VIII International training: An Experiential approach to Wilderness Therapy

[ONLY FOR youth workers, professionals from the mental health, education, social intervention or related field. A qualitative selection of participants will be made]

Wilderness Therapy is a methodology within the Experiential Therapies and therefore we promote experiential learning. Wilderness Therapy is an ideal approach to work with youth like troubled teens with psychosocial or educational problems that struggle at school, home, relationships. We believe that by living this experience on first hand, as professionals, we will be able to provide a better experience to our youth participants in the future. Through a backpacking expedition in the fields of Valencia, Spain, sharing and creating new experiences in a small group, while learning and experiencing the therapeutic effects of the wilderness.

Come to develop yourself as a person and as a professional to better understand how can we use the healing power of nature for our work and interventions with youth.

Goals: To provide a Wilderness Therapy experience that is commonly used in other countries such as USA To learn theoretical and practical grounds of Wilderness Therapy To promote good practices when implementing Wilderness Therapy programs adapted to the population and context in which we work.

Content

• Therapeutic tools in Wilderness Therapy
• Key components of Wilderness Therapy
• Theoretical foundations of Wilderness Therapy
• Soft skills and hard skills “Leave no Trace”
• Role of a mentor/facilitator working with youth at risk.

Training process

First part: Experience.

• Backpacking expedition that includes: Hiking Camp in bivouac
• Introspection time
• Cooking your own meals
• Group gatherings
• “Fire circles”

Second part: Process.

• The focus will be on the personal experience and reflecting on what happened during the first days.

Third part: Transfer.

• Through a meta-analysis, we will evaluate, process and analyze how each participant can adapt this experience to the population that they work with and the social context of each country.

Note for candidates: For this training, there will be a selection process based on motivation and professional background. The early bird fee will be applied if you have enrolled before the established date, but this does not guarantee your participation in this training. We kindly appreciate your patience and we will get back to you if you have been selected. 

[THIS TRAINING IS NOT FUNDED BY THE ERASMUS+ PROGRAMME. Participants must pay for the inscription. One scholarship available. ]