Tamberly Conway, PhD

Tamberly Conway, PhD

Forester, Educator, Founder & CEO

Association of Nature and Forest Therapy (ANFT) Certified Guide
& ANFT Certified Forest Therapy Trail Certification Consultant

Dr. Tamberly Conway is Founder and CEO of Conservation Conexions, and serves as an Association of Nature and Forest Therapy (ANFT) Certified Guide, and Certified Forest Therapy Trail Consultant. Tamberly served for 12 years with the US Forest Service Conservation Education Program in Texas and Washington, D.C., where she focused upon diversity engagement, health and nature connections, forest health/human health relationships, conservation education and community empowerment in conservation. Tamberly has been engaged in the health and nature realm for over 12 years, through a variety of unique partnerships between land management agencies, health care professionals, NGOs, educational institutions and others, creating traditional and non-traditional partnerships in conservation education and community engagement to reach diverse audiences with meaningful and relevant conservation and stewardship opportunities. During her tenure with the USFS, she worked to propel Forest Therapy within the agency and among diverse communities through funding bilingual Forest Therapy sessions at community events, engaging with Park Rx America in health and nature collaborations, and the implementing of the first-ever bilingual ANFT Forest Therapy training in collaboration with a number of diverse partner organizations. Tamberly left the USFS in December 2019 to pursue a new Nature and Forest Immersion path, as she believes Nature and Forest Therapy is a powerful mechanism to create relationships between people and the more-than-human world, thereby supporting the health of the land and people.

Tamberly holds a B.S. in Wildlife Management, a M.S. in Forest Recreation Management, and a