How do you create nature programs in a country where virtually everything is cultivated through commercial agriculture and highly impacted landscapes?  My conversation with Jael Nouhet of the Netherlands explores his efforts to plant seeds, trees and plants to create the future forests for children and educators in a few decades! It takes a tremendous effort to create the kind of consensus building, commitment and investment towards a long term vision of a future with nature-connected...

The paths we take in our journey as educators are incredibly diverse and unique to each of us.  We all have different origins, with mentors, teachers, opportunities and our communities all influencing how we do what we do. In this episode, we explore some of the ways we end up in our 'forest educator lanes', and how to change lanes, as well as why it can be incredibly beneficial to ourselves, our families, our students and our professional growth to make a shift.    Join the Forest Educator...

Deep in the concrete jungle of spanish style homes, freeways, urban sprawl and mini-malls, there are naturalists who know the canyons, coastal foothills and estuaries hidden throughout the city.    It's here among the live oaks and agave that children learn about acorns, lizards, animal tracks, and other aspects of California wildlife.  I had all kinds of flashbacks to my own childhood throughout this conversation with Madlen Sarkisyan, who co-founded The Children's Forest School based in...

This episode is an exploration of some of the critical issues we encounter as nature based educators when we enter the public education system.  The road to Forest Education for all seems to point to a relationship with public schooling, and it's been my experience that going in with our eyes wide open is a great strategy.  I use several analogies for the massive bureaucracy that makes up the public system, including The Cargo Ship and the Sail Boat, and The Borg from Star Trek, (You too,...

You all know I like a good analogy, so I'm going to say that the duo of Marika and Angela reminds me of the heroes of my comic book days, when I was a collector.  I'd mow lawns for my neighbors, and then ride my bike six miles into town to buy my week's new issues.  One of my favorites was the Marvel Team-Up comic, where two heroes who don't usually 'hero' together do what they do best, and take care of business.  Spider-Man and Daredevil.  Wolverine and Iron Fist.  It was a 'golden age' of...

This episode is a conversation with Jonny Walker, a poetry, creative writing and language arts educator from London/Uk.  We explore how 'traditional' or classical education benefits when we incorporate nature based approaches that deliver powerful outcomes for students and schools.  He shares about the need for direct experience and full contact with nature for awakening and expanding the outer and inner world of his students, which leads to inspiration, depth and courage, which are all...

It's one thing to learn wilderness skills, and it's another thing entirely to integrate them into our lives in meaningful ways.  This is the path that Dariya and Jefferie are walking, with the added ingredients of a newborn child and teaching both online and in-person classes! We talk about their desire, no, their NEED to live in a way that reflects their values, with drinking only spring water, eating locally, and incorporating wild foods and movement into their lives as well. Walking...

This episode could be titled 'The Problem with Getting Comfortable with the Status Quo', because there's a very real disadvantage that happens when we slip into a routine.    Organizations do thrive on consistency, and operating within a system that has uniform inputs and outputs, and those who are in charge will resist attempts to change them, for a lot of reasons.     One is cost, because training everyone to do things differently is expensive in both time and money.    Another is working...

One thing you learn to love in Vancouver, British Columbia is the sound, the feeling and the smell of rain. You also get to enjoy the bald eagles hunting by the river, and the herons, and the towering cedar trees and big leaf maples. For Maria Jose Obando, it wasn't that hard to do. She's the founder of the Little Paws Outdoor Classroom, and her program operates among the city and metro parks of Vancouver, serving a multicultural community with bilingual forest school activities and...

An aspect of nature education that I believe is greatly overlooked is the ability and benefit it gives young people to 'Do Hard Things'.  This happens when we learn to climb a steep hill, climb a tree, master carving knife safety or learn to think of others in our groups!  It happens when we learn to be safe and respectful about campfires.  It happens when we begin our studies in wild foods, birds, animal tracks, trees or bushcraft skills.  (This list could be very, very substantial!) All of...

The path of a writer and poet is a solo journey.  We navigate winding, circling loops of our own stories, sitting in the caves of our memories , reliving the places that changed our understanding, sometimes forever.    These offerings to the world expose our inner world, demanding that vulnerability as payment for finding our authentic voice that echoes across the canyon walls. My guest is Heidi Barr, and she shares her own path from a childhood in South Dakota to far flung places and back...

There comes a point in most nature education programs' evolution when we have to decide on what 'legal entity' or structure we are going to use to do business in our community.     Will we be a Sole Proprietor, in a for-profit model, or maybe a Partnership or LLC?    Or do we go in the Nonprofit Organization direction, with all of its complexities and possible advantages? This episode dives into this topic and explores the advantages to both legal structures, as well as their challenges,...

One of the most remarkable qualities I have seen in most 'Forest Educator' leaders I've met through this podcast is their ability and willingness to adapt, change and respond to the needs of the children, families and communities when needed.    Areta Farrance is an incredible leader who is doing this in a big way, and seeing positive outcomes and results.   We talk about her work building a community and extended family model of nature education, (commonly known in Australia as 'bush...

If you are a Nature Program Director looking for helpers or a Nature Educator looking for work, this episode can help you find the right situation or people for a positive, mutually beneficial experience! Nature programs, wilderness camps, youth therapy expeditions and forest schools are always looking for great candidates, and there are lots of awesome educators and counselors and leaders looking for their next adventure.  So, how do we find the right situation on both sides of this...

My guest in this episode found her way to 'nature based education' under duress, like so many program leaders.    Danielle Zola shares her visionary journey that was propelled by the needs of the children, and the needs of parents, and the desire to not 'settle' for the status quo.    It's the most painful thing to see our very young children suffering in a school system that struggles or fails to be flexible and adapt to student needs, so stepping away from that model was a first step...

The winter is a time of contrasts, where survival is hardest for most living things, and at the same time, sometimes also including times when we can feel closest to those in our families and our lives.    This episode explores the lessons found in the wild, through Winter Skills classes I've led for over 25 years, with students ranging in age from 14-50.  We discuss some of the most challenging winter conditions for survival, high energy food, fire skills and the wonders of insulators found...

For most nature educators, getting into a public school can be daunting and even a little intimidating.  The desire to offer forest education to ALL children is balanced against the number of hoops we have to jump through to make it happen.   Enter April Zajko, who is a nature preschool teacher with a keen understanding of how to find ways to collaborate with schools and organizations in a variety of settings.   She's a 'Jill of All Trades', when it comes to Forest Education.   She...

Ethical dilemmas happen when we are faced with situations where all of the options have conflicts with our morals or personal philosophy or beliefs.    In Forest Education, this happens around a number of issues, like employee compensation, or wildcrafting resources, or program pricing. Thirty years ago, I faced these issues alone, and did the best I could, as you will hear in this episode, but in today's digital world, we have new resources and connections and networks so we don't have to...

When Rimi and her husband chose to 'Take the Leap', it didn't seem TOO difficult.  Leaving a good corporate job with a decent nest egg and opening an island retreat center in the Azores seemed relatively safe.    Everything sounds good in theory. In your living room in Massachusetts.    However, things can go south in a hurry when 'island time' and contractors and language barriers all combine into a perfect storm.  That living room feeling can seem impossibly far away.   Hard times show us...

If there is one area in nature that many people 'fear to tread', it's wetlands, bogs and swamps. These areas are difficult to traverse, especially if you are afraid to get dirty.  There are mosquitoes.  There are snapping turtles.  Water snakes slither under the banks, and great blue herons stalk frogs along the lily pads.  There is often a rich, moist smell of decaying leaves, tree bark and plants that a lot of people find objectionable. I get it.  We're used to clean environments, fabric...

This episode explores the work of the Natural Artists, the Crafters and the Makers, and all of those who make useful and beautiful things from nature. Sandra Kehoe weaves experiences with her students like the willows they bend, their fingers full of the rich scent of green bark and tree sap. There is a longing by many women to form something that will last, but that impulse is paired with the feeling of warmth and connection that occurs when women share their lives in these classes. ...

It's understandable that most nature program directors or entrepreneurs are better trackers, or basketmakers, or wild foods gatherers than they are at marketing and promoting their programs.   Those things are what we are passionate about, so it makes sense. At the same time, if we want students and income from our educational programs, we need to find ways to to communicate the value of what we do. If we don't, our programs can be in trouble. This episode dives into the five biggest...

The loneliness and struggle that young men experience, especially young men of color, is one that happens silently, almost invisibly every day.  The opportunity to connect with older men and new friends and peers in the wild is literally life changing for them, and for the leaders and guides as well. This episode shares the extraordinary journey that Manny discovered through finding his own healing in a circle of peers in Brooklyn.  When men of color share their gifts and strategies for...

Probably the most unexpected thing that people realize while attending a nature program is how GOOD it feels to share the experience in the company of interesting, positive, and motivated participants. Yes, the skills learned are important and the crafts made are the things that entice people to come and learn, but in my estimation, the 'community' aspect of these programs is what creates a kind of magic that is very transformative. It doesn't always happen, but when it does, it makes...

The magic and power of 'forest school' programming and pedagogy has spread far and wide, from the Scandinavian origins to Europe, Turkey, North America, Australia, South Korea and now into Southeast Asia.  Sharon Cortez founded The Forest School of the Philippines, and has been on a mission to bring the benefits and positive results of this model of pre-school, kindergarten & younger grades to communities throughout her country.    Sharon shares her journey, starting with her epiphany...