Offered by Kirsten Rudestam, Jean Leonard and Emerson James. As practices, kinship and queer ecology can help us get in closer touch with the truth of who we truly are, as well as strengthen our inherent connection with the more-than-human world. In queer ecology, at the scale of the individual, to be queer is to be mutable; queerness signifies that which is unfixed and in a constant process of becoming. At the scale of the collective, queerness is relational, symbiotic and supportive.*  In this retreat we apply these lenses of kinship and queer ecology to explore the paramitas, a set of 10 qualities or perfections of character, that, once honed, lead to liberation of the heart and mind.

Drawing on the wisdom of the land, this retreat weaves together three strands of practice: silent meditation periods, experiential nature-based practices, and small group discussions. These three strands will support us in opening to the questions: How might we deepen into a greater sense of interbeing through the flexible spaces of queer ecology? How does recognizing conditionality and relationality transform and inform our connections with and compassion for ourselves, others, and our more-than-human kin? For more information see RMERC’s website.

To live attentively is to embrace the truth of our fundamental connection with all beings, including our collective joys and losses. In this retreat we explore how opening to each other and to nature can be a pathway to maturation and a deepening intimacy with this precious life. Through periods of silent meditation, council practice, and dialogue with our human and nonhuman sangha we are invited to know our interdependence as a way of uncovering a greater resilience, appreciation and tenderness in being a conscious part of this animate Earth.

A nature-based primarily silent mindfulness retreat with alternating sitting and walking meditation, instruction, dharma talks, council practice, work meditation, and practice discussion with the teachers. This is a nature-based retreat center. Facilities include two showers, two toilets, meditation and camping platforms, outdoor kitchen and seating area, yurt for gathering and indoor space. It is surrounded by 100s of acres of wilderness, walks to nearby river and creek. Suitable for both beginners and experienced practitioners. Organic, locally sourced meals provided.

This retreat is offered in the spirit of generosity and is a A Sky Mind and IRC collaboration. It is free of cost and participants will have an opportunity to support the teachers and IRC at the end of the retreat. It takes place at Forest Camp of Atlan; White Salmon WA

APPLY ONLINE - Registration opened May 9, 2024

See IRC retreats for more information

Those in spiritual and contemplative traditions have long participated in rituals of pilgrimage to demonstrate reverence for life and to remember the larger ground of belonging. In this retreat we join in this tradition, becoming intimate with the nature of our own minds alongside the wider natural world of which we are part. A significant part of the retreat will be held in silence, interspersed with periods of shared exploration through dialogue, community inquiry, and nature based ceremony. We will also have the opportunity to spend a day and night of solitary time on the land. We will offer meditation instructions, group guidance, and wilderness/backpacking skills. All are welcome. Backpacking experience is not required.

This retreat takes place in the Gifford Pinchot Wilderness, lands long stewarded by the Cayuse, Yakama, Umatilla, Walla Walla peoples and many others. The trailhead is approximately 1.5 hours from Portland Oregon.

This retreat is offered in the spirit of generosity. It is free of cost and participants will have an opportunity to support the teachers and IRC at the end of the retreat. Retreatants will need to bring their own food and camping supplies.

APPLY ONLINE - Registration opened May 9, 2024

Offered by Kirsten Rudestam and Tanya Wiser, this is a silent, nature-based Vipasanna meditation retreat centered around understanding the body, heart and mind through the five elements of earth, water, fire, air and space. A foundational practice taught by the Buddha, orienting to the elements as fundamental components of the human experience is found in Indigenous cultures, spiritual practices and religious traditions around the world. We will be camping along the Wind River in the Columbia River Gorge, a beautiful setting to cultivate a deeper connection with the natural world and bring the elements alive in our awareness and direct experience. Practice periods will include silent and guided sitting, walking meditation, and Dharma talks. To learn more click here or email elementsnaturedharma@gmail.com

See Vallecitos website for more information

Building community around climate change, inequality, social justice issues, and the dharma, while we explore together what it is to remember our own innate connection with life/the earth through the lens of the Buddha Dharma. See https://www.mtstream.org/nc-daily-schedule/2024/01/13-virtual-kirsten-rudestam-eco-dharma-course for more information.

