Earth Medicine Institute

What Earth Medicine Institute does

Earth Medicine Institute is a 7-person educational organization based in Maui, Hawaii that teaches earth-centered medicine, wildcrafting, nature skills, and traditional healing practices. Founded by David Bruce Leonard, LAc — a Licensed Acupuncturist holding an MSTCM (Master of Science in Traditional Chinese Medicine) — the institute delivers curriculum through in-person and online classes, multi-level certification programs (including Mending the Broken Circle and the Medicinal Plants Certificate), non-certification classes, books, CDs, and documentary films. Revenue is generated through class fees, sales of physical and digital media, and film distribution via Amazon and the institute's own website. The organization serves a diversified audience of licensed acupuncturists, herbalists, women and girls, nature skills practitioners, and students of traditional healing arts.

Unlike technology-platform competitors, Earth Medicine Institute's value proposition rests on embodied, lineage-based knowledge rather than software or proprietary algorithms. The faculty of 15+ instructors includes Hawaiian cultural practitioners holding the title of Kumu (teacher), lending cultural authority and curricular depth. The institute has invested in a cross-cultural digital content library cataloging medicinal plants, medicinal foods, and anti-microbial plants, and has built professional visibility through published articles in trade publications such as Acupuncture Today.

The business operates as a founder-led, private entity without disclosed external funding rounds, acquisitions, or institutional capital events. Its distribution model relies on a long-tail base of individual consumers purchasing classes and media directly, supported by the recently launched Earth Medicine Institute App. This structure provides resilience against single-customer concentration but caps scalability absent additional capital, platform infrastructure, or institutional partnerships.

Name

Earth Medicine Institute

Legal name

Earth Medicine Institute

Website

https://earthmedicineinstitute.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Earth Medicine Institute is a 7-person Maui-based educational organization teaching earth-centered medicine, wildcrafting, and traditional healing through classes, certifications, books, and films to acupuncturists, herbalists, and nature skills learners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Traditional and Holistic Medicine Education

NAICS

All Other Schools and Instruction (61169), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Holistic & Integrative Wellness Education (Ayurveda, Traditional Practices) (EDAAAHAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Outdoor, Adventure & Recreational Wellness Education (Hiking, Breathwork in Nature) (EDAAAHAO), Yoga, Pilates & Mind-Body Movement Education (EDAAAHAC)

Keywords

• Herbal medicine education
• Wildcrafting certification
• Nature skills training
• Traditional plant medicine
• Earth-centered healing

Headquarters

HQ city

Maui

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Certification and Non-Certification Class Fees: The institute generates revenue primarily through enrollment fees for its certification programs (Wild Crafting Certifications, Nature Skills Certifications, Earth Medicine for Acupuncturists) and non-certification classes (Way of the Wild Woman, Self Defense for Women & Girls, Herbs Class, Qigong). Classes are offered both online via a calendar system and in-person at their facility.
2. Book and CD Store Sales: The institute operates a storefront (store) selling books and educational materials, including a book and CD bundle, providing a product-based revenue stream alongside its class offerings.
3. Film Sales (Amazon): The institute sells the 68-minute Earth Medicine Film on Amazon for approximately $3, representing a digital media product revenue stream.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Earth Medicine Institute is an educational organization that teaches earth-centered medicine, wildcrafting, nature skills, and traditional healing practices through certification programs and non-certification classes delivered both in person at its Maui, Hawaii facility and online. Its core offerings include Wild Crafting Certifications, Nature Skills Certifications, Earth Medicine for Acupuncturists, Herbs Class, Way of the Wild Woman, and Self Defense for Women & Girls (FAST Defense), supported by Qigong programs and a medicinal plant library. The institute also sells books, CDs, and a film through its own store and on Amazon.

Product overview

Earth Medicine Institute is an educational organization offering a portfolio of certification programs, workshops, and knowledge resources focused on earth-centered medicine, herbalism, and nature connection. The core offerings include Wild Crafting Certifications, Nature Skills Certifications, Herbs Class, Earth Medicine for Acupuncturists, Way of the Wild Woman, and FAST Self Defense programs. The institute provides both online and in-person class delivery formats. Supplementary offerings include a retail store for books and equipment, Qigong programs, and extensive reference libraries covering medicinal plants and foods. The institute's approach integrates Hawaiian traditional medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine energetics, and Western herbalism.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Wild Crafting Certifications

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• The Herbal Academy: Online herbal education school offering introductory through advanced herbalism courses and certifications. Most directly comparable to EMI's Herbs Class and Wild Crafting programs as a structured herbal education provider, with stronger digital infrastructure and a larger student base.
• Chestnut School of Herbal Medicine: Online herbal medicine school founded by Juliet Blankespoor offering foundational and clinical herbalism programs. Directly comparable to EMI's wildcrafting and herbal certification programs, with similar content depth and a comparable founder-driven brand model.
• Rosemary Gladstar's Sage Mountain: Herbal education center founded by renowned herbalist Rosemary Gladstar offering workshops, apprenticeships, and certification programs. Comparable as a founder-led herbal and traditional medicine education provider with in-person retreat-style programming.
• Tracker School (Tom Brown Jr.): Wilderness survival and nature awareness school teaching tracking, wildcrafting, and ancestral living skills. Directly comparable to EMI's Nature Skills Certifications and wildcrafting curriculum in terms of primitive/wilderness skills pedagogy.
• Wilderness Awareness School: Nature connection and wilderness education organization offering immersion programs and certifications in primitive skills, wildlife tracking, and mentoring. Comparable to EMI's nature skills and earth-centered living curriculum with a similar experiential pedagogy.
• IMPACT Self-Defense: Personal safety and self-defense training program with a strong focus on women's empowerment, boundary-setting, and embodied awareness. Directly comparable to EMI's FAST Defense / Self Defense for Women & Girls curriculum in modality and target audience.

Broad incumbents

• Five Branches University: Accredited graduate school of Traditional Chinese Medicine offering MSTCM and DAOM programs for licensed acupuncturists. Comparable to EMI's 'Earth Medicine for Acupuncturists' program as a TCM education provider, but at degree-granting scale rather than continuing education.
• Daoist Traditions College of Chinese Medical Arts: Accredited TCM and classical Chinese medicine college offering master's-level practitioner training. Comparable to EMI's acupuncture continuing education but operating at a much larger, degree-granting institutional scale.

Regional players

• Kamehameha Schools: Hawaiian cultural and educational institution offering Hawaiian language, culture, and traditional knowledge programs. Comparable to EMI's Hawaiian medicine and kupuna-based pedagogy, but operating at significantly larger scale as a regional cultural-educational institution.

Others

• Center for Herbal Medicine Research: Herbal medicine research and education centers (varying institutions) that compile evidence-based plant monographs. Comparable to EMI's Potential Anti-Microbial Plants database and medicinal plant library as a botanical research-to-education resource, though typically academic rather than commercial.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Earth Medicine Institute