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Deep in the lush heart of Southern Bahia, where the Rio de Contas winds through ancient cacao groves, we gather for a rare and intimate journey. This retreat is an offering to the medicine of cacao, to the wisdom of indigenous guardians, and to the deeper knowing that lives within each of us.
“Cacao opens what the heart already knows”
For seven days, you will live, eat, sing, move, and be transformed alongside the land itself. You will learn from various local medicine wisdom keepers who will open the path to a deeper connection with Cacao as a sacred teacher. You will receive this wise plant as ceremony, as medicine, as food, as song. And you will carry something home that is personal and sacred- your own deepened relationship with the Spirit of Cacao Medicine.
Facilitating this journey is Francisca Santibanez (founder of Plant Spirit Talk, Berkeley Herbal Center alumni) and Ashley Campos (Executive Director of the Berkeley Herbal Center) – joined by an incredible team of healers, artists, and guides.
Francisca Santibanez is a vegetalista, yerbera, consejera, clinical herbalist, medicine maker, and founder of Plant Spirit Talk. Born in the Mata Atlântica of Brazil and raised between São Paulo, Santiago, and California, she carries the living thread of South American curanderismo, plant spirit medicine, and ancestral healing in everything she offers.
Cacao holds a particularly intimate place in Francisca’s lineage. As a daughter of the Mata Atlântica returning to the land of her birth, this retreat is both an offering and a homecoming – a weaving together of indigenous wisdom, ancestral memory, and the living medicine of the Amazon and Atlantic Forest.
Through Plant Spirit Talk, she creates sacred space where healing, remembrance, and the fulfillment of soul purpose become possible.
Ashley Campos, RH(AHG), is a clinical Western herbalist, educator, and holistic health practitioner deeply committed to rewilding, healing, and forging meaningful connections between land, plants, and people through the wisdom of herbal medicine.
Ashley’s work bridges clinical herbalism, ancestral healing traditions, and relationship-centered care. Drawing inspiration from her South American lineage, she is passionate about helping others reconnect with the land, their bodies, and the deeper cultural and spiritual dimensions of plant medicine. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the American Herbalists Guild, where she contributes to conversations surrounding herbal education, mentorship, and the future of the herbal profession.
For more information and to begin the application process, please visit: https://www.plantspirittalk.com/cacao-retreat
❋ Cacao Plant Spirit Initiation
A transformative ceremonial experience with communing with Cacao as teacher and beloved, held in sacred space with guidance and integration support.
❋ Cacao Guardian Immersion
Spend sacred time with Nara, an Afro-Indigenous Cacao guardian. Learn the cabruca tradition of cultivation, harvesting, and the living relationship between people and the plant.
❋ Cacao Medicine Making
Hands-on preparations of cacao, from flower essences to body care rituals, and healing preparations to chocolate making- medicine from the plant in its fullest expression.
❋Singing with Cacao
Voice as medicine. We open our hearts through song, icaros, and cacao-inspired soundscapes in ceremony and in joy.
❋Yoni Steam Circle
A ceremony of feminine healing and connection – gathering in sacred circle for warmth, herbs, and the wisdom of women’s bodies.
❋ Sound Healing
Immersive sound baths and vibrational healing sessions woven throughout the week to deepen integration and open subtle channels.
❋ Cooking with Cacao
From bean to feast – explore the culinary dimension of cacao, learning preparations that nourish body and spirit alike.
❋Capoeira & Samba
Move, sweat, and celebrate in the living traditions of Bahian Afro-Brazilian culture with samba as embodied liberation.
