At Greenleaf, our desire is for the service of others to endure as a generative force for good around the world. We bring diverse expertise and deep care to everything we do in pursuit of this vision.
Greenleaf was founded out of a deep respect for people who give of themselves to make the world a better place—and a recognition that this pursuit takes a toll on their wellbeing and their work. Witnessing this repeating cycle firsthand across the world led our founder, Dr. Siddharth Ashvin Shah, to begin Greenleaf. Since our founding, we have been privileged to come alongside organizations working around the world to help them serve more effectively and sustainably.
What We DoGreenleaf at a glance:
Founded in 2008
Headquartered in Washington, D.C. area
Specializing in trauma-responsive consultation
Serving government entities, international nongovernmental organizations, and domestic nonprofits
SBA-certified small & disadvantaged business
Siddharth Ashvin Shah, MD, MPH
As the Founder and President of Greenleaf Integrative, Siddharth leads from a lifelong passion for supporting helpers, protectors, and healers in their work. As a physician and public health scientist, he sees the often overlooked complications trauma poses in the public service sector, which is why he started Greenleaf.
While in high school in Texas, where he was born and raised, Siddharth joined volunteer projects to change the course of gender injustice, youth homelessness, community violence, and healthcare gaps. In 1994, he spent a year traveling across India by train, bus, and overstuffed tuk-tuks to immerse himself in studying, living with, and serving alongside the leaders of vibrant service organizations and peacebuilding efforts.
While in India, Siddharth witnessed firsthand what is frequently hidden from view: the range of traumas that burden staff and the communities with whom they work. It was these stories of vicarious and community trauma that led him to wonder how the health sciences could strategically help those who serve in contexts where fear, conflict, and pain are a daily reality.
After returning to the states, Siddharth sought out advanced training in the healing power of spiritual practices, mind-body medicine, yoga, and mindfulness. He earned an MD from Baylor College of Medicine, including a year of training focused on caring for military veterans and group interventions for trauma at the Karl Menninger School of Psychiatry. Siddharth then moved to New York City to join a residency in Preventive & Behavioral Medicine, which included earning a Master of Public Health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
Two months into his residency in New York City, the 9/11 attacks cemented Siddharth’s conviction that a population-based approach to trauma is just as essential as diagnosing individual disorders and prescribing treatment. With this mindset, Siddharth saw an opportunity to serve responders and leaders impacted by the 9/11 attacks with an approach that uniquely combined neurobiological education and mind-body therapies to equip them to do something about their trauma. He served two populations with unique traumatic exposures: the first responders of the New York City Fire Department, Police Department, and Port Authority; and Sikh, Muslim, and Arab civic leaders who were supporting their community members further targeted with hate crimes. In the years following, Siddharth served as a consultant to organizations responding to chronic trauma or mass disaster.
In 2008, Siddharth established Greenleaf Integrative to “operationalize wellbeing” with interdisciplinary colleagues all dedicated to the cause of preventing and mitigating trauma. For Siddharth, wellbeing is not only about building resilience to tolerate trauma better, but counteracting trauma’s impact by incorporating practices of integration + resilience. Siddharth sees operationalizing wellbeing as an ethical endeavor, always starting with the Hippocratic Oath—“First, do no harm”—and then incorporating a sense of history, honor for culture, and a blending of individual strengths.
Siddharth’s ongoing work with Greenleaf focuses on stewarding organizational vision while engaging with sector leaders to drive innovation in trauma-responsive models. In his free time, he enjoys cooking with his family, playing ping pong, trekking with his dog, and coaching youth sports. When you meet Siddharth, ask him about laughter yoga.
At Greenleaf, we live out a shared commitment to wellbeing every day—embracing the same trauma-responsive practices we endorse with our clients. Likewise, we prioritize diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) in our team policies, programs, and culture. By caring for one another and appreciating our differences, we create an environment of belonging and strengthen the work we do for our clients.
We aim to daily demonstrate our core values:
Champion the cause of wellbeing
Bring tenacious compassion to every interaction
Grow from integrating multiple perspectives
Fiercely adhere to science and ethics
At Greenleaf Integrative, we celebrate the organizations who, every day, step into complex situations out of a desire to serve. Our vision is for the service of others to endure as a generative force for good around the world.
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