It's a Matter of Heart - Environmentalism, Mental Health and Being Human
with Jon Young and Kathleen Lockyer
Sunday, April 15 from 3-6 pm at the Rackham Amphitheater
Take a few seconds to recall an outdoor place or experience that was special to you as a child...
Was it a landscape you roamed with neighborhood kids? Was it a vacation spot your family returned to each year? Was it the space under a draped-to-the-ground forsythia bush in your backyard? Was it your secret spot in the branches of a white pine?
If you're like most people, this recall brings you to a place of happiness inside. Please take this memory with you today and see how it influences all your connections with others. You might even ask someone else to recall their own special memories and offer to share yours.
If you're like most people, this recall brings you to a place of happiness inside. Please take this memory with you today and see how it influences all your connections with others. You might even ask someone else to recall their own special memories and offer to share yours.
Richard Louv, author of best-seller, Last Child in the Woods, writes, “The future belongs to the nature-smart.” What could he mean by this? Are you nature-smart? How does one become nature-smart?
Many traditional environmental organizations would like to attract more young people to membership. What childhood experiences lead to adult commitment to protecting and advocating for nature? Can we keep lifelong connection with nature alive on a daily basis? Is it possible to fall in love with nature and feel our belonging to Earth’s community?
Perhaps our society's loneliness and isolation results from collective disconnect from the natural world? Could time spent in nature lift our spirits? Would developing relationship with plants, animals, birds and landscapes increase our capacity for empathy? Could it reduce the amount of violence in our society?
Many traditional environmental organizations would like to attract more young people to membership. What childhood experiences lead to adult commitment to protecting and advocating for nature? Can we keep lifelong connection with nature alive on a daily basis? Is it possible to fall in love with nature and feel our belonging to Earth’s community?
Perhaps our society's loneliness and isolation results from collective disconnect from the natural world? Could time spent in nature lift our spirits? Would developing relationship with plants, animals, birds and landscapes increase our capacity for empathy? Could it reduce the amount of violence in our society?
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You're invited to an inspirational afternoon with Jon Young and Kathleen Lockyer of the 8 Shields Institute. You'll be captivated by master storytelling as Jon and Kathleen share their experiential understanding of deep nature connection and how this relates to our neurobiology, our capacity for developing connections with other people, and the health of community.
This event will be of great value to parents, caregivers, teachers, environmentalists, psychologists, urban planners, sociologists, anthropologists, outdoor enthusiasts, and anyone who's wondering what's happened to the human spirit and its relationship to Earth. |
We are welcoming donations
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Details
Jon and Kathleen speak to us on Sunday, April 15 from 3-6 pm at the University of Michigan 4th floor Rackham Amphitheater. This event is free.
Space is limited - registration is required
This event is close to full, but there may be a few seats available. If you are interested, please call 734-531-8330.
The Presenters
Photo by Charles Purvis
Anthropologist Jon Young was mentored in childhood by Tom Brown, Jr., the famous tracker who, himself, was mentored by Apache elder Grandfather Stalking Wolf. Jon points to the importance of connection with nature, self, and others as the basis for healthy culture. He carries wisdom from experience in nature, from mentoring thousands of people in deep nature connection and from his ongoing connections with indigenous people worldwide. He's the founder of the 8 Shields Institute.
Kathleen Lockyer, occupational therapist, and self-described “research junkie,” has trail-blazed new paradigms of therapeutic intervention. Continually integrating all she learns, she developed the copyrighted Nature-Led Approach, which combines developmental, bio-physical, social-emotional, cognitive-behavioral, and neurological sciences for a learning experience that just makes sense. She's also the founder of her own organization, Rx Outside.