Marie-Lies Van Asten
Marie-Lies Van Asten is a community herbalist in Atlanta, Ga. She started her journey into herbal medicine in 2009 with Rosemary Gladstar’s Home Study Course. Over the years, she has studied with various teachers such as Lorna Mauney-Brodek, Patricia Kyritsi-Howell, Cathy Skipper, Leslie Williams, Brooke Sullivan among many others. However, it is not until she joined the Herbalista Crew in 2018 that she found her herbal path as a community herbalist.
She officially launched the Fleur + Forage Free Clinic on March 31st, 2022, when we set-up at Mercy Community Church and it became a 501c3 in July 2024. For the past three years, the Fleur and Forage Free Clinic has focused on serving herbs to people who experience homelessness and using herbal medicine to build connection and community. Mercy Community Church was our main setup for 2.5 years but since August 2024, we now go to two more locations in Atlanta with a chapter opening in Athens on March 27th.
Marie-Lies offers a 12 month long apprenticeship program for herbalists interested in making the herbal preparations for the Fleur and Forage Free Clinic. She also offers a training once or twice a year for herbalists interested in joining the Fleur and Forage Crew and volunteering at the herbal clinics throughout town. She leads plant rambles at each change of season to connect folks with their environment.
Marie-Lies is also a Pranic Healer, an artisan distiller of botanicals and a flower essence practitioner.