Our Why

We, in this business, know the value of using and following the principles of Feng Shui in all that we do.  We have seen its success with our own eyes.  We have seen lives change; the ripple effects in homes, families, neighborhoods and communities, businesses and beyond.  We have seen the challenges when someone comes to us struggling and where the physical and energetic roadblocks are, right in front of our faces.

For thousands of years, Feng Shui has been a vital part of communities in some parts of the world – and yet sometimes not understood in other modern communities or cities.  Bridging the gap between the old and the new, the ancient traditions to modern life, and finding connections from client to consultant are more important than ever before.

It’s part of why we do what we do.

Each of us individually wants to help the communities we serve, but we also know the value of a professional connection, of networking, of finding others who think and work like you. Embracing commonalities and celebrating uniqueness is something the IFSG does really well.  We focus our intentions on understanding and valuing the different perspectives of Feng Shui.  It’s been this way since the very beginning in the last 1990s when our founders dreamed of creating an all-inclusive Feng Shui professional community.

And we haven’t strayed from that vision of the universal nature of Feng Shui.

Building a vibrant community.

Promoting professionalism and ethics.

Creating relevant business resources for our members.

Bringing the business of Feng Shui to the world.  From all perspectives.

Our Story

In the mid 1990s, John Lanterman envisioned bringing the Feng Shui community together, and therefore formed the Feng Shui Guild in Boulder, Colorado. John published the first newsletter and literally ran the group from his kitchen table with dedication for several years.

In May of 1999, a group of practitioners were invited to publicly discuss the topic “Feng Shui Certification - To Be Or Not To Be” at the Feng Shui Conference in Monterey, CA.  John invited several of those attendees who became the Guild’s founders to lunch; and they realized while meeting that they shared similar views, visions, desires, and intentions for the Feng Shui community. Those shared ideals and values soon led to the creation of the International Feng Shui Guild.  Initial visionary founders include John along with Mary Dennis, Christina Hile, Gary Hendrickson, Bob Longacre, Katherine Metz, James Jay, and Rich Welt.

The common goals of uniting the Feng Shui community, education, and creating world harmony bound the group together. And freely understanding these were volunteer positions with no treasury, each founder shook hands and formulated a plan, each taking a piece of the responsibilities. Considering the demands of the positions and entering the second year, four continued to volunteer their time including Mary Dennis, Gary Hendrickson, Bob Longacre and Rich Welt. This group became IFSG Council Members and remained as such until late 2002.  

During this time, the Council accomplished:

• • Received approval as a non profit 501c(6) organization with the IRS
  • Created of financial status and banking
  • Wrote the first version of the IFSG Code of Ethics
  • Introduced a Feng Shui Market Place
  • Established local chapters around the US
  • Published the Feng Shui Quarterly, a member only newsletter published 4 times a year

By the fall of 2002, the organization was restructured to support and validate the new non-profit status. In February 2003, the Council transitioned into a five member board of directors, all of whom served as volunteers. The board included Mary Dennis, Marge Richards, Anne Mansfield, Sara Schoerlucke and Bridget Driggers. Mary Dennis was elected by the board as board president.  During the first few months of this board term, this group accomplished a website redesign and hired an office administrator to manage membership and fiduciary roles.

By early spring of 2006, Anne Mansfield (CEO and office) and Rosalie Prinzivalli (board chair) teamed up to change the lens and landscape of the IFSG stepping into new standards and guidelines. Fueled by the desire to take the Guild further than had been before and realizing they couldn’t do it all on their own, they asked the membership for additional volunteers to step up. This formed the first IFSG Planning Board with the task of creating standards and organizational structure in the form of Bylaws, as well as detailed policies and procedures in the areas of Governance, Education, Marketing, Membership, Finance, and Technology. One year later, the Planning Board had created a massive comprehensive proposal package in all the areas for membership review and approval. This undertaking was incredible as it laid the foundation for the future of the Guild, striving for professional status, as well as for the first time gave the members a voice. The package was overwhelmingly supported by our membership and passed in June 2007.

Throughout 2007, we celebrated the Guild’s tenth anniversary with a year of commitments and dedication to our members. We recognized all chapters, regions, and countries throughout the year and culminated the celebration at the Conscious Design Conference, New Jersey USA, which the IFSG co-sponsored in September of 2007. This conference also provided the backdrop for the first member election of the Board of Directors. The  conference was a major event for us and for the world of design, environmental living, and Feng Shui. We were thrilled to be a part of this event and even more thrilled to kick off another fantastic year of implementation, new beginnings, and amazing initiatives.

Coinciding with the conference, the IFSG held its first official election by members for the IFSG Board of Directors. Laurie Bornstein, having been appointed CEO by the Board during the summer, presided over this election and certified the election results at the culmination of that event.  IFSG members continue to be the voice of approval for organization policies and board of director members.

During the fall of 2012, the IFSG undertook the first ever CEO search/interview process to replace Laurie who announced her desire to step down.  This was important and historic as it demonstrated that all our policies, procedures, and steps to protect the organization for the long term future would support the longevity and growth of the Guild.  Bridget Saraka took over the CEO role in February 2013 and successfully led the organization until the end of her term in September 2017.  At that time, the Board of Directors appointed long-time member and office administrator, Deb DermyerLamb as the new CEO who has continued dual role of office and board leadership since that time.

Throughout the next few years, the IFSG grew and prospered by building resources and community connections and growing our membership.  We began a popular monthly discussion group within our membership called the Topic of the Month, where we gathered once a month to collaborate and share on a wide variety of business and marketing, feng shui, and related businesses and holistic practices.  This opportunity, held first through conference calls and later video conferencing, continues to deepen our community and broaden our experience and knowledge.

As the 2020s began, and global challenges rose, we stayed the course of finding ways to connect, grow and support our members as their physical businesses changed and their virtual businesses grew. To our delight – and an incredible amount of work and due diligence by our office, we weathered that storm and continue to move forward sharing the expertise of our members and the benefits of Feng Shui to a global audience.  In March 2023, we held our first wildly successful Feng Shui Summit hosting 24 speakers to nearly a thousand registrations.  Additional summits have been held in November 2023, April 2024, and May 2025 with more in the planning.

The Future

We were founded in respect and honor of all perspectives and traditions of Feng Shui - traditions that are paramount in all that we do and are supported by the IFSG Mission, IFSG Bylaws, and the IFSG Code of Ethics.  It is through the foresight, dedication and passion of our valued community leaders that we continue to shape the future of our organization and enrich all our memberships.

We acknowledge our founders, all our current and past members, member schools, committee members, Chapter Managers, Regional Directors and Board members who took the original vision of a united Feng Shui community and made it into a reality that has continued to grow and evolve for over 25 years. As we move forward, the organization continues to grow and evolve from the original dream and vision into a professional organization that embraces the inherent value in each of us and the strength we have in our profession.