Heran was born in Ethiopia in the year famous for its famine, 1984. At the age of 3 she was adopted to the Netherlands, where she grew up in a small town. Spending lots of time outdoors, in nature and riding horses. In her early teens, she knew she wanted to broaden her perspective and travel. She graduated as an engineer of Tropical Forestry in 2009 and returned to live and work in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 2010.
She married and got pregnant the same year. She worked in the field of environment for a couple of years with the University and different NGO’s. Motherhood and the choice to spend a lot of time on bonding with her kids, made her stop working full-time and diversity her activities. Now, 8 years later, she is still settled in Ethiopia’s capital. Raising 3 children and teaching yoga and music classes, next to writing poetry.
With a group of mothers, the Regina Family Center was officially founded in 2014. A Waldorf-inspired childcare center, where families can enjoy the fresh air, ride horses and enjoy the playground and greenery.
As a student Heran started practicing Hatha Yoga. Yoga has continued to be a very important aspect in her physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being. She is a certified Prenatal & Postnatal Yoga teacher. Kemetic yoga is what she is really passionate about, since it combines her passion for African history, rituals and traditions with present day wellness practices. Kemetic yoga originates from Ancient Egypt. Images can be found on the pyramids, tombs and temples. The ancient Egyptian civilization is often referred to as the granddaughter of Ethiopia. She teaches Kemetic Yoga in Addis Ababa and shares this African heritage on African soil.
Heran started writing about her experiences around international adoption from an empirical perspective, but also as a Roots searcher, which allowed her to meet many adult adoptees, searching for their birth families and their Ethiopian identity. It may still take a few years to finalize the Memoir. In the meantime, she is available for questions around this topic, to shed more light on all the aspects to be taken into consideration with inter-racial, international adoption and roots questions.
Ethio Yoga Queen 👑 