A Call to Action from Phase 3!
What has been going on?!? As we asserted in the Spring Newsletter, these are strange and unprecedented times with COVID; and these strange times call for stranger measures. Many of us in the world of psychotherapy have had to move our work online or else halt it altogether. Primary and secondary school education have ground to a halt. And the usually restful and restorative Summer holidays have been fraught with uncertainty and difficulty. However, speaking from a global perspective, we’ve gotten off lightly in Ireland. Many governments around the world have displayed a remarkable unwillingness to accept the science and to prescribe appropriate measures to contain the pandemic. When mature leadership is most needed, sadly some have cynically and despicably politicised a public health issue, using this crisis to sneak in legislation and garner votes for their own unrelated agenda. And let’s not forget that for many of our fellow citizens of Planet Earth, going into lockdown is simply not an option with many people faced with the choice of starving if they do not work or exposing themselves to COVID if they do. This health risk is unevenly distributed with the lives of many of the less fortunate people on the planet genuinely at risk.
From a psychological perspective, this is a momentous time and, undoubtedly , it is a moment to move. These are truly unique circumstances and they have a lot to teach us about how modern human beings respond to crisis and behave under duress. While there have been many massive shortcomings in governmental action in the western world, there has also been massive national and international action and cooperation. The level of compliance with COVID measures has been phenomenal at every level of society. Human beings have completely changed their lifestyles overnight. It shows that people can and will act in a crisis. But we already knew that. But the next challenge, the real challenge, will be tTo figure out how to mobilise people to pre-empt a crisis!
And on this island there has been a paradoxical and wonderful expansion of our horizons. With people rediscovering just how great cycling is, bicycle sales have gone through the roof. With lockdown measures in place, families have been rediscovering how to enjoy spending time together at home. People are learning to appreciate what they do have as opposed to coveting what they do not have. And perhaps most encouragingly of all, we have all been getting out into nature. For many Irish people, this is a rebirth, a rediscovery of just what a magical little island it is that we call home. So how can we, at the EEAI, use our own knowledge of the benefits of nature for human well-being to harness this newfound society-wide awareness of the magic of the outdoors? We could have all of the time in the world if we just use it well. We hope to keep this good work and momentum flowing as our organisation slowly but surely turns into the hub of networking and effective activity it needs to be to bring value to all of our members, professional or otherwise. We can make a difference. Read on to find out what we are doing and how you can be a part of it.
A Message from our Chairperson Rob Lewis
I hope you are all feeling well throughout these strange times, and if you have found them tough, I hope you have allowed yourself the permission to find it tough, these last few months have been difficult. For some people this time has been like a hibernation, allowing you to reenter life and business with a hunger and energy, for others this time has been difficult and draining, I hope that whatever your reality has been that you are meeting yourself with the compassion and gentleness that you deserve and need.
At the eeai, we are delighted to have welcomed new professional members to our list of practitioners. We are also delighted to see new trainings emerging from our professional members, showing the wealth of knowledge and talent that we have in our organisation and on our island.
Over the next couple of months, we hope to publish our new website. Our aim is that this will be a great resource for professionals who use ecotherapy and ecopsychology within their work, for those looking to find practitioners and for those wanting to stay up to date with news and research around ecopsychology and ecotherapy.
As we continue to grow, we are always looking for volunteers to take up new roles within the organisation, details of which will be published on the new website in September, but if you have a skill that you would like to offer to our association please let us know and we will contact you if something comes up.
As always our deepest thanks to all who support and our interested in what we are doing.
Warmest regards,
Robert Lewis.
Reflection
This newsletter features a reflective piece by Alex Conroy entitled My Tree. Alex is a writer and a musician based in Dublin. He is also a much-valued EEAI member and contributor.
Events
Eco-Walks
In light of the amount of stress people are experiencing with COVID and the known restorative benefits of contact with Nature, Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council (DLR), along with Kinship, have been running free Eco-Walks around the parks in the DLR area! The months of July, August and September are the targets for this. For more information on this exciting development, check out the Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown Libraries page for details of the next walks. The eeai will be listed on the guided literature going into the libraries to support the public heading out and engaging mindfully with nature.
Trainings
Our very own Vice Chairperson, Joanne Hanrahan, is now offering a range of excellent trainings; follow this link for the full description of what she can offer. Her courses will take place throughout the coming months and will focus on the following topics:
1. Outdoor Pyschotherapy Core Training
2. Existential Outdoor Workshop for Therapists
3. A Trauma Informed Introduction to Bringing Nature into your Practice
Our very own Matthew Henson will also be running a seven part wellness series for practitioners of ecotherapy to address issues of how to remain calm and how to regulate your own emotions in these challenging times. This will be taking place on the third Saturday of each month from March to September. Click this link for more details.
Committee Meeting – a chance for you to have your say!
We are delighted to announce that our next committee meeting, and our first full committee meeting with COVID will take place on Saturday September 12th. It will take place online and will involve a chance for any and all members to have their opinions heard and discussed. If you have something you would like brought up at committee level, please send an email to info@eeai.ie with the subject line EEAI Committee Meeting.
We sincerely hope that our dear readers are finding ways to cope with the unprecendented circumstances in which the human species finds itself. To this end, we hope that the content of this newsletter provides some solace, insight or direction regarding how we can all empower ourselves and each other to effect change and appreciation for nature within ourselves and our communities.