Meet our Shambala Family
Finding Inspiration in Every Turn
“If the world is to be healed through human efforts, I am convinced it will be by ordinary people, people whose love for this life is even greater than their fear.”
― Joanna R. Macy
more than a team
Shambala is the ever-evolving manifestation of big dreams and underpinned by a big vision that runs deeper than business and takes more than a couple of hands, minds and hearts. It is the walk we walk behind the talk we talk that forms the foundation of Shambala Awakening Hub and our vision is in harmony and symbiosis with nature and the land, our relationships extend beyond "just a team", and even beyond "humans only": we live, breathe and hope to inspire eco-centric holistic consciousness, which we believe, is the only way to shape a brighter future and bring about the revolution we, as human collective need - that starts within. Hence, our relationships are based on alignment, common ground, and values. Our team includes the 'fur people' who are part of our family and have found their forever sanctuary on this land - you'll likely encounter them during your time here. Get to know the team below.
meet the creators and custodians
Ands and Lena Diarmada, a husband and wife team with big dreams and the dedication to realize them, founded Shambala in the spring of 2021. After spending several years in Yallingup, where they hosted wholesome community events, music nights, seasonal moon and fire ceremonies, and holistic programs on a rented farm, they were inspired to create something more permanent. They also ran the State of Flow Project, a live music, breathwork, and guided movement journey designed to engage all the senses and help people reconnect with their bodies and inner power, offered at festivals and as school holiday programs for both adults and children.
Passionate about living in harmony with nature, caretaking land, and reconnecting people with each other & the world around them, Ands and Lena saw how well their events were received and recognized a growing need for communal connection and wholesomeness. At the start of the challenging and controversial COVID-19 era, they took a leap of faith to pursue a dream—not only to find security in a home of their own but also to become custodians of vulnerable nature, regenerate land, and create a safe, conscious space for the community. Thus, Shambala was born, nestled on a stunning 118-acre farm with dense forests in Osmington - home to them, Ands' son Stirling and a little one joining soon, and their extended fur & human family, and mindful sanctuary retreat space for adults and children alike.
Anna-Lena Diarmada, co-founder
lead teacher & facilitator, Ayurvedic healing practitioner
Lena has a deep love for + connection to nature and her more-than-human collective and a keen interest and embodied understanding of natural law and eco-centric energetics that are the foundation to re-cultivating inner wholeness & harmony that in turn ripples outward into all areas of our lives and relationships. Nature is her happy place and a consistent source of magic and beauty. She knows that to reconnect to our nature within we need to reconnect to the nature around us. She lives and breathes that through creating safe, sacred wholesome, and inviting space on their land through Shambala Nature Retreat, providing a slowly growing sanctuary for farm animals (horses, calves so far), and her teaching & healing work through Shambala Awakening Hub, amongst other things.
Ands Diarmada, co-founder
musician, creative art therapist, builder & permaculture enthusiast
Ands is truly the backbone of Shambala, the one who holds everything together. Raised on a permaculture property that his father transformed from wasteland into a thriving, biodiverse paradise over twenty years, Ands grew up surrounded by family, community, and a deep love for nature. These values are in his blood, along with his passion for music, which he considers the language of his heart and his preferred way of expressing the richness of the human experience. When he's not exploring the forests, working on a new project, or playing music, you might find him out on the land with his son Stirling, doing "man things" together.
Ands is deeply committed to off-grid living, harmonizing with ecosystems, and protecting our forests. Above all, he believes in the power of music to soothe, heal, transform, and bring people together. In addition to pursuing his own music career, he offers live music concerts, sound healing sessions, and collaborates with Lena in ceremonies, as well as creative art therapy sessions for groups and individuals. These offerings are all woven into the events, retreats, and ceremonies at Shambala.
meet the rest of our team & companions
Sharna Pinkney
Shambala Bookings Coordinator, Founder & Lead-Facilitator of Blossom - Young Women's Hub
One of our closest friends and most capable, trusted allies, we count our blessings every day to have Sharna on our team. She is not only the angel behind the screen helping you with any booking inquiries and assisting you in the leadup of your stay, as well as after; but she is also an amazing youth support & social work with comprehensive holistic and integrative training behind her. She is the creatress behind our young women's work 'branch' called "Blossom Margaret River" which is currently growing strong roots. Sharna is extremely passionate about community, nature connection & wholistic human development paving a bright path for our future generations.
Our Cleaning Fairies
We collaborate with a small team of independent local cleaners for each turnover of the retreat space, who take a big load off our shoulders.
We are grateful to be connecting with people who go above and beyond to not only clean the space but clear and reset and enhance its energy each time and who align with out sustainability ethos: our cleaning team uses only eco-friendly or completely natural cleaning products where possible (meaning for just about everything but a super greasy oven when it can't be helped!)
We love that we get to collaborate with our local businesses and service providers this way.
