Our Founder
Danielle Arsenault
Pachavega | School of Holistic Wellness
Our Founder
Danielle Arsenault
Pachavega | School of Holistic Wellness
The Vision Behind Pachavega
Pachavega Living Foods Education was founded in 2013 by Danielle Arsenault with a clear mission: to bring discipline, depth, and credibility to plant-based culinary education.
What began as an in-person Raw Food Chef Certification program has grown into a globally recognized, award-winning school serving students across continents. Pachavega’s reputation is built on technical precision, integrated nutrition science, and holistic lifestyle formation — not trends.
The school continues to evolve, but its core principle remains unchanged: healing is holistic, and food is the foundation.
Academic and Professional Foundation
Danielle holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drama Education and a postgraduate degree from the Master of Teaching Program at the University of Calgary. Her formal plant-based training includes certification from the Ann Wigmore Institute in Puerto Rico and the Raw Foundation Culinary Arts Institute in Vancouver. She is also certified as a Colon Hydrotherapist.
Her professional career has included serving as a professor at Pacific Rim College in Victoria, BC, where she developed and taught plant-based nutrition courses, and working as a Raw Food Chef and Nutrition Consultant at Aqua Wellness Resort in Nicaragua, where she redesigned the menu to focus on health-forward gourmet plant-based cuisine.
Danielle has also authored multiple cookbooks, including Heal and Ignite; 55 Whole Food, Plant-Based Recipes to Heal your Body and Ignite your Spirit, and co-created a four-book vegan, gluten-free series under Kitchens of Pinch and Dash. She has also contributed recipes and articles to several popular health blogs and magazines, including youngandraw.com, elephant journal, Edible: Vancouver Island, Calgary Alumni Magazine, as well as being a regular contributor to the popular Canadian fitness and running magazine, Impact magazine. She has also appeared on many podcasts including; Eat Real to Heal Podcast, The Game Changers Mentality Podcast, Power Plant Body Podcast, Think Plant Based, Vegan Boss Radio, Mindalia TV in English among others. Her TEDX Talk, “The Power of Plants” has almost 90,000 views and reflects the philosophy that continues to shape Pachavega today.
Recognition and Reach
Pachavega has been recognized as an award-winning institution, named Best Online Plant-Based Culinary School 2026 by the Canadian Business Awards and also received the Corporate Nutrition Resilience Award with Impact Magazine in 2022. This distinction reflects the school’s commitment to rigorous curriculum, structured training, and global accessibility.
Danielle has been featured as a summit speaker alongside respected leaders in plant-based nutrition including Dr. T. Colin Campbell, Dr. Brian Clement, Dr. Joel Fuhrman, and Will Tuttle, PhD.
She has also been featured in the collaborative books, Legends of Change, A Revolution Powered by Womankind and Pursuit 365, becoming an Amazon Best Selling Co-Author.
These recognitions represent more than personal milestones. They reflect the growing credibility and international reach of Pachavega as an educational institution.
Today, Pachavega graduates teach, consult, and create in communities all around the world.
La Vida Bonita and the Next Chapter
In 2011, a near-fatal rock climbing accident altered Danielle’s relationship with health, resilience, and discipline. Years later, supporting her daughter’s recovery from a near-drowning incident further expanded her understanding of nervous system restoration and the layered nature of healing.
These experiences shaped the evolution of Pachavega. Food remained foundational, but structure, steadiness, and integration became central to the school’s methodology.
Pachavega does not promise quick transformation. It teaches skill, consistency and embodied practice. Danielle now resides full-time in Nicaragua, where she is developing La Vida Bonita – a physical campus designed for immersive education, residency programs, and holistic lifestyle integration.
This new chapter marks the grounding of Pachavega’s global presence into a dedicated space for formation. The Holistic Raw Food Chef Residency and Online Culinary Institute now operate as extensions of a broader movement, one that integrates food, education, and conscious living. Pachavega continues to expand, but its direction is steady.
Healing is holistic. Food is the foundation.
It is my calling to find deep inner peace and to cultivate joy from within. Through food as medicine we can awaken to our highest selves.
Danielle Arsenault
