Journaling With Nature

Kelly is a Chicago-based bird artist and photographer. Using a variety of digital and analogue techniques, Kelly is creating a series of 100 bird paintings as a way of documenting the wide variety of birds in her local forest preserve.

Listen to hear more about:

• The people who encouraged Kelly’s love of birds in early life.
• The vacation that turned Kelly into a birder.
• Art and its importance in Kelly’s life.
• Kelly’s project ‘100 Birds of LaBagh Woods’.
• Birding and nature journaling in all seasons and all weather.
• How painting birds helps Kelly become connected with different species. 
• The Chicago Nature Journaling Club.
• Using a wide range of art media.
• The trap of perfectionism.
• Art challenges and how they help Kelly maintain a regular art practice.

To find out more about Kelly and her work visit https://www.kellycballantyne.com. You can also find Kelly on Instagram @kcballantyne.

Kelly mentioned an inspiring nature journaling course by Liz Clayton Fuller. You can find it here: Nature Journaling and Field Sketching.

John Muir Law’s book was also a source of inspiration for Kelly. You can find it here: The Laws Guide to Nature Drawing and Journaling.

Kelly mentioned https://ebird.org as an important source of information when researching birds. 

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Dion is an artist, naturalist and nature journal teacher. Her in-depth classes explore art and natural sciences in a diverse range of habitats. Dion collaborates with citizen science and community groups and believes in finding a middle ground in her nature journal where science and personal stories can co-exist.

Listen to hear more about:

• Dion’s connection with art and nature in early life.
• The biggest influences in the development of Dion’s nature journaling style and ethos.
• The importance of personal stories in our journals.
• Nature journaling classes and workshops.
• Collaboration with scientists and community groups.
• The experience of leading nature journaling groups at the Cooloola BioBlitz.
• How Dion engages people in the practice so that they will want to keep going with nature journaling.
• Dion’s hopes for the future of nature journaling.

Learn more about Dion and see her nature journal pages on Instagram @_dion.dior_ and Facebook.

Dion has appeared with Marley Peifer on The Nature Journal Show. You can watch these videos here:

Botanical Art and Nature Journaling

Climate Change and Nature Journaling

Dion wrote a blog post for International Nature Journaling Week which you can read here: Why Nature Journal?

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Melissa is a landscape contractor with a passion for desert plants and pollinators. Melissa is always alert to 'breadcrumbs from the universe'; signs showing the way, reminding her to pay attention to nature and teaching her how to be a better designer for pollinators and people.
 

Listen to hear more about:

• The influence of family on Melissa’s connection with nature.
• Sacred gardening and what the means for Melissa.
• How nature journaling feeds back into Melissa’s work as a Landscape Contractor.
• The intergenerational garden collaboration within Melissa’s home garden.
• The Mojave Desert landscape and the plants that inspire Melissa’s garden designs.
• Factors that Melissa considers when creating a desert-inspired garden design.
• The importance of pollinators.
• Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve and its significance for Melissa.
• How Melissa moves through feelings of perfectionism that can hold her back. 
• Teaching her first nature journaling workshop.
   

You can find Melissa on Instagram @gardensbymelissa and on her website Earth Green Landscapes.

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Sarah moved from her home in Western Australia to the Irish countryside where she raised her family. After finding nature journaling and creative inspiration online, Sarah has started her own virtual community,Spark of Nature, as a way to engage with other like-minded nature lovers from around the world.

Listen to hear more about:

• The trip that started Sarah’s ‘grand adventure’ of beginning a new life for her family in Ireland.
• The beauty and diversity of nature in Sarah’s local area.
• Instagram accounts that have influenced Sarah’s nature journal journey.
• The way Sarah structures her nature journal.
• Ways to make nature journaling simple and do-able.
• Art challenges.
• Nature experiences as a family.
• Spark of Nature, Sarah’s new online community.
• The importance of books and reading in Sarah’s life

Some of Sarah’s favourite books on nature and nature journaling:

The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer

The Secrets of a Devon Wood by Jo Brown

The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady by Edith Holden

Janet Marsh’s Nature Diary by Janet Marsh

The Undercliff by Elaine Franks

To join Sarah’s online community, Spark of Nature, click here.

Follow Sarah on Instagram @sarahlulucas.

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Having followed a winding professional path all the way around the world and back to his original dream of working in conservation, Mark knows the value of community and connection. He hopes to share the beauty of nature with others through his art and his work as a countryside ranger.

Listen to hear more about:

• The different iterations of Mark’s career that have led him to his current work in the conservation sector.
• Mark’s traineeship with the Sussex Wildlife Trust.
• Recording the nature experiences of his traineeship through a nature journal.
• Mark’s process for building the layers of his nature journal pages.
• The ways that Mark’s parents have inspired and influenced his love of nature and art.
• Nature journal as a learning aid.
• Including storytelling and folklore in a nature journal.

To find out more about Mark and his work visit www.markjnewton.com. You can also find him on social media using these links:

Facebook

Instagram

LinkedIn

Twitter

YouTube

You can read more about Mark’s ranger traineeship in this interview with the Sussex Wildlife Trust.

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Sarah has a deep connection with nature in her local area. As a lifelong learner and natural-born teacher, Sarah enjoys exchanging with others in her community and online, sharing knowledge, curiosity and enthusiasm for the natural world.

Listen to hear more about:

• Making creativity simple and accessible to everyone.
• The California Naturalist Program.
• Actively contributing to citizen science through iNaturalist.
• What it is to be a naturalist.
• The significance of horses in Sarah’s life and family history.
• Nature journaling alongside others who are not journaling.
• Sarah’s favourite paint colours and the colours of her landscape.
• Learning from other artists and developing a style.
• Accessing nature while managing chronic pain.
• The benefit of online presentations, workshops, and conferences.

Sarah mentioned that she finds community and connection with people online through The Nature Journal Club Facebook group.

The online nature journaling events that Sarah talked about were the Wild Wonder Nature Journaling Conference and International Nature Journaling Week.

In this video you can see Sarah Reid discussing regrowth after wildfire in the Trione-Annandel State Park.

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Deborah is a nature journaler from California, USA. In her work she taught ways to combine science and art in early childhood education. Now she aims to foster a connection with nature in her family and community through nature journaling.

Listen to hear more about:

• The importance of mentors.
• Combining science and art in early childhood education.
• Nature journaling as a tool for processing grief.
• The nature journaling community and the richness of shared experiences.
• Taking the role of the ‘novice’ as a way to encourage and support others in a group.
• Deborah’s favourite nature related non-fiction books.
• The buzz of making nature discoveries. 
• Nature journaling with physical limitations. 
• The different ways that Deborah hopes to engage her community in nature journaling.
• Nature journaling with young children.

Deborah mentioned Melinda Nakagawa from Spark in Nature as the teacher who opened the doors to nature journaling for her. 

The Skyscapito Appreciation Society is the group that Deborah mentioned that meets to share ideas for painting and drawing skies in our journals 

The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Tova Bailey is the book Deborah mentioned during our conversation about finding wonder in nature during illness.

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Sonja is a nature journaler from the Pacific Northwest, USA. Nature and art have been part of Sonja's life from since childhood. Nature journaling has helped her embrace a growth mindset and learn lessons about life and art.

Listen to hear more about:

• Falling in love with nature close to home.
• Perfectionism and how it can hold us back. 
• Sonja’s favourite field sketching supplies.
• Combining nature journaling with other hobbies.
• Allowing nature to nourish our soul.
• Drawing inspiration from other artists.
• Tips for field sketching birds and other moving animals.
• Celebrating our innate creativity.
• The value of breaks in the creative process.

Read Sonja’s blog posts for International Nature Journaling Week: Confessions of a (Recovering) Neurotic Naturalist.

Follow their adventures over on Instagram @sawnch93.

Sonja was inspired by Marley Peifer’s video: Unlock Your Potential.

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Brooke is a designer, writer and photographer who uses her creative skills to tell engaging stories. Through her blog, Life Noticed, Brooke shares inspiration and encouragement on the themes of mindset, creative habits, nature and art.

Listen to hear more about:

• Brooke’s career as a creative designer and how she uses many different tools to tell her clients’ stories.
• The power of noticing nature around us.
• The brain/body connection.
• What it means to live an intentional life.
• Ways that Brooke stays consistent with her creative habits.
• Honouring a person, or species, by taking the time to draw them.
• Starting a YouTube channel as an introvert.
• The Wild Wonder Challenge and how it has stretched Brooke’s thinking. 
   

Brooke shares thoughtful articles about mindset, and building creative habits, on her blog Life Noticed.

You can find out more about Brooke’s professional work on her website: www.goforbrooke.com.

To watch Brooke’s videos on mindset, habits, nature and art, subscribe to her YouTube channel.

For nature journal pages as well as beautiful nature photography and inspiration, find Brooke on Instagram @brookenoticed.

To learn about the Wild Wonder Foundation, you can click here.

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Thanks for listening!