On SBS’s hit show Alone Australia, contestants had to spend weeks in the wilderness without any human contact. Isolation can be hard — many people fear it — but some embrace solitude as an opportunity to learn what makes us human.

Dr Kate Grarock was a contestant on the reality TV show Alone Australia. She’s also an ecologist, hiker and YouTube creator.

Hon Dr Joseph Randolph Bowers is a psychotherapist, spiritual director and lifelong meditation practitioner based in Armidale, NSW. He is the author of Solitude Awakens: The Heart Forest Mountain Way as well as various books exploring Mi’kmaw First Nations culture and spirituality.

This episode was first broadcast 6 August 2023