Ali Smith

Ali Smith is a meditation teacher and author, born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland. He is a graduate of the Friends School of Baltimore and the University of Maryland, College Park, where he received a BS in Environmental Science and Policy with a Biodiversity specialization. Ali started his journey with contemplative practices as a small child, learning meditation from his father and attending the Kriya Yoga based Divine Life Church of Absolute Oneness run by Swami Shankarananda. He deepened his practice as a young adult, learning yoga, meditation, mindfulness, and breathwork from his teacher and godfather Will Joyner.

Ali has over 20 years’ experience teaching yoga, mindfulness, and meditation internationally and it has served as the impetus for his pioneering work bringing trauma-informed yoga and mindfulness to underserved youth–and influencing education curriculum worldwide.

He is the longtime Executive Director of the Holistic Life Foundation, a non-profit organization he co-founded in 2001 that brings yoga and mindfulness to schools. During his tenure as Executive Director, his leadership helped guide HLF to grow an organization that employed over 50 people, and served communities worldwide. He is the Co-Owner of The Involution Group, founded in 2019, helping create the Spiritual Strategic Plan. His work has been featured on the CBS News, CNN, NBC Nightly News, PBS, as well as in Oprah Magazine and Forbes. Let Your Light Shine is his second book.