About Us

The Awareness Institute is a non-profit organization founded in 1987 and based in Sacramento, CA.

Staffed by volunteers, the Institute has offered classes, weekend workshops and extended retreats supporting personal transformation for more than 30 years (formerly as the Aspire Foundation and The Center of Consciousness). At the heart of our program is a well-tested and nurturing experiential process which inspires participants to take total responsibility for the circumstances of their lives. Thus empowered and encouraged on this accelerated path to consciousness, individuals move toward harmony and integration – a life of greater freedom.

The Institutes’s workshop facilitators have decades of experience guiding participants through our holistic and comprehensive programs. All of our services are dedicated to the inner work of remembering who and what we are: open and loving presence.

Our service programs reflect our clear intention to educate, support and charitably assist humanity through these intensely challenging – yet undeniably transformative – times.

In essence, the Awareness Institute is a group of caring people who enjoy assisting others along the way to Self-realization.

Meet the Founder

Co-founder and director of the Aspire Foundation, John Ruskell brings more than 30 years of experience in the field of integrative (mind-body-spirit) therapy.

John has a degree in psychology from U.C. Berkeley and has studied a wide range of therapeutic processes. He specializes in the interpretation of the symbolic languages as expressed through the medium of dreams, visions and myths. John consults individuals, groups and organizations throughout the world. He is currently working on a book and audio series to share the gifts of his life experience with others.