about us | The Edinburgh Shamanic Centre

At the heart of what we do is authenticity and a commitment to serving both humanity and the Earth. We believe in embracing who we truly are, honoring our unique gifts, and sharing them openly in service to others. When we live from this place of authenticity, it naturally inspires those around us, creating a ripple of connection, compassion, and understanding.

Integrity guides everything we do. We are committed to acting with honesty, openness, and ethical care, making sure our intentions always serve the highest good for all. We hold ourselves to a standard of compassion, respect, and fairness, honoring the inherent worth of every person and the sacredness of our Mother Earth.

Here is our story:

In October 2003, Claudia Goncalves and Mark Halliday founded the The Edinburgh Shamanic Centre in Edinburgh, operating from 288 Portobello High Street.

In August 2004, Claudia played a pivotal role in supporting and bringing to life A Roda do Sol in Paraiba, Brazil, a visionary project dreamed by her dear friend Lilian Galvão. With the Edinburgh Shamanic Centre’s early support, the project was created to care for children affected or infected by HIV/AIDS and living in poverty. A house was rented, and the first Social Mum was employed to provide loving care to the children. Today A Roda do Sol thrives as an independent charity in Brazil, with its own centre offering a safe, nurturing space where children are supported, cared for, and empowered to grow.

In February 2005, Claudia became a catalyst supporting her dear friend and visionary Sara Beauregard to establish Youth Vision in Scotland. Initialy run under the Shamanic Centre and the Planetary Healing Centre for over 3 years, Youth Vision offers a unique Rites of Passage programme for young people age 14 to 21 yrs old in Edinburgh who are facing challenges at school and in society. Today Youth Vision is an independent charity with Sara Beauregard and Claudia Goncalves as its co-founders.

In October 2006, as the work of the Shamanic Centre continued to grow, Claudia and Mark recognized the need for a name that would reflect all they were doing. The charity was renamed the Community Foundation for Planetary Healing—a call for the community to come together in alignment with their vision and philanthropic principles, awakening a collective capacity to serve others. Also known as the Planetary Healing Centre, the organisation became the umbrella body holding the charitable status.

In October 2007, the Holistic Health Project, envisioned and dreamed by Claudia, was launched in 2007 to offer complementary therapies and shamanic healing to individuals facing health and wellbeing challenges, particularly those in economically disadvantaged situations. This unique initiative ran with compassion and care for 17 years, concluding in December 2024.

In August 2008, On 08.08.08, Claudia and Mark were married in a beautiful Celtic Shamanic ceremony in the forests of Balerno, surrounded by their shamanic community and friends. On their honeymoon, they traveled to Brazil to volunteer, helping complete a house for the children of the A Roda do Sol project, a true celebration of love in action!

In August 2009, Youth Vision Project successfully gained charitable status. Since then, Youth Vision has grown from strength to strength, partnering with schools to support vulnerable young people as they transition into adulthood. Claudia Goncalves continues to serve as co-founder and advisor for the charity.

In April 2010, to accommodate growth and expansion, the Edinburgh Shamanic Centre relocated to Balerno. Today, Claudia and Mark focus on training Shamanic Practitioners to advanced levels, developing Energy Healing practitioners up to teacher level, and offering a range of other transformative programs.

In February 2011, the Edinburgh Shamanic Centre and the Community Foundation for Planetary Healing formally became two independent organisations, with the Planetary Healing Centre retaining its charitable status. Today, the Edinburgh Shamanic Centre operates fully independently from Balerno.

In April 2012, Claudia and Adele Clarke launched the Nature Programme for Families in Balerno under the Planetary Healing Centre. This project supports families by promoting positive health and wellbeing through a variety of educational and nature-based activities, fostering connection with the natural world and with one another.

In Feb 2013, Claudia began offering regular Goddess Empowerment sessions both in groups and individually, supporting women on their journey of self-empowerment. Today, this work continues through one-on-one sessions as well as twice-monthly women’s circles, fostering connection, growth, and personal transformation.

In May 2014, Claudia began guiding women through Sacred Ceremonies both in groups and individually, creating a space for reflection, transformation, and the honoring of life’s pivotal transitions. Today, this work continues one-on-one and twice-monthly women's circles, offering women a deeply personal journey of connection, healing, and empowerment.

In June 2015, the Planetary Bee Project was launched in Balerno with the goal of raising awareness about the benefits of bees for both nature and humanity, using a holistic approach to beekeeping. The project also focused on planting bee-friendly flowers and providing educational experiences for children and families participating in the Nature Programmes. With pride, the project nurtured the next generation’s love and care for the Earth. After running for four years, the initiative evolved into the Wellbeing Garden Project and today it is the Woodland programme for families.

In May 2016, Claudia and Mark began to offer Year 3 - Advanced Training in Shamanism at the Shamanic Centre. In May 2016 The Fairtrade Holistic Shop was created as the social enterprise trading arm of the Planetary Healing Centre, with the purpose of supporting the charity’s work and providing income for indigenous peoples through the sale of their crafts. In May 2016, Claudia, Adele Clarke, and Dhyana Huggins also launched Deepening Our Nature Connection in Falkland, a beautiful project designed to help people cultivate a deeper bond with the natural world. Today, this initiative has evolved into the Intergenerational Project in Falkland.

In October 2016, the Carers Project was created at the Planetary Healing Centre to honour and support unpaid carers, many of whom were carrying heavy stress while dedicating themselves to the wellbeing of others. It offered them much-needed space to rest, replenish, and receive care in return. The project ran for four years and came to a close during the COVID pandemic.

In August 2017, Claudia launched the Indigenous Peoples Project with the support of the Planetary Healing Centre’s board of trustees. Through this initiative, we have been making an immediate and tangible difference in the survival of many indigenous cultures in Brazil. Each project and community is carefully assessed and chosen by Claudia based on their specific needs. Today, every two years, indigenous elders travel to Scotland to share their wisdom and traditions.

In October 2018, the Planetary Healing Centre launched the Children's Wellbeing project following a community consultation that highlighted the need to extend therapeutic support to children. For four years prior, we had been running the Nature Connection for Families Project, which came to a close as this new initiative began. Today, the Planetary Healing Centre offers programmes for children, giving them the opportunity to be actively involved in the community woodland, where they can learn, grow, and connect with nature.

In May 2019, the Planetary Healing Centre launched the Cancer Holistic Support Project. This initiative emerged from the 2018 community consultation, which revealed a strong need for support, particularly as many in our community were affected by cancer and following the loss of our trustee, Anne Henderson, to the illness. The project ran for four years before coming to an end during the pandemic.

In August 2019, after nearly a decade of deep preparation and training that Claudia started in 2010, she began offering Vision Quests, supported by Mark. These sacred ceremonies provide members of the community with a meaningful way to honour and navigate important life transitions.

In May 2020, after a decade-long journey of grounding and training that Claudia started in 2010, she began offering Earth Lodges. These healing ceremonies invite community members into a profound space of connection with the Earth.

In April 2021, Claudia and Mark launched the Fairtrade Online Holistic Shop, a fair-trade online shop created to support Planetary Healing. Every purchase helps sustain the Centre’s charitable projects, and when you choose indigenous crafts, you also directly support indigenous communities in the Amazon and other regions of Brazil.

In March 2022, the Fairtrade Online Holistic Shop, and The Planetary Healing Centre moved to Balerno, where the charity now has a Hut within the Community Woodland. From this beautiful natural setting, we offer a variety of workshops for the community, while the Holistic Shop continues to operate online.

In October 2022, Claudia published her book "Shamanism as Medicine" offering a profound introduction to the world of Shamanism and its healing practices

In February 2023, We began the construction of the Recanto do Beija-Flor's Centre in Chapada dos Veadeiros, Alto Paraíso de Goiás— one of the most spiritual places right in the heart of Brazil. We build two houses as part of the foundation for this beautiful project.

In May 2024, we began the construction and foundation of the Temple space, gardens, fruit and vegetatle gardens at the "Recanto to Beija-floor'.

In February 2025, Was the inauguration of the Centre "Recanto do Beija-flor" and 3 indigenous elders and a young musisian came from the Amazon to facilitate a week Retreat sharing Sacred Plant Medicine in a traditional way.