wider ecological identity. I’ve also been an active organiser with Rising Tide (a people-led movement to stop the largest coal port in the world) and, more recently, focused on ending native forest logging with the Bob Brown Foundation and forest protection with the Rainforest Information Centre.

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  • "Erika is a beautiful soul - attended the Deep Ecology session at Narara with John, Erika and Hector - was an amazing 2 days - I look forward to catching up with you guys again soon at one of your sessions."

    —Andrew, Workshop Participant, NSW, Australia

  • "I just loved the whole evening. It was a true gift and I really really appreciate your holding and loving energy."

    —Professor Bronwen Morgan, UNSW Law School, Australia

  • "I've been to several Deep Ecology workshops with John and Erika on the NSW Central Coast in Australia. Each experience has helped me to connect with the natural world in a way I thought I had lost since childhood. That is I've refound basic connection as a life withinm a supportive ecosystem. This is beyond the physics of time and space, and touching on being a real and powerful part of life as it is. Very valuable."

    —Julian, Workshop Participant, Sydney Australia

  • "Erika Aligno was the best guide I have ever experienced. I believe the embodiment of that feeling of being at one with the earth and with each other, was powerful and lasting. The experience was transformative, because it moved my understanding from brain to heart. And it brought the experience of community to join forces with the experience of oneness with our living planet."

    —Wally Glickman, Professor Emeritus of Physics, Long Island University, NY, USA

  • "...thanks for such beautiful facilitation over the weekend. I honour the dimension in which you are focusing your energy, and excited to see what it provides."

    —Joel, Coach, Clarity by Design, NSW, Australia

  • "I'd like to express my heartfelt admiration and gratitude for your teaching. Your expertise, clear explanations, and genuine care for your students have greatly enriched my learning experience and deepened my passion for the subject. Thank you for all the dedication and effort you put into our education."

    —UNSW Student, IEST7500 Environmental Technologies, University of NSW

  • "Thank you John, Erika, Tema and Jim for leading me deep into my heart via the hands, tears, laughter and silence of my fellow earthlings. With your words, the light in your eyes, the notes given generously on your breath, the care in your showing up to lead this waterholing you have reminded me that I am part of a filthy rich biome. It is all more precarious, intimate, unfathomable and extravagant than I dared to remember. Thank you for reminding me."

    —Anna, Workshop Participant, NSW, Australia

  • "The Deep Ecology workshop hosted by John Seed and Tema Milstein, with support from Erika Aligno, initially brought me into contact with mostly complete strangers, mixed with a few new acquaintances. However, after a short two days, I left with the type of friends that neither time nor distance can alienate. Though I arrived with a heart hardened by the suffering of the planet and its beings, I left with a hope-filled sense of purpose and a means for bearing the pain that comes with the struggle from caring deeply. I highly encourage this workshop for all--the ambivalent, the curious, as well as the deep empaths."

    —Gwendolyn Inocencio, Ph.D., Department of English, Texas A&M University

  • "I wanted to thank you again for all of your teaching contributions to IEST7500 over the term. Your leadership and capacity to effectively manage students online was outstanding."

    —Dr Colin Salter, Convenor, IEST7500 Environmental Technologies, University of NSW

  • "Thank you very much for your Shambala Warrior work, initiative and hospitality in hosting us last night. Also your kindness."

    —Ann, Workshop Participant, The Farm Cottage

  • "Another wow weekend of ritual and connection, as we collectively honoured our pain and celebrated the Earth. Deep Ecology is the most powerful medicine journey I have had the privilege to witness. I have taken this journey many times now and it never ceases to blow my mind. Participants open like flowers and shine bright. Authentic connections and friendships are brought into being."

    —Sally, Deep Ecology Co-Facilitator and Community Care Organiser, Rising Tide

  • "John and Erika, thank you for holding the work with such wisdom, care, and generosity. There was a quality in yesterday’s gathering—a tenderness in the room, and a sense that something old and something new were meeting one another."

    —Michael A Salvato, Founder & Managing Partner · InfraRE Partners, LLC, New Jersey, USA

  • "I’ve just finished my first round of journaling for the day, integrating yesterday’s experience of exuberant life. Thank you again for opening that space for us with such poise and graciousness."

    —Clover, Workshop Participant, New York, USA

  • A young woman in a pink and red dress smiling and leaning her head against an older man with a beard, wearing a white shirt and a vest. They are outdoors with a group of people in the background, against a twilight sky.
  • Group of people gathered outdoors under a wooden pergola, sitting on sofas and standing behind, smiling for a photo.
  • A group of people participating in a sacred or spiritual ritual outdoors, with some sitting on the ground and others standing, under makeshift shade covers, surrounded by trees. One woman is soaking someone's foot in a metal basin, while others observe or hold a baby.
  • Old man sitting on grass in park watching people dancing in a circle under tall green trees on a sunny day.
  • A group of people participating in a yoga or meditation session indoors, sitting cross-legged on the wooden floor, with a woman standing and speaking, and others listening; some have books, and there's a branch on the floor as a prop.
  • A woman holding a sign that says 'Speak for the Trees', standing outdoors on grassy ground with trees in the background. She is smiling, wearing a dark jacket and rubber boots, and is hugging another woman who is also smiling and wearing a black jacket and scarf. In the background, other people are engaged in activities in a park-like setting.
  • Group of smiling people at indoor gathering, some holding jars and plants, with a colorful abstract painting on the wall behind them.
  • Poster for a multicultural climate showcase event featuring Erika Aligino, hosted by the Multicultural Leadership Initiative in Sydney, with event details including date, time, and tickets.
  • People sitting in a circle under a covered outdoor area, participating in a group meditation or spiritual gathering, with candles and decorative rugs on the ground.
  • Two women sitting on the forest floor beneath tall trees, smiling and talking, one with dark hair and dark skin, the other with light hair and light skin, surrounded by forest greenery and sunlight filtering through the leaves.
  • Group of people sitting in a circle outdoors in a wooded area, participating in a gathering or discussion.
  • A woman in a yellow sleeveless top and orange skirt speaking into a microphone at a presentation. A blue banner with white text behind her reads 'We Need Disrupting to End the Destruction'. There is a microphone stand and a podium with a computer and other electronic equipment in front of her, and a black shelving unit in the background.
  • A group of 27 people outdoors on a cloudy day, smiling and posing for a photo. They are standing on a paved area with trees in the background.
  • Two women standing outdoors in front of a large banner that reads 'Community Care'. They are smiling and gesturing towards the banner amid a green, wooded background.
  • A group of people sit in a circle on chairs and a bench, engaging in conversation and laughing. The setting appears to be a kitchen or break room, with a refrigerator, cabinets, and a counter with bananas and apples in the background.
  • Group of people sitting and lounging on the floor of a room with wooden flooring, surrounded by lit candles arranged in a circular pattern. The room has yellow walls, a large framed black-and-white portrait on the wall, colorful prayer flags hanging from the ceiling, and curtains on the windows.
  • Three people standing outdoors on a street with trees in the background. All are smiling, with two men and one woman in the middle, barefoot or wearing sandals.
  • Group of nine diverse women and a man outdoors on grass, with some seated and others standing, smiling and enjoying each other's company near a tree.

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