Class Objectives:
The course supports you in developing a deep relationship with the natural world that serves as the bedrock for leading nature connection initiatives in your community. Specifically, we will:
Deepen our own relationship with nature and share intentional nature connection practices and activities with others to promote human and planetary health.
Develop expertise with the five nature connection pathways, core community engagement practices, and facilitation skills that are foundational for nature connection leadership.
Work collaboratively to improve spaces for nature connection and to empower others to make noticing nature a part of their lives.
Assignments and Grading:
There are four assignments that should take no more than 90 minutes each to complete weekly between classes.
For the first 14 days of the class:
1) The Daily Good in Nature Exercise: Starting sometime the week of March 14th, and for the following 14 days straight, take ten minutes a day to experience "the good" in nature, however you define it, and record your emotional experiences in a small notebook. Briefly document feelings, observations, and creative inspirations with sketches, poems, or narrative descriptions.
Before you begin the exercise, read this Washington Post article that explains the research this practice draws from. You might consider focusing on one element of nature, such as watching the moon every night to experience lunar mentorship, or visiting the same spot daily to immerse yourself in a specific area of our local ecosystem.
2) For the entire length of the class: Monitor your decomposition jar (created during the opening retreat). Practice cultivating awe as you observe the changes. Read this article about awe to support your process and listen to this podcast featuring Dacher Keltner, a prominent awe researcher. Based on your notes and observations, prepare a two-paragraph explanation of what you experienced while attending to this small ecosystem. Bring the jar and your written explanation to the last class for an informal show-and-tell.
3) For the entire length of the class, take on a weekly experiment to explore nature connection pathways and release habits that you think interfere with your relationship with the Earth. These experiments focus on mindsets, behaviors, and perspectives. They are woven into your life, so you should not take extra time. You will pick the week's experiment at the end of each class. When we return to class, we will discuss the experiment conducted the week before, what we learned from it, and how we will apply the learning going forward.
Possible experiments:
Putting screens out of reach while outside and taking time daily to separate from phones.
Talking about nature in relational terms.
Inviting people to share nature connection experiences.
Readings before classes:
3) Before March 20th, read the first three foundational knowledge articles. Take notes on what feels important about them for becoming a nature connection leader, and begin crafting a response to the first two mission/vision statement questions.
3) Before March 27th, read foundational articles three to six and the Nature Connection Leadership Guidebook. Begin to craft responses to the third and fourth questions for your mission statement. Invite friends for the closing retreat.
4) Before April 17th, read the facilitation section of the Guidebook related to nature connection skills. Begin crafting a response to the fifth question in your mission statement.
5) Before April 24th, finish your mission statement and your decomposition jar statement to bring to the retreat. Prepare for the retreat.
Class Schedule
Mandatory field trips at Morven:
Friday, March 13, 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM & Friday, April 24, 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Class times and locations:
Friday, March 20 1 PM to 3 PM, Contemplative Science Center courtyard facing the pond
Friday, March 27 1 PM to 3 PM, Garden VII behind the Colonnade Club
Friday, April 17 1 PM - 3 PM
Office hours: By appointment via Google Meet or in person in Garden VII. Email Carolyn at carolyn@natureconnectionlab.com to request a meeting. Requests are warmly welcomed!