Yoga dates back to the early century BC, when it was practised as a form of exercise and physical discipline in India. It possesses a history of over 5,000 years. Today, yoga is very popular in Western countries both in terms of the number of people practising it and how accessible this exercise has become. It provides many physical and mental benefits for individuals who practise it regularly.

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By practising yoga regularly, you can improve your life by enhancing your body balance, making proper posture easier to achieve, relieving stress and tension from your muscles, and improving moods so that you are more able to cope with awkward situations or chaotic environments. All these benefits come from an enhanced musculoskeletal system.

The musculoskeletal system is a collection of muscles, bones and joints and how they form a complex but highly efficient structure that allows you to move easily and quickly. However, it is essential to understand that the musculoskeletal system needs to be maintained by practising regular exercise and small changes in posture throughout the day. 

Therapeutically, yoga promotes relaxation, which helps maintain health and cure acute diseases. In addition, it helps strengthen both body and mind. Asanas or postures are exercises that involve the control of physical movements.

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Yoga involves physical exercises and postures to improve overall health and physical and mental balance. Yoga is also done through meditation.

Through the practice of yoga, our bodies are able to relax as we learn to control our breath, focus our attention inwardly and achieve a calm state of mind. Therapeutically (in treatment), yoga is used in conjunction with other therapies (such as psychiatry), which can help treat conditions such as hypertension, peripheral arterial disease, panic disorders, narcolepsy, depression and arthritis. 

Also, we can help prevent diseases by practising correct breathing and attention to the mind and body. Yoga is a wonderful way to have fun with exercise. It has been proven that children who practice yoga on a regular basis have better muscle tone than children who do not do it. In addition, yoga helps improve their concentration, coordination and discipline, among other benefits. 

Yoga is an excellent way for students and working professionals to relax without bending or stretching themselves into uncomfortable positions that lead to painful injuries and compromise posture. And all that is needed to start is an app on your smartphone – you can do yoga remotely without having to attend classes.

Yoga has been proven to be one of the most effective methods of body adjusting. It is suitable for people who are unable to maintain the position needed for chiropractic procedures. Yoga utilises the idea of keeping your spine straight for long periods of time and focuses on breathing, which is a great way to maintain a proper posture and prevent back problems.

Through yoga exercises, we can help ourselves lead better lives by improving our physical conditions in ways that may not have been imagined in the past. We are able to extend life by stretching muscles and bones, coordination and flexibility while relieving stress and anxiety through meditation.

For the musculoskeletal system to function appropriately and efficiently, flexibility is significant. Without adequate flexibility, the muscles and joints can quickly become overworked, causing injury and pain. By practising yoga regularly, we can help improve our physical condition by increasing flexibility in our bodies and reducing back pain.

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The meditative aspect of yoga allows us to focus on our bodily functions. By paying attention to how your body feels from moment to moment during a yoga session, you begin to develop an awareness of the sensations that occur while you are going through your day or performing other activities. As a result, yoga can help you identify physical problems and correct them before they become a significant health risk.

Yoga helps reduce the levels of stress chemicals and hormones in our bodies. This results in better blood circulation and is an excellent preventive measure against memory loss, heart disease, high blood pressure, sleeping problems and certain forms of cancer. In addition, yoga is an effective way for people to improve their health by increasing their resistance levels to some diseases.

Yoga can improve the psychological aspect of our lives, helping us to achieve a calm state of mind where we are more able to achieve a balance between our multiple roles as spouse, parent and worker. Yoga can also help relieve stress and anxiety so that we are more able to cope with awkward situations or chaotic environments.

Yoga is an excellent way for middle-aged people to prevent heart disease. Regular yoga reduces blood pressure and cholesterol levels in the body, and it also lowers the risk of having a heart attack.

The effects of stress on our bodies leave us susceptible to many different ailments and conditions. Practising yoga has been proven to be one of the most effective ways to relieve stress levels in our bodies and minds to better cope with difficult situations or traumatic events in our daily lives.

In an era increasingly defined by environmental awareness, businesses and industries worldwide are adapting to meet the demands of sustainability. Accounting, a profession often viewed as dry and focused solely on numbers, is at the forefront of this green revolution. Today’s accountants need to understand and integrate Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors into their practices. As the sector continues to evolve, so too must the education that prepares future accountants for these new responsibilities.

Understanding the Role of Green Accounting

Green accounting, also known as environmental accounting, involves integrating environmental costs and benefits into financial statements. It’s an approach that requires accountants to consider the environmental impact of a company’s operations and express them in monetary terms. With the rise of ESG factors playing a pivotal role in financial decisions, this practice encompasses assessing and reporting on everything from the cost of pollution and waste management to the benefits derived from sustainable practices and renewable energy.

