“If you want to improve the world - start by making people feel safer”
— Dr. Stephen Porges
Irikiri ™ is based on cutting-edge neuroscience research, focusing on adolescent development between the ages of 11 - 18. It represents a symmetrical balance between who they are and who they are becoming. The word itself mirrors the concept. It reads the same forwards and backwards, just like personal growth requires any of us to look both inward and forward.
Core Value Proposition
In IriKiri ™ we focus on teaching young people (and adults) practical skills for:
Nervous system regulation - helping them stay calm and focused during stress.
Emotional intelligence - managing the intense emotions that come with adolescence.
Social skills - building healthy friendships and resolving conflicts.
Life skills - time management, study skills, digital wellness, and financial literacy.
Leadership development - becoming positive influences in their communities.
Understanding Irikiri ™
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IDENTITY
(Who am I?)
Throughout our workshops, children embark on an ongoing journey of self-discovery.
Year after year, they explore their unique strengths and interests, learn how their cultural background shapes their identity, and begin to recognise the patterns in their own nervous system.
Over time, through consistent engagement with Irikiri ™, they discover who they truly are at their core and what matters most to them.
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INTUITION
(What feels right for me?)
As children return to Irikiri ™ year after year, they gradually learn to tune into their body's signals and develop their emotional intelligence.
Through repeated practice and guidance, they build trust in that inner voice that guides them, learning to make decisions from a place of wisdom rather than letting fear drive their choices.
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INTEGRATION
(How do I bring it all together?)
Over the course of their Irikiri ™ journey, children develop the skills to regulate their nervous system and balance all the different parts of who they are.
As the years unfold, they learn to bring together everything they have experienced, creating alignment between what they think, what they feel, and what they do.
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IMPACT
(How do I show up in the world?)
After years of growth with Irikiri ™, this is where it all comes alive in children's relationships and how they engage with their communities.
They discover how to contribute meaningfully through service, step naturally into leadership, live their values through action, and continue evolving as they move forward in life.
IriKiri ™ is a neuroscience-based program that helps young people and parents build resilience, regulate emotions, and thrive.
How IriKiri ™ helps:
Brings learners back to green for safety and learning.
Channels yellow energy into useful action.
Supports recovery from blue before deeper work.
Parent Workshops
Irikiri ™ offers interactive workshops for parents to provide practical, science-based tools to better understand and support their teenagers.
Covering brain development, nervous system regulation, community values, essential life skills, and the transition to adulthood, each session combines insights with hands-on strategies and take-home resources.
With small group sizes, parents gain both knowledge and confidence while building a supportive parenting community.
Click on the button below for more information.
Student Workshops
Each age level has a 20-week program that fits seamlessly into your schedule.
These Irikiri ™ age-specific workshops guide students from late childhood to adulthood, helping them build self-awareness, emotional regulation, social skills, and leadership.
Early programs focus on self-expression, life skills, and community connection, while later workshops develop independence, career readiness, relationship mastery, and purpose-driven leadership.
Click on the button below for more information.
❊ Frequently Asked Questions
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This is a very thoughtful question. Irikiri ™ programmes are not designed to eliminate life’s challenges or painful experiences - that’s impossible and wouldn’t be healthy.
What we’re doing is giving young people the tools to process and learn from difficult experiences without being overwhelmed by them.
Think of it like this: if someone is going to face storms in life (and they will) would you rather send them out without an umbrella and raincoat, or equip them with good gear?
The storms still happen, but they’re better prepared to handle them through the materials we provide at Irikiri ™.
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We hear you! Everybody is busy and to some degree “stretched and overscheduled”.
At Irikiri ™, we aim to equip teenagers with the necessarily emotional regulation, time management, stress management, and nervous system regulation skills to allow them to cope in today’s fast paced world.
As they learn to regulate their nervous system, they have better emotional regulation, allowing them to focus on things such as homework, sports, and academics with better intentions.
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IriKiri ™ focuses on practical life skills based on enhancing the values that most families hold, treating others with respect, managing emotions responsibly, building healthy relationships, and contributing positively to community.
We’re not teaching any particular worldview or spiritual belief.
Instead, we’re giving young people tools to live out their family’s values more effectively. Many religious families find that IriKiri ™ helps their teenagers apply their faith principles in daily life with greater wisdom and compassion.
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Every young person is unique, which is why our approach is individualised within the group setting.
The nervous system regulation techniques work for everyone because they’re based on human biology, not personality type.
However, I offer this guarantee: if after the first three sessions your teenager isn’t engaged and you’re not seeing value, we’ll refund your investment. I’m confident enough in this work to put our money where our mouth is.
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Great question! These skills become part of who your teenager is – like learning to ride a bike, once you know how to regulate your nervous system, you don’t forget.
We also provide ongoing resources, alumni activities, and opportunities for graduates to mentor younger participants. Many families continue using the techniques at home. Plus, young people often continue to the next age level, building even more advanced skills.
The goal is lifelong capability, not program dependency.
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All IriKiri ™ facilitators complete comprehensive training in:
Adolescent brain development and nervous system regulation.
Group facilitation skills for young people.
Cultural responsiveness and philosophy.
Program content mastery and ongoing supervision.
Child protection and safety protocols.
