The Circle Way has proudly supported Wild Mountain Retreats’ circle-based leadership development and community building.
About Wild Mountain Retreats and their BIPOC Mirroring Training
Wild Mountain Retreats is a community based non profit that supports accessibility and belonging for Queer, Trans, and Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). This work is transformative, deeply healing and necessary in these current times.
BIPOC MIRRORING TRAINING: Reflecting BIPOC Stories through Nature and Belonging
This program is open to all who identify as Black, Indigenous, & People of Color (BIPOC). Many of whom have often expressed not feeling welcome, seen, or a true sense of belonging in nature based programs. Such programs have usually been led by white guides, attract similarly white participants, and have not been adapted to the vitality and needs of racial, cultural, and gender diversity. Much is lost in the intentions of these programs without the voices, leadership, and inclusivity of such profound perspectives and experiences.
Gathering with a supportive group of BIPOC Guides is an opportunity to feel deep connection and belonging with each other and nature. Nature both reflects and celebrates the full spectrum of our intersecting identities. Sharing our stories and receiving mirroring can transform trauma and separation into healing and liberation. This is a place to be seen and heard in our fullness and to celebrate the value our unique identities bring to the world. In this training, you will learn to listen and tell from the full spectrum of your BIPOC experience and offer your presence, experience, and wisdom as a gift to others.
Our stories will come from our time on the land. We will practice this ancient art by going intentionally onto the land alone. This intentional practice, and the deep listening that follows, naturally leads us to the wisdom to go beyond ourselves. Those of us who work with people, especially BIPOC and mixed race groups, must know how to listen and respond to diverse stories of pain, trauma, belonging, celebration, and resilience. Deep witnessing and mirroring can support us all to create a life that is deeper, richer, and that brings forth collective liberation for all humans and the earth.
The Circle Way’s commitment to the essential practice of turning to one another to uphold racial, ethnic, gender, disability, economic, and environmental justice, and the entwined legacy of The Circle Way elders Christina Baldwin and Ann Linnea’s own leadership in the wilderness guide community and using circle in their land-based retreats meant enthusiastic support for Wild Mountain Retreat through grants to help create access and opportunities for participants who might otherwise have been unable to join them.
We are delighted to share this 7 minute reflection video from their 2024 BIPOC Mirroring Training for BIPOC Guides to lead nature based programs in their communities. Their experiences speak to the transformative power of this work and the ripple effects it creates in their communities.