Eco-therapy is the practice of spending focused time, outside in connection with nature for our mental and physical health and wellbeing. For me, it is the simple - beautiful - act of paying attention to what is here for us. What we can connect and interact with; the blue of the sky, the weeds sprouting through tarmac, the earthy smell of soil, the crunch of leaves underfoot are all sensory moments and invitations. I call them the ‘hello I am here’ moments, where nature invites us to pay attention. Eco-therapy can shift our focus to the unfolding cycles of nature, aiding feelings of apathy and loneliness as well as depression and anxiety. So often is the case, that when we connect with what is outside of ourselves, with the otherness of things, we circle back and connect with our internal selves and what is happening there.

The practice of eco-therapy helps to bridge the gap and the separation that has grown between ourselves and nature over time. In the pause and in the silence with ourselves, in a landscape, I believe we can begin to hear and see things more clearly, stepping into a conversation with nature. This is an exciting place to be creatively, and the beginning place for where I guide art making processes.

Completing my training with Tariki Trust in 2018, I have since worked within a variety of settings, establishing art and eco-therapy based sessions and projects with both individuals and groups. Community organisations I have worked with include Bridgend Farmhouse, Cyrenians, Granton Castle Walled Garden, Pilton Community Health Project, The Crannie, West Calder Community Garden and the Fold Farm in Worcester. I have also worked with primary school and high school students, developing art and nature based school term programmes.