Everything is interconnected.

We tend to view Nature as something that humans are separate from. Now more than ever, it is vital for us to see ourselves as part of the wider systems we rely on for our survival and to understand the benefits and value of nature to you. To understand that our actions impact ourselves, others and the Earth; and vice versa.

Nature-based coaching is a partnership that responds to the planet as well as the person and enables people to respond to global and individual crises. By connecting people to the natural world, we can transform our capacity and capability to be our best selves. 

Nature compliments coaching in the following ways:

A place of safety

• Safety ensures confidentiality, openness, challenge and judgement-free exploration.

• Nature offers additional safety through a parental presence, with benefits for emotional regulation and optimising positive mood states.

Power of metaphor 

• Coaching exploits metaphor as a means of creating awareness and making meaning. 3/5 of the most used sources for metaphor are in the ‘more than human’ world. 

Creative thinking 

• Thinking creatively enables new awareness and choice, and opens up new avenues for action.

• Just 25 minutes in Nature can activate the default mode network - freeing up the prefrontal cortex, and offering more potential for creative work and problem solving. 

The benefits of being in Nature:

Wellbeing 

• There is overwhelming scientific evidence that Nature is good for our mental and physical health. It is also good for our wellbeing, for example boosting self-esteem, a common subject that clients bring to coaching. 

Life satisfaction 

• Over 50 studies show that nature connection increases life satisfaction - the sense that life is worthwhile. This is likely to be due to increased autonomy, competence and relatedness.

Community 

• The feelings of ‘awe’ we experience in Nature can have surprising benefits. Not only does awe lead to increased generosity, helping and other pro-social behaviour that can strengthen community ties, it can also increase ethical decision making. 

The value of partnering with nature:

Our natural child 

We can forget how to be naturally playful, or get stuck in unhelpful scripts about our natural child. Nature is a place to (re)experience spontaneity and exploration - alongside the adult we wish to be. 

Sense and sensitivity

• Working with Nature extends our palette of experience, and opportunity for transformation. By bringing our bodies as well as our minds into the process, we can more easily consider how to embody the changes we desire. 

Igniting eco-action 

• A positive feedback loop has been demonstrated: people who have a higher degree of connectedness to nature report greater pro-environmental behaviour. In this way, Nature-based coaching could have its greatest impact of all: generating action for our planet. With 33% of global species threatened with extinction, this action is more important than ever.