What is a Village Gathering?

This is the first installment of what will become a collection of multi-day, yearlong gatherings for those who mentor and teach in relationship with the natural world, and for individuals who long for their own deepening journey into nature connection.

A gathering that brings together leaders from Southern California's leading nature connection organizations, individuals, and parents who long for a deeper connection with the wild. A place where we can come together to discern and offer all of our unique gifts and how we might bring those home to our own lives, families, and work.

You may have witnessed the transformative power of immersing your students or children in the natural world or perhaps you simply recognize the importance of this fulfilling connection. Now it’s your turn to be supported and guided into a deeper relationship with place, community, and yourself.

Join us and be guided by experienced and skilled nature based mentors, as they facilitate experiences to help you find the end of your comfort zone and lean into your learning edge.

This weekend is deeply inspired by the 8 Shields Coyote Mentoring model gathered by Jon Young and practiced by nature schools around the world, including Wilderness Awareness School. This philosophy is known for its “Invisible School” approach, inspired by the ways indigenous peoples around the world educate and mentor their young. While you will leave this training a better mentor, parent, or human, there won’t be any formal instruction in mentoring. The focus will be on the embodied experience.

For this first weekend, we dive into the Northwest of the Wheel of Life. By being in deep relationship with the world around us, each other, and our own inner worlds, we will practice this final harvest by reflecting on the cycle of the past year, receiving insight and wisdom while releasing what no longer serves to the earth for compost, and preparing for the integration process.

We will be practicing core routines like:

• Sit-spot

• Wandering

• Bird language

• Wildlife Tracking

• Ancestral Skills

• Playing in nature

• Singing and music

• Working with fire

• Entering ceremony

• Sitting in council

• …and more!

There will be a mixture of time spent in the full group, small groups, and individual time for reflection and release work.

This program will run as late as 10pm in the evenings, and will begin Saturday and Sunday by 9am. Please be prepared for long days with varying energy levels needed. Because of the immersive nature of this program, it's important for you to organize life such that you are able to attend the entire experience without distraction. We will have regular break and meal times to attend to your body’s needs.

What's included:

• Camping Arrangements (Water/showers/bathrooms are available on site)

• Saturday community dinner

• Coffee/tea and hot water for breakfast

Lead Facilitators

Amanda Caloia (She/Her)

Nature-based Mentor & Executive Director of EverWild LA

I have vivid memories as a child growing up in native Onondaga territory, falling backwards into fields of dandelions and watching the clouds move slowly overhead. I would watch the sunset from my back porch and wait for the heat lightning to dance across the sky. At night the stars put on a show. I would climb to my roof, lay on my back, hold my hands like binoculars to my eyes and imagine that I was floating in space with all of those twinkling lights. Nature always held the doorway to the world and I found solace, play, and wonder with each visit. 

This love of play and the outdoors led me to SUNY Cortland where I received a Bachelor’s of Science in Physical Education, a NYS Teaching credential, and completed a master's class in Inclusive Outdoor Education. 

When I moved to Los Angeles in 2013 I frequently fled the bustling city to explore the Santa Monica Mountains and coastal beaches. With the desire to expand opportunities for others to deepen their relationship with the natural world I flew under the wing of local forest school mentors, ancestral skills leaders, foragers, and naturalist groups including the LA Mycology society.

Today, I am the co-founder and executive director of EverWild LA, a nature connection organization that mentors children and adults in the Los Angeles area. I’ve mentored children ages 2.5-14 for over a decade and began mentoring adults at EverWild in 2016. I helped facilitate the Coyote Mentoring program in Ojai in 2022 and again in Washington at Wilderness Awareness School the following Spring.

I’m an outdoor adventure enthusiast that’ll always trade a PR for an opportunity to take a selfie with a tarantula or to “just check out where that trail goes”. You can catch me juggling time between backpacking, trail running, gravel cycling, climbing, skateboarding, surfing and snowboarding.