Storytelling, Art and Ecotherapy – a Training Retreat in Scotland

Join Buddhist charity Tariki Trust for three days of creative ecotherapy training. If you are interested in connecting others with Nature through creativity and/or storytelling, you are invited to join us for three nights of wild camping in Abbey Wood, our woodland retreat in the Scottish Borders.

During the long weekend (Friday evening to Monday morning) we will explore traditional folklore and legends from the Scottish Borders area and allow them to act as a catalyst for Nature connection. We will express ourselves through art-making in Nature and explore how to use these methods to support other people’s wellbeing and mental health. We will cook together over an open fire and go back to basics.

Nature is a great catalyst for creativity. For as long as humans have been human, we have carved images, shared stories around a fire and sang songs for our friends. And yet, our modern world interrupts this process of expression, often encouraging us to create for end results: to exhibit in a gallery, for example, or to produce a successful novel that sells thousands of copies. But what happens to our pure, free expression – our nature – when we forget how to create for expression itself?

Nature can show us the way back.

This retreat is open to anyone with an interest in ecotherapy, for professional or personal reasons. If you are a student on our Ten Directions course, this training weekend can also be taken as part of your studies and it will count as 24 hours of training.

Please note that there are only 11 places available on this retreat, so booking early is advised.

Times, location, food and practical information

Location: Abbey Wood, Earlston, Scottish Borders. (Exact location given after booking). Earlston is in the heart of the Scottish Borders: a rural, sparsely populated area that is rich with gorgeous rivers, rolling green hills and enchanting folklore.

Important Accessibility Information. During the retreat we may be walking for some miles in muddy, uphill terrain. An average level of fitness is required. Unfortunately, Abbey Wood and the surrounding area is not accessible for wheelchair users or those with other physical disabilities where walking uphill is not possible, as the woods is up a steep stony track and the camping area is wild. However, if you have another condition or illness and you are not sure if it will affect your ability to engage with the retreat, please email Stephen to discuss this and we will do everything we can to accommodate (within the obvious limitations of the spaces we are using). Email stephen@tarikitrust.org

Times: Arrival is between 3pm - 6pm on the friday evening or by arrangement. The retreat ends around 11am on Monday. We ask people to come and stay for the entire retreat, from Friday evening to Monday morning, in order to get the most out of the group experience.

Facilitators: Stephen McCabe and Caroline Brazier. This event is organised by Buddhist charity Tariki Trust. It can be taken as part of our Ten Directions year-long course in ecotherapy, or as a standalone weekend.

Getting to Earlston: We encourage the use of public transport where possible. The small town of Earlston can be reached by taking the 51 bus from Edinburgh, and we are offering free pick ups from the town centre. The bus takes around 90 minutes and you can find the timetable here. (We provide more details after booking.)

CPD Event: This event counts as Continuing Professional Development for counsellors, therapists and others in helping professions. We are happy to issue CPD certificates once you have attended the entire weekend. Simply message us through Eventbrite after the workshop/series is over and we will email your certificate. This camping retreat counts as 24 CPD training hours and 24 training hours for Ten Directions students who are enrolled on the full course. Although this event is part of the Ten Directions ecotherapy training programme, anybody can book a ticket and take part in this weekend (even if you are not currently training with us).

Food: Breakfast, lunch and dinner (all vegan) will be provided as part of your fee. If you have any food allergies, you can let us know after booking and we will do our best to accommodate this. As this is a training weekend, we work together a team; therefore there is a rota for preparing meals which everyone is asked to contribute to.

Camping: This retreat comprises three nights of wild camping in a small woodland. There are activities planned from morning until evening, with plenty of time between activities for some silent, solo reflection time of your own. Abbey Wood is a small woodlands of between 2-3 acres and you will need to bring your own (one-person only) tent. This is a truly wild camping experience with no electricity or running water. We have a composting toilet, rainwater for basic washing, and obviously there is plenty of drinking water, but luxuries don’t extend much further beyond this, so please be prepared for no showers etc. We will send you information before the retreat starts detailing everything that you need to bring with you.

Refunds are possible up until 14 days before the event. Regrettably, for organisational reasons we are usually not able to provide refunds within 14 days before the event begins, as we need to know exact numbers to make appropriate plans. (For example, buying the right amount of food, and making schedule plans that fit the right number of people coming along).