A Proposed Model for Enhanced Spiritual Connectedness

Authors

Dottie Shuman

Print Reference

pp. 14-17

Abstract

As I read through the literature on spirituality in wilderness and reflected on my own experiences, two conclusions emerged worth sharing in this paper. 1) While in the wilderness, people describe a sense of something greater than themselves and 2) people emerge from the wilderness as changed people, sometimes intentionally going to the wilderness to be changed. These two ideas might cause those of us who are training outdoor leaders to pause for a moment. If people are changing as a result of their time in wilderness, how can leaders strengthen that impact? In addition, Louv (2006), at the first National Dialogue on Children and Nature, described the work of outdoor and environmental educators as "sacred". If this work is sacred, we must take seriously the impacts that may emerge. TI1is paper will explore the impacts of being in wilderness and suggest a methodology for those who do this "sacred work" (Louv, 2006). The purpose of this paper, then, is to define two areas of influence from time spent in the wilderness and describe a method for outdoor educators to do this "sacred work".

Recommended Citation

Dottie Shuman (2007) "A Proposed Model for Enhanced Spiritual Connectedness," Taproot: A Journal of Outdoor Education: Vol. 17: Iss. 1, Article 6.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.cortland.edu/taproot/vol17/iss1/6