My name is Anna Nieminen (she/her) and I am a climate-aware movement arts/fusion fitness facilitator. I am canfitpro certified in Fitness Instructor Specialist (FIS) and Stress Resiliency.
My group fitness instructor journey has included facilitating in-person, grant-funded classes prior to the pandemic, and offering live virtual, free and pay-what-you-can classes during the pandemic. I’m currently seeking grant-funded and honorarium-paid opportunities as a climate-aware movement arts/fusion fitness facilitator rather than pursuing fitness as a business.
With Embodied Climate Justice Fitness (ECJF) I am engaging in creative climate communication by interpreting fitness moves and choreography though a climate justice lens. My hope is to grow the climate justice movement, with you, through movement.
I would love to hear from you with any questions or feedback!
climatejusticefitness@gmail.com
You can find me on Instagram @annanieminenecjf
LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT
I am grateful to be living, working, walking, and blogging on the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples, now home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. I acknowledge that Toronto is covered by Treaty 13 signed with the Mississaugas of the Credit, and the Williams Treaties signed with multiple Mississaugas and Chippewa bands. I am currently doing my research to write meaningful land acknowledgments for the land I live on and the land I grew up on. I’m currently reading Living in Indigenous Sovereignty by Elizabeth Carlson-Manathara with Gladys Rowe and other contributors and reflecting on my relationships and obligations as a settler on Indigenous lands.
Anna
BIOGRAPHY
Anna Nieminen is a movement arts/fusion fitness facilitator, creative climate communicator & blogger, as well as a poetry curator. At Embodied Climate Justice Fitness (ECJF) she combines movement arts/fusion fitness activation with climate justice storytelling to engage participants in learning about climate justice and making intentions for climate action. She is also in the process of organizing a climate-aware walking group.
As a poetry curator, Anna has co-facilitated monthly Scarborough Poetry Club meetings since October 2015 and has organized National Poetry Month celebrations and other public reading events. She has lead poetry walks during the Jane’s Walk Festival, guest curated Ontario Culture Days 2015 poetry events for Scarborough Arts, and organized poetry workshops and a final showcase event at Agincourt Library for the City of Toronto’s Cultural Hotspot 2018.
SELECTED EXPERIENCE
Movement Arts/Fusion Fitness Facilitator – In-person and virtual, July 2018-Present
Embodied Climate Justice Fitness (ECJF) – Virtual and in-person, June 2021-Present
- Creating ECJF website and writing and designing ECJF content
- Creating and recording first ECJF climate-aware activation demo
- Presenting first ECJF activation demo to members of the Scarborough Poetry Club
- Blogging about active living, local climate action and climate justice
- Leading TransformTO Community Conversation and reporting to City of Toronto
- Launching ECJF Instagram account @annanieminenecjf
- Participating in and amplifying ActionAid International’s EarthWalk 2021 as part of the first Embodied Climate Justice Fitness Challenge #ECJFChallenge
- Participating virtually in COP26 in Glasgow along with hundreds for EarthWalk Live! a projection march of people and communities from all over the world demanding climate justice now!
- Creating and recording “The Linden Tree” movement arts activation to the poem by Jeevan Bhagwat
- Presenting “The Linden Tree” at Tree Songs 2 hosted by Don Heights Unitarian Congregation
- Creating the ECJF “Activate Your Learning Series” resource
- ECJF declares a climate emergency #FitnessDeclares
- Participating in and amplifying climate justice campaigns such as the 350Canada and Council of Canadians’ Just Transition campaign #JustTransition #JustTransitionNow #GreenNewDeal #ClimateCodeRed #FloodParliament
- Launching the Walking and “Living in Indigenous Sovereignty” page on ECJF website
- ECJF declares #NoFitnessOnASickPlanet for Earth Day 2022
- Leading the “Living in Indigenous Sovereignty” Poetry Walking during the Jane’s Walk Festival Toronto 2022, hosted by the Scarborough Poetry Club
- Presenting ECJF climate-aware activation demo to Don Heights Unitarian Congregation
- Participating in and amplifying the Grassy Narrows River Run 2022 for mercury justice and freedom
- Co-presenting “The Most Wuthering Heights Day Ever”: Literary and Movement Arts Event hosted by the Scarborough Poetry Club
- Participating in the Ecojustice “Climate Action Now!” Rally at Queen’s Park on Sept 11 and attending court hearing virtually Sept 12-14, 2022
- Participating in the Fridays for Future Global Climate Strike Rally at Queen’s Park on Sept 23
Branded Fusion Fitness for Women Classes – Facebook Live, Apr. 2020-Feb. 2021
- Cardio, older adult, and yoga fusion formats
Movement Arts/Fusion Fitness Classes – Better Living Health and Community Services, July 2018-July 2019
- Mindful Moments (movement and musical appreciation)
- Yoga for Every Body (fusion yoga with chair options)
- Branded Fusion Fitness for Women
- Low-impact Functional Fitness
Scarborough Poetry Walks – Jane’s Walk Festival, 2015 and 2017
- Walk planning, research, preparation, and facilitation
- Coordinating with Toronto Public Library staff for event planning and promotion
- Promoting poetry walks on Jane’s Walk Toronto website, event sites and social media
- Blogging about poetry walks and Pan Am Path Art Relay on Jane’s Walk Toronto website
SELECTED CERTIFICATIONS
- Fitness Instructor Specialist (FIS) and Stress Resiliency, canfitpro
- Seniors’ Fitness Instructor Certification (SFIC), Canadian Centre for Activity and Aging (CCAA) – Western University from Nov 2017-Nov 2021
- Life Skills Coach Training, George Brown College, 2010
Embodied Climate Justice Fitness 