Rajiah Williams Leong

Rajiah Williams Leong created a weekly virtual mindfulness workshop, Exploring the Power of Mindfulness, for participants in her graduate-level Strategic Communications for Risk Management during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. After witnessing the benefits of practicing mindfulness, Rajiah opened the class to the entire Columbia University community (including prospective students, alumni, and administrators) and launched Hygge Hooga mindfulness and yoga therapy to help individuals and communities learn and practice compassion through mindfulness.

In addition to the Columbia University community and private clients, her workshops are shared with the International Organization on Migration (United Nations), where she creates customized mindfulness-powered team-building employee retreats. 

Rajiah has completed numerous mindfulness trainings including Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Search Inside Yourself (SIY), where she is a Search Inside Yourself Leadership Institute (SIYLI) referral partner. As the recipient of the LYT® BIOPIC Scholarship, Rajiah trained with LYT® founder Lara Heimann to become certified in the only yoga practice created by a neurodevelopmental physical therapist. Rajiah is also a Y4C® certified oncology yoga instructor, trained to work with cancer treatment and recovery patients.

Rajiah graduated from Barnard College, Columbia University, and received her MS in Strategic Communications from SPS’s Strategic Communications program. Before joining the faculty at Columbia University, Rajiah enjoyed a decade-long career in development, international licensing, and distribution at HBO Documentary Films, where she traveled throughout Europe and Asia sharing stories connecting cultures and experiences.