Forest Therapy
Discover Reconnection and Healing
There is a sentience to the trees; they are the real therapists – at Living Canopy we help guide you through the threshold.
What is Forest Therapy?
Research shows reconnecting with Nature can heal the body and the mind.
Nature and forest therapy shares ties with the Japanese practice of Shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing.
Forest bathing first emerged as a practice in the corporate world in the 1980s when Japan’s government noticed a spike in cancer and autoimmune disease amongst its population. After extensive research, they discovered that we have a direct response to certain chemicals emitted by Trees and other plants. These chemicals are used by the plants as a mode of self-protection, and they also increase the white blood cells in our bodies that search out and destroy cellular abnormalities.
Since the serious health decline coincided with their country moving to a tech-based economy where many of its People moved from working on farms to working indoors, the Japanese government enacted policies providing more access to green space to their working population during their work week. After this, the health of their people drastically improved. To learn more about forest bathing, visit ANFT’s website.
So what makes Forest Therapy different from Forest Bathing?
In a nutshell, Forest Therapy embodies a relational approach with Nature, meaning we see the Forest as a companion or partner rather than just a resource. Relational Forest Therapy helps People reconnect with themselves, Nature, and each other. This is why incorporating Forest Therapy into your life can have profound effects. Additionally, incorporating Forest Therapy in your company’s wellness retreat can make a difference in the lives of your team, both on an individual level, and as collaborators working together for the better of your business.
Jennifer Hoenig is a certified forest therapy guide through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy (ANFT) and received her Wilderness First Aid Certification through SOLO Schools.
Growing up near Mt. Katahdin in Maine, Jenn developed a deep connection with the earth from a young age. Jenn earned her undergrad degree in environmental studies from Bowdoin College and her J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law. She still practices law as well as running Living Canopy, LLC, and she has a vision to integrate forest therapy practice into the wellness movement of her profession.
Jenn is happiest when she is outdoors. Here are some of her favorites:
Smell: the forest after a rainstorm;
Sound: a babbling brook she can hear from the trail but can’t yet see;
Sight: Snow on a sunny day;
Activity: camping road trips with her family in their pop-up camper.
What are some of yours? We'd love to hear from you!
Our Values
RE-CONNECTION
There is healing in rediscovering that to be our best selves, we need the Forest and vise versa.
RECIPROCITY
The Forest is our companion and partner. We have as much to give to the Forest as the Forest has to give to us
ADVOCACY
The health of humans depends on a healthy Earth. Practicing forest therapy cares for both.
ACCESSIBILITY
Everyone deserves time spent in Nature. The slow wander and repetitive pauses of Forest Therapy opens the doors for all to participate.
Acknowledgement In Gratitude
None of us travel our life path alone. I want to share my gratitude to my ANFT trainers, Nadine Mazoola and Manuela Siegfried and my fellow Sunflower Cohort-mates. I also owe deep gratitude to the Forest and every Being who has tended, is tending, and will tend our Natural World.
Thank you.
A Forest Therapy Invitation
for private events of any kind
Living Canopy offers a variety of private sessions, such as:
2-3 hour group session with invitations and location curated for you or your group
Day-long wellness retreats
Customized sessions for your retreat participants
Let’s work together for your event.
To prepare for your event, we will work with you to plan a session and space where your group will have the opportunity to re-engage and rediscover connections with themselves, with each other, and with the natural world that will surround them. We take accessibility considerations into account when working with you to select a location and when designing the components for your group’s particular experience.
“While I spend time each day in the woods, I have never experienced nature in such an intimate way as I have when I’ve been led by Jenn. The invitations and prompts for exploration allow you to connect with yourself and nature in a way that makes you want to do it again and again. And the culmination and ceremony that you share as a group at the end is meaningful. Give yourself the gift of a forest therapy walk.”
Jennessa D.
