Fibers of Reflection I forgot to pack a hat to go canoeing down the river Spey on our first residential. So, in the spirit of Outdoor Environmental and Sustainability Education (OESE), I learned how to make one. My experiences during this two-week residential influenced the way I lived through and learned from the rest of […]

My personal life experiences inform the vast majority of my academic interests. I can’t deny that they are occasionally a quest for how other people’s life experiences are similar to or different from mine. As an Indian heterosexual cis-gender middle-class backward caste woman, it should come as no surprise that all of my research projects […]

My curiosity was originally piqued by the climate activist clergy members I kept meeting on marches: those who talked about activism as an integral expression of Christian faith; those whose spirituality seemed political, embodied, gritty and serene all at the same time. So how was it that I ended up describing the one experience I […]

In 2021 six women came together to explore the intersections of their research and lived experiences. Heidi Smith, Morgan Ludington, Anouska Duffy, Denise Mitten, Justina Burks, Mary Breunig. A research question was formulated to guide the collaborative work: In what ways do women experience their places in the outdoors? Ethical approval has been approved through […]

Disconnection with place I was fortunate enough to attend residential outdoor education field trips when I was in school. Perhaps that was what laid the foundations for a career of 15 years (and counting) that I am truly passionate about. Having spent 5 years working in the sister centre of the one I visited as […]

  For my dissertation, I decided to explore a topic (menstruation) that I have previously researched in a new (for me) context.  I explored the experiences of people who menstruate and outdoor leaders who have supported menstruators.  To do this, I invited participants to complete an online questionnaire which allowed them to share stories of […]

A teen without their phone. This almost seems like a rarity these days as society has accepted personal technology as an integral part of young people’s identity. In Outdoor Environmental Education (OEE), this is a divisive topic. While some educators seek to embrace the technological revolution to better connect with young participants, others shun it […]

An autoethnography uncovering unconscious biases through gender and sexuality. I invite you to begin by engaging with this visualisation… (https://youtu.be/fxEhPeGCxwU). I identify as a white, cis-gendered, able-bodied, lesbian, woman.  In the outdoor western world, an English speaking, white, able-bodied dominant environment I have privilege and power – I can physically access and be welcomed to […]