“Poetry is one of the few art forms
that has breath built right into it.
It literally wants us to breathe,
to pause for a moment and pay attention
to what matters.”

Ada Limon

“Poems come out of wonder,
not out of knowing.”

Lucille Clifton

“Smell is a potent wizard that
transports you across thousands
of miles and all the years you have
lived.”

Helen Keller

“I learned that attention changes
the flavor of things.”

Jane Hirshfield

“Perhaps more than ever before, these uncertain times
Require the humanity that poetry offers.”

Ada Limon

“Touch comes before sight, before
speech. It is the first language and
the last, and it always tells the
truth.”

Margaret Atwood

Our Vision

ILLUMINATING THE INTERSECTION OF ART & MINDFULNESS

ENGAGING THE SENSES FOUNDATION was created to honor the senses; to support and sustain the ability to see, smell, taste, touch, hear, and intuit our way to a consciously lived life. 

Our main emphasis is on waking up through the art of poetry, that “universal language that the heart holds with nature and itself” which can fulfill our primal human need for beauty and serve as a portal to mindfulness, inspiration, connection, and transformation.

Our collaborative partnerships, initiatives, and films embody the belief that engaging the senses and awakening mindfulness through the arts can help to promote equality, social justice, environmental awareness, and compassion in local communities and around the world.

Our Partners

ETSF develops films, narratives and initiatives in partnership with literary organizations, art councils, universities, and other cultural institutions and non-profits to support the arts
in order to effect lasting positive social change and awareness.

Learn more about Our PartnerS →

View Short Video About Engaging the Senses Foundation →

PHOTO CREDITS: Nate Yuen, Lā‘ie Point, Oahu; Taiji Terasaki, Microcellular Pathways; Marissa Abadir, Maile lei; Brian Kimmel, Mountain Apple; Hawaii State Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DoFAW), Drinking Glass (Koai‘e) Rainforest on Kaua‘i; California Arts Council, Native Fiber Artists.