In the UK, landmark legislation like the Climate Change Act 2008 lays out the government’s commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 100% of 1990 levels by 2050. This challenging objective necessitates a radical transformation across all sectors, including finance and accounting. Consequently, the onus now lies on accountants to provide transparent, accurate, and comprehensive reports on the environmental impacts of companies ESG performances.

Implications for Accounting Education

The evolution towards green accounting necessitates an equivalent transformation in accounting education. Educational programmes must equip aspiring accountants with the necessary skills to understand and implement sustainable accounting practices effectively, guiding businesses towards their environmental goals and meeting their ESG targets. To realise this vision, changes in accounting education could include the following aspects:

Broadening the Curriculum: Traditional accounting courses, pivotal for attaining accountancy qualifications, tend to focus heavily on financial accounting, tax, and auditing. While these are crucial areas, the curriculum needs to expand on courses dedicated to the ESG and include modules on environmental management, sustainability reporting, corporate social responsibility, ESG integration. This will equip students with the tools to measure and report on environmental costs, guiding businesses to make more sustainable decisions.

Enhancing Understanding of Environmental Policies: Future accountants need to be familiar with the UK’s environmental legislation, including the Climate Change Act and other relevant regulations. This would require incorporating legal studies into accounting education to ensure that graduates can navigate the complex legal landscape around sustainability and ESG governance.

Promoting Ethical Awareness: Accounting professionals have a duty to uphold ethical standards. This duty extends to the environment, where accountants can play a vital role in promoting ethical environmental practices. As such, ethics should be a central part of the accounting curriculum, with a focus on the ethical dimensions of environmental stewardship and ESG principles.

Encouraging Critical Thinking: Green accounting and ESG integration are rapidly evolving fields, and tomorrow’s accountants need to be agile and adaptable. Accounting education should foster critical thinking, encouraging students to question existing practices and find innovative solutions to environmental challenges.

The Future of Green Accounting

The shift towards green accounting is more than just a trend; it’s an essential part of the global response to climate change. As businesses increasingly recognise their environmental responsibilities and the importance of ESG metrics, the demand for accountants with expertise in sustainability is set to rise.

For instance, the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) encourages companies to voluntarily disclose their environmental risks, pushing the need for green accounting skills further into the mainstream.

As we move towards a greener future, accounting educators must respond by producing graduates who can navigate this new landscape. Accounting is no longer just about balancing the books; it’s about balancing the needs of business with the demands of the environment and integrating ESG considerations into financial analyses.

The greening of accounting represents an opportunity for the profession to take a leading role in tackling one of the most critical issues of our time. By equipping the next generation of accountants with the skills to manage and report on environmental issues and ESG factors, we can ensure that the accounting profession contributes positively to a sustainable future.

As Albert Einstein once said, “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” In the fight against climate change, the accounting profession has the chance to prove him right.

Grant Thornton UK LLP’s Northern Corporate Finance team has reported a successful H1 in 2023, with continued progress in the mid-market. 

Over the first six months of 2023, the Northern team, spanning the North West, Yorkshire and the North East, has successfully advised on over 10 deals, equating to c£100m in value.  

Most recently, the team, led by partner Peter Terry, Northern head of Corporate Finance, advised on private equity firm Mercia’s exit from Manchester-based global parking reservation platform ParkVia to CAVU, a subsidiary of Manchester Airports Group. 

This was the third tech-based deal within the North West region that Grant Thornton has advised on in the first half, following the sale of two Liverpool businesses Ardent Credit Services and Horsefly.  

Meanwhile in Yorkshire, the corporate finance team has recently advised on the cross-border transaction of Schoeller-Bleckmann‘s acquisition of well completion specialist Praxis Completion Technology in Dubai.  

This builds off the success of last year when Grant Thornton’s northern advisory team completed 48 deals.  

Peter Terry said: “Despite the more challenging market conditions, with inflation still high and interest rates rising, there is a resilient market for high quality assets run by ambitious management teams.  

“SaaS businesses operating in favourable verticals continue to prove attractive to investors, both domestic and overseas, due to the annuity-like nature of their revenues, their scalability and resilience.”  

Jim Whittaker, Director in Yorkshire, added: “The continuing uncertainty in the wider macro environment means ongoing caution and sector selectivity amongst investors.  We are seeing deeper market and financial diligence demands as well as, in some cases, more downside protection for buyers being built into deal structuring through earn-outs.  However, many corporates with robust balance sheets and access to capital continue to see genuine strategic opportunities, particularly overseas buyers who still regard the UK as good value at a time when there might be less competition for assets.”    

Over the last six months, the Northern team has welcomed six new members to the team at Assistant Manager and Manager level, joining their Manchester, Leeds and Liverpool offices. This includes Ammen Arya, Sarah Mackey, James Wheeler, Maria Barnes and Jordan Fenney.