A silent mindfulness retreat at Insight Retreat Center with alternating sitting and walking meditation, instruction, dharma talks, work meditation, and practice discussion with the teachers. Suitable for both beginners and experienced practitioners. See IRC website for more information.

The Climate Wisdom Lab is a professional development program designed to help faculty and staff prepare students for sustainable engagement with climate change, structural injustice, and other systemic challenges by integrating emotional-affective pedagogy into their existing curriculum and programs. The program builds upon existing understandings of the complex psychosocial dimensions of climate change and other stressors; assesses the hidden affective implications of existing course offerings, and creates a collaborative creative process for developing innovative new offerings and teaching modules that respond to the unique demands of today’s educational environment. Presented by Kevin Gallagher, JD, Sarah Jaquette Ray, PhD, and Kirsten Rudestam, PhD.

For more information and to sign up: www.emergentresilience.com/cwltraining

This retreat will take place at Shelterwood Collective, a Black, Indigenous, and LGBTQ-led community forest and retreat center, healing people and ecosystems through active stewardship and community engagement. In this three-day meditation retreat we draw from Buddhist teachings, becoming more intimate with nature in our own minds while deepening our relations with nature in the more-than-human world. In so doing, we experience the mutuality of these ways in deepening our relationship with all of life. See OGR’s website for more information and for registration.

In this retreat we join the long tradition of elders within both indigenous societies and contemplative traditions in seeking out the refuge of the wider natural world in order to become more intimate with a larger ground of belonging. We do this to fall more deeply in love with this life and to better serve life.

During our days we will weave together three threads: individual contemplative practice, community inquiry and a deepening relationship with the land. Meditation instruction will be offered around the four foundations of mindfulness alongside a range of experiential nature-based practices that complement these foundations. A significant part of the retreat will be held in silence, interspersed with periods of shared exploration through dialogue and informal time for simply being together as a small temporary community. There will also be opportunity for solo time.

This is a backcountry retreat. We will be backpacking approximately 5 miles to a basecamp, where we will spend all four nights of our retreat. As a participant, you must supply your own backpacking and camping gear, food for lunch and personal snacks. We will provide a packing list upon registration.

This retreat is offered in the spirit of generosity, co-offered by Kirsten Rudestam and Rupert Marques. We ask for a fee of $150-$300, which covers the retreat costs: food, teacher travel, supplies and incidental expenses. After the retreat there will be an opportunity for participants to practice generosity in offering financial support to the teachers.

This guided vision fast ceremony is for professionals, scientists, educators, advocates, and activists who are called to serve the vision of a better world. Bringing together a group of dynamic changemakers, the ceremony will enable participants to connect to inner and collective wisdom, separate from what no longer serves and cross the threshold to claim new ways of being that support the creation of a new, regenerative culture. See Emergent Resilience for more information.

This program offers basic Buddhist training in the wisdom and skill needed to be a Buddhist Environmental Chaplain, i.e., those who work to establish people in a healthy, compassionate, and mutually supportive relationship with the natural world. It will offer experience-based activities and contemplative practices that deepen individuals’ own relationships with the natural world, as well as provide them with skills to be spiritual caregivers, helping others (re)connect with nature and face contemporary environmental crises with wisdom and compassion.

These workshops for students of the University of California - Santa Cruz will draw from grief and empowerment work, group council practice, and non-violent communication in leading participants through an experiential arc that includes: community building and questions of belonging; being with difficult information and experiences; exploring practices of meaning, action and generosity; and imagining and co-creating tools for healing, reconciliation and interconnection.

This program will be facilitated by Kirsten Rudestam. Exact date will be provided as it becomes available.