By Stephen Le Quesne
TWO weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending the second practical week of a new qualification I am studying for. The qualification will enable me to be a Wilderness Therapeutic Practitioner and meant that I had the chance to spend a week within the beautiful landscape of Lyme Park, a National Trust property in Cheshire.
The second week involved a lot of practical wilderness skills, such as upskilling my ability to light fires outdoors, creating different friction fires as well as creating rope bridges and expanding the use of knots.
Alongside this we were taught how to work in a therapeutic manner outdoors, how to listen, to interact and communicate, and explore the journeys of the people who will attend the programmes that we will lead. One of the skills that we learnt was how to observe individuals when they talk about their experiences and, instead of asking questions, state the phrase “I notice”. For example, you may say “I noticed you looked up in the air when you said that” or “I noticed you crossed your arms when you spoke about this”. You try to tune in to how someone is feeling and acting without asking a question. I really like this way of communicating and observing the world and I would like to use it for the remainder of this column with a few observations that I have.
Firstly, I have noticed that the Island’s focus and dedication to one sector to drive its economy is starting to show its weaknesses, in that putting all our eggs in one economic basket does have consequences.
This approach means that over time the Island’s economic and social fabric naturally heads towards it. For example, charities need to become more attuned to it as this is their main source of potential income. Shops also need to take note, so they sell products that relate to the sector and what it pays. And businesses are created to service and maintain this sector. These are just a few of the unintended consequences. There are positives too including a concentration of specific and unique skills within the workforce.
The problem is, this imbalance creates social inequality and a shortage of skills within other areas, as they are ignored or just stagnate, especially as individuals naturally move to the main driver of the economy. This is not done purposefully, but it happens organically, and it means that we miss out in areas such as arts, culture, nature conservation, history and heritage. Areas of interest, of passion and creativity, that bind us together.
I have also noticed that there is currently a bit of a back and forth regarding the potential development space next to the town park. Do we decide to create more green urban space or a new school? We urgently need both.
If you were to look at St Helier from a Google Maps perspective and get an aerial view then it comes into sharp focus how little green space there is and how access to green space, clean air and open spaces to socialise and relax is not equal.
There is also the case of La Passerelle Primary, a specialist school, who are currently based in portacabins. A school such as this needs a specially designed campus with diverse and specially designed green space, a Forest school area, gardening plots, 5-a-side football pitch and other pieces of infrastructure that will cater to the wide range of interests. This needed to have been done yesterday, we owe it to the staff, pupils and families of that school. It is an example of long-term planning that needed to be done through different governments and election cycles.
Lastly, I have noticed that we have many innovators who are focused on making the Island a better place. Individuals and teams of people who are out of the box thinkers, who want to do something different. We need to take note of these individuals, these small communities and embrace them, support them.
The Regen Festival, the creation of the Skate Bowl in St Brelade, the creation of a new skate facility within St Ouen’s Methodist Church and the creation of Grow, which has a therapeutic focus within the areas of horticulture and growing. Projects and initiatives like these should be celebrated and supported as they bring new voices, new opinions, new perspectives as well as embracing new ideas and helping to make people feel a part of something, a group, a tribe, a community.
There is a lot of potential within the Island, to do things differently, to set positive precedents. We could de-centralise government, create democratic councils, re-introduce previously extinct species, and embrace the science more when it comes to public health and its relationship with the natural world. Initiatives such as these and many more would create more resilience within our social, political and environmental fabric, which is what we need for the challenges ahead.
Stephen Le Quesne is a naturalist and outdoor learning instructor.
