Nature Facilitation Practicals & Preparing

Welcome to our Nature Facilitation Training. We can’t wait to share this journey with you!

This training is all about deepening your connection with nature and empowering you to guide others in meaningful group experiences. We look forward to meeting you and welcoming you to the Change in Nature community. 🌱✨

Dates

Tuesday 23rd September (11:45am) to Sunday 28th September (4pm) 2025

Arrivals and departures

Arrivals: Please aim to arrive on site from 11:45am on Tuesday (and no later than 12:15pm). This will give you time to set up your tent and familiarise yourself with the site. We will start gathering at 12:45pm.
Departures: We will finish by 4pm on Sunday (but please also allow time afterwards to take down your tent).

Travel

By car – The location on google maps is here. There is a sign on the gate that says “Moor Barton Woods” (it needs to say “woods” - there are other signs for Moor Barton elsewhere!). After arriving through the gate, drive down the track for about 5 minutes (it’s a bit bumpy!) – the camping area among ancient beech trees will be on your right (where you can drop off any gear) and places for vans and parking cars are on the left.
By public transport – The site is a 30 minute drive from both Exeter and Newton Abbot train stations. It is probably easiest (and cheaper!) to get a taxi from Newton Abbot train station. If you are interested in sharing a taxi with others (at 11:35pm from Newton Abbot), there will be a WhatsApp group that we set up a week before the camp. On departure day, it will be possible to get the train from Newton Abbot from 4:54pm onwards (assuming you’re a quick packer!).
If you are running late on the day or need to contact us, please text or call our camp phone - 07754 204074. We will not be tracking emails.

Accommodation and facilities

This camp is taking place on a beautiful wild piece of land, which has no infrastructure connections (i.e. no electricity or running water). Our light will come from the fire and a smattering of solar lights, and our water for washing will be fetched from the stream (drinking water will come from a water bowser). There are two roundhouses on the land - providing plenty of group shelter from the elements… As well as four compost toilets.
Some people choose to wash in the stream — others may want to bring along a camp solar bag shower. Please ensure all soaps etc are natural eco-products and will not put nasty things into the water.
We appreciate that not everyone is accustomed to spending time off-grid, so we will make every effort to ensure that you are comfortable and can enjoy this time going "back to basics".
There is ample space for camping and camper vans are welcome too!

What to pack

Comfortable & casual outdoor clothes including waterproofs (both jacket & trousers)
Warm layers for the evening (fleeces etc.)
Outdoor shoes (if you have space, it would be also great to bring wellies so that you can explore exciting areas like the beaver wetland!)
Hats (sun hat / woolly hat – depending on the weather)
Wrist watch (preferred) or other simple time keeping device that is not your phone. You might want to borrow one from friends or family if you don’t have your own.
Sun cream, environmentally friendly toiletries, anti-viral hand sanitiser
Earplugs & eyemask (if you're a light sleeper)
Water bottle
Torch / headtorch with working batteries
Notebook & pen / pencil
Something special, colourful and celebratory to wear for our last night
Instruments (if you have any!)
Camping gear: tent, sleeping bag, pillow, ground mat, etc.
Hot water bottle
Blanket & optional cushion to sit on (which you don’t mind using outside)
Bivvy Bag. If you don’t already have one, we suggest investing in one. We recommend getting a Gortex second hand bivvy bag (such as here) – they are great things to have for sleeping out in nature! Don’t worry if you can’t get one, as we have some spares.
Your own packed lunch for Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday (see below).

Food and drink

We will be cooking up delicious, hearty and healthy breakfasts & dinners – concocted with fresh (mostly organic) vegan ingredients.
Please note that lunches are not provided on this course. Make sure to bring your own packed lunches for Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday (there are no catering options on these days and nowhere close to the site to buy food). Please pack everything you need to prepare and eat your lunch if you can (inc. chopping knives) and note that there are no refrigeration facilities.
We will provide lunch on Saturday and Sunday.
You might want to supplement meals with snacks you bring yourself (but we request that these are vegetarian if that works for you).
There will be a bottomless supply of tea and coffee available to keep you energised throughout! Please note this is an alcohol free event.

Digital detox

One of the things that people find most beneficial about our retreats is the opportunity to enjoy a multi-day digital detox. We encourage you to get any last minute correspondence done before you arrive on site, as we will invite you to lock your phone in a box when we first gather on Tuesday. We also recognise that this is not possible for everyone (particularly those with caring responsibilities) and can of course explore what feels possible and good for you.
If you’d like to be contactable during our week together (e.g. in case of an emergency), please do share our camp phone number with friends or family – 07754204074. The camp phone gets checked for text messages twice a day and is turned off over night.

What to expect

This course is not your average 9 to 5 training. It’s an immersive journey that weaves together the personal and the professional, the inner and the outer. You’ll be invited into practices that deepen your own connection with nature, community, and your experience of being alive at this time — as well as those that build your capacity to design and lead powerful group experiences in nature.

We work experientially. That means most of your learning will happen through doing: engaging in practices, reflecting on them, and then trying them out yourself. There are no whiteboards or PowerPoints — and we won’t be sitting in rows with a teacher at the front. We will share our written handbook, which unpacks the theory behind what we do, but that’s yours to explore in your own time — before or after the course.

Some of what you’ll experience may feel playful, some may be deeply reflective, and some might touch into places that are profoundly transformative. Everyone’s journey will be different — and everything we offer is an invitation, not an expectation. You are always free to choose your level of participation. Our aim is to support each person to find their stretch zone — the place where learning is alive, but not overwhelming.

Arc of the week

Each day builds on the last, supporting you to grow your confidence, connection, and clarity in this work:

Day 1: Landing & Deep Ecology
Arriving and beginning to build connection with the land, the group, and our ecological selves.
Day 2: Connection & Flow
Exploring what “nature connection” really means, and learning a nature-inspired framework to design meaningful experiences that flow.
Day 3: Practice & Purpose
A morning experimenting with the framework, and an afternoon exploring our felt response to being alive at this time and deepest reasons for doing this work.
Day 4: Design & Depth
Designing and facilitating a complete experience, offering and receiving peer feedback, and experiencing a magical overnight nature practice.
Day 5: Collaboration & Co-Creation
Experimenting with collaboration and co-facilitation — including a special evening celebration that emerges from our shared creativity.
Day 6: Going Forth
Integrating the week’s learning and setting intentions for how this work will continue to unfold in your life and practice.

Our daily rhythm

We work in an emergent way, responding to what arises in the group and in the natural environment - and for this reason we don’t share a detailed agenda in advance. However, to give you some orientation to our time together, this is the general daily rhythm: