Ecopsychology is a way of understanding the mind and mental health as inseparable from the Biosphere and healthy ecological function. Ecopsychology is a term coined by Theodor Roszack in his book Voices of The Earth in 1992. Yet, Robert Greenway had developed the concept earlier in 1963 as “psychoecology” in his pioneering work on the effects of wilderness on mental health. Ecopsychology is rooted in the conviction that our health and the Earth’s health impact one another, and that healing our relationship with the land is an essential part of healing our relationships with one another. Ecopsychology has entered mainstream psychotherapeutic and medical practice as a evidenced based practice for supporting mental and physical wellbeing.
According to Theodore Roszak, one of the pioneers of ecopsychology, the principles of the discipline include:
The field of ecopsychology and ecotherapy is broad, and includes all kinds of practices and frameworks. Ecopsychology can involve engaging with the land in ceremonies and rites of passage that help facilitate healing and personal growth. It can also include reframing our understanding of mental health away from the individualistic medical model towards looking towards a more transpersonal perspective of collective wellbeing by including the health of our societies and ecosystems as important influences of the gestalt of experience. It can include grief work, trauma healing, embodiment and somatic practices, therapy with animals – such as equine therapy, tending plants – such as horticulture therapy and forest tending, land-based interventions of all kinds are co-therapists for improving personal and planetary wellbeing.
At Hotlum, we center ecopsychology as one of the pillars of what practice on this land. We hold ecopsychology retreats and workshops, and encourage all who come to this land to engage deeply with their felt experience of healing through connecting to the Earth.
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