KJ Stone & Alba
KJ helps us with little love touches here and there and often takes care of the yoga shala. With her attunement to energy, attention to detail, and the feel of grounded, content slow living she radiates, she's invaluable to us.
Outside of Shambala KJ is a poet, writer, photographer and artist following her creative pulls and nudges while in full dedication to raising her wilding Alba with lots of presence, close to nature.
In 2023 she released her first book of delicious pre-menstrual phase poetry from the heart called "The Week Before I Bleed" and offers bespoke clay play workshops for small groups.
Learn more about KJ and grab her book here.
Gracie - our resident queen
Mama Gracie is the OG of our fur family who not only held sacred space with Lena & Ands for ceremonies and community events prior to Shambala, but has been Lena's steadfast companion in raising animals and nursing those found injured on the farm or wildlife on the road. She raised our first ducks from when they were only days old & they'd follow, climb all over her, and clean her teeth. Then during our first winter here on the land, she gave birth to nine of her own beautiful Kelpie-Whippet pups, all of whom found wonderful homes around the area. Her daughter Nimiyah is part of our pack, and her other daughter Moona who is her spitting image still lives on the land too, with our friends.
While Gracie is now pretend-embracing the guard-dog habit of loud barking when anyone rocks up, she LOVES nothing more than being right amongst all the people who come through here - and on soft, luxurious surfaces ...
Henry
As soon as we landed here, we knew that these pastures were calling for horses. And also, we would never go and seek or buy one & support the equine industry in that way, but the right soul would find us. Well, it only took a few months until Henry found us. After having been rescued by his trainer post injuries on the trotting tracks, he was found abandoned on his farm after this gentleman went to hospital and never returned. He, amongst others, was advertised for a good home, or else it would be the abattoir. This is how he ended up in this region - though only to be abandoned once again, in a paddock on his own for five years. Thanks to a beautiful friend who found & immediately took care of him, he made it here. It's been a couple of years now of witnessing him unwind and relax a bit more by the week, start to regain trust in humans and lean into the knowing that he is safe here and lovingly taken care of. Witnessing him open is the most rewarding thing. He paved the way for a slowly growing sanctuary...
Vinnie
Our gentle, goofy giant. Since you cannot simply have a single one of anyone (every creature needs company of their own!), we opened our field to another rescue horse as soon as Henry arrived (who meanwhile had the company of some sheep + lots of attention from us). Only a few weeks later Vinnie arrived - a tall, curious and cuddly thoroughbred grey of a similar age (circa 10-12yo at the time) for whom there were high hopes as a dressage success, but unfortunately, he suffered a fetlock injury as a younger (likely while being started too early, as is too common...) which rendered him unfit to perform in any demanding way. Luckily his last human recognised this early and wanted him to live out a happy life of no demands as a companion horse... and here we are. Him and Hen are completely inseparable and they both love roaming the land and seeing what everyone is up to - so they may just pay you a visit at the retreat space. Otherwise, go find them in their home paddock :)
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Nimiyah
Our golden ginger nugget is Gracie's daughter and both have definitely found their places and roles in our pack. Nimiyah is a sensitive soft snuggle - like all our 'whippets' around here she loves very direct body contact, hand/paw holding, and taking up your personal space - who, when not sitting on a human's lap, also specializes in rabbit hunting and is taking her role of protecting our feather folk from foxes and other predators (including dogs on the loose) quite seriously. So if you hear a bark echo through the forest in the later evening - that's the fox patrol at work!
Like her mom, she does a great imitation of a fierce guard dog sounding the alarm when cars pull up or she encounters strangers walking into her space but rest assured - this little one initially airs on the cautious side but is as friendly and gentle as ever.
Fritz & Freddie
These two boys (who are already a lot bigger than in this photo) joined us in late autumn 2024 - they are orphans and deemed "byproducts" of the dairy industry where, especially male, calves get taken from their mothers within hours and either sold for slaughter or, if the market has plummeted like now, they just get shot. It must feels right that we were able to give these two the chance to live out many happy years together in the pasture. - Once they're big enough as part of our "patchwork" herd, with the houses. The front paddocks are a boys' club, so far...!
These two are also, like everyone else here, super friendly and curious and love visits.
our Feather Folk
Our lovely orchard inhabitants keep the noise up, the critters, bugs, and slugs down and help fertilize and turn the ground. They also looove receiving slops and food scraps - so you're always welcome to wander down with leftovers bucket in hand!
An unfortunate truth we have learned over the last few years is that raising poultry is dramatic and at times devastating. We love ducks especially, and having little ducklings and chicklings wizz around the coop is one of the cutest things in the world. But coming in to a fox having outsmarted you yet again and decimated a flock, or tiny ducklings being snatched up by predators including rats has done for a lot of heartbreak, especially for Lena. Hence, we stopped individually naming them, though love and care for each member of the flock, which currently consists of ducks, chickens and geese. And touch wood, between Nimiyah and the geese the fox has so far been deterred successfully for a while...