Nature inside and out – arts for self-awareness

At the Rogers Foundation, our main goal is to promote a person-centred, experience based education methodology and to train professionals in this field. Our professional profile is educational innovation, which requires us to constantly seek and learn about different teaching methods, innovations and their professional and scientific background.

In our Outside and Inside Nature project, we have focused on the professional development of our staff and our team of trainers: we have taken part in training courses abroad that help us to develop a harmonious relationship with ourselves and our environment through different art therapy methodologies and by deepening our connection with nature. This allowed us to both expand the Foundation’s training methodology and provide opportunities for professional and personal growth for our trainers.

In the course of the project, nine of our staff took part in a total of twelve mobility visits, where they were introduced to the following methodologies:

• Drama Techniques: Developing Self-Expression, Communication and Social Skills for All Students. During the course, our staff has learned drama pedagogical methods to help students and trainees to express themselves and communicate.
• Butoh Lab Camp: during the two-week programme, two of our colleagues were introduced to the Japanese butoh dance in the mountains of Transylvania. In butoh dance, we seek a neutral state of our body and mind, from which we start and let ourselves be filled with an image, a motive. It has a huge self-awareness benefit: we pay attention to every tiny vibration of our body and our inner world, and thus get closer to ourselves.
• Discovering Renessaince Art in Florence: during the course, our colleagues were introduced to Renaissance art in magical Florence, visiting several churches and museums. During the course, they learned how to plan and lead activities based on artistic creations.
• Visual Facilitation and Sketchnoting Skills: also in Florence, where our trainer was introduced to the very useful method of visual facilitation in training. Drawing quick, vivid diagrams during a training session makes key topics exciting and easy for participants to follow, making learning much more effective.
• My Body, My Planet – Making Somatic Sense of the World: in the somatic dance course, participants further developed their movement skills while drawing parallels between the external, visible and the internal, perceptible nature. This approach offers profound self-awareness: we recognise that we ourselves are part of nature, and that human relationships work in a similar way to the ecosystem. In this way, we can strive for a more harmonious relationship with our bodies and nature, and learn to respect them more.
• Minimum Party Art Camp: our staff participated in an art camp in Transylvania, where they had the opportunity to choose from a wide range of methods they would like to deepen their knowledge in. They learned about pottery, architecture (for example, they built a stove from natural materials), and took part in the literature workshop, the photography workshop and the music workshop. And they can easily incorporate what they learn, with a practical approach, into their classroom management.
• Environmental Educaiton in Finland: the Eco-Social Approach: our colleague had a taste of the “Finnish miracle” education system in Finland. She learned about ways to develop students’ eco-consciousness and how to bring the world of nature closer and more personal.
• With Symbolwork for Youth: During the course, participants learned and practiced the methodology of symbol work. During symbol work, participants work with objects and materials that exist in the outside world but symbolise our inner world, getting closer to their own inner motivation.