Johana nació y creció en Colombia, y es la persona detrás de MamaTortuga.org, un sitio web multicultural, eco-consciente, y bilingüe para padres y comunidad que desea criar con una vision global por los últimos ocho años. Ella esta criando dos hijis multiculturales y multilingües con su pareja Hondureña en el Sur de la Florida, hablando e aprendiendo varios idiomas. Amante de la naturaleza, cultura e idiomas, una cuidadora de plantas, herbalista tradicional y con una historia en Antropología y Enfermería. Ha servido como abogada de padres en su distrito escolar, y participado en diferentes eventos comunitarios atraves de la Florida (Florida Herbal Conference, Día de Muertos Lake Worth Beach, Spanish Conversational Groups and Spanish Nature Playgroups) Y en el Norte de Carolina (Firefly Gathering). Ella ha también colaborado con varios sitios web (Multicultural Kids Blogs, Spanish Mama, Raising World Children, Barefoot cards, etc) y projectos alrededor de su ciudad West Palm Beach, Florida y hasta el día de hoy, continua apoyando esfuerzos para formar comunidad por medio de la abogacía, educación y el cuidado de las plantas. Ella cree que “necesitamos ser el cambio que deseamos ver en el mundo” y que nuestra misión como padres y educadores es empoderar a otres para que ofrezcan sus regalos unicos para el beneficio común de toda su comunidad. Ella ofrece clases de Inglés y Español, habla en conferencias y apoya organizando eventos que son significativos, eco-conscientes y buscan al justicia y la revelación propia de nuestras conecciones multiculturales y relaciones. Ella es la organizadora de “Moon Talk for Teenage Girls and Moon Talks for Women classes in West Palm Beach FL”. Ella esta celebrando su Nuevo libro de colaboración “Raising The Global Mindset” con una verdadera colaboración global con mujeres através del mundo para elevar la consciencia global, multicultural y anti-racista para la familia.
Johana Castillo was born and raised in Colombia, and is the sole person behind Mama Tortuga.org, a multicultural, eco-conscious, and mindful bilingual website for parents and community that want to raise and support global citizenship for the last 11 years.
She is a lover of nature, culture, and languages, backyard gardener and traditional herbalist (Pachamamista) that has a background in anthropology and nursing studies. She puts emphasis on serving the community with herbal knowledge and honoring the cultural connections to give back to traditional herbalists around the world. She has taught in the past at Florida Herbal Conference and at Firefly Earth Skills Festival as well as having a virtual Spanish herbalist cohort for herbalist business that want to support their Spanish knowledge to serve their communities the best way they can.
She believes that “we need to be the change we want to see in the world” and that our mission as parents and educators is to empower others to offer their unique gifts for the common good of all in their community. She continues to offer classes in English and Spanish, speaking at conferences and supporting and organizing events that are mindful, eco-conscious and look to bring justice and awareness to our multicultural connections and relationships.
Learn from Johana at the Florida Herbal Conference:
- Spanish Herbalism Class / Cinco Plantas de Poder - This year, we are ready to have Spanish speakers and learners, delve deeper in their Spanish knowledge of herbalism, explaining five plants, their stories, properties and cultural relevancy in this continent, by doing it mainly in Spanish. I will support your knowledge and confidence in Spanish with materials and slide show. I am looking forward to awe at your knowledge of Spanish and teach you one thing or two about five amazing plants in Spanish! By the end of this class, we will go over the vocabulary and practice what we learned in this session. All Spanish levels welcome as long you can feel confident and open to learn!
- Spanish Nature Walk - Every year, we enjoy walking around the beautiful land where the conference is hold and practice together, basic vocabulary and identification of plants, different species and more, all in Spanish! This nature walk is for all ages and levels!
- Spanish Forum for Herbalists / Foro en Español para Herbalistas - This space will be a dedicated space to introduce ourselves, what we are working on and what we support, or tell a story all in Spanish! Every herbalist or aspiring herbalist that want to come, native Spanish speakers as well as Spanish learners can come to this forum. Will be moderated by Johana Castillo, Mama Tortuga. / Este espacio sera dedicado para personas que hablan el Español, hacer presentaciones, dejarnos saber en que estan trabajando y apoyando, o contarnos una historia, todo solo en Español! Abierto a hablantes de Español, como a aquellos que lo estan aprendiendo. Sera moderado por Johana Castillo, también conocida como Mama Tortuga.
- (AFFINITY) Colonization Mentality, Plants and Territories - What is colonization? What is colonization mentality? Why is it important to understand this concept? There can be many explanations to this, but addressing how this affects our relationship with plants, territories and our practices as herbalists, even as BIPOC herbalists, can give us a good perspective on how to respect traditional herbal medicine, the plants, and other herbalists around the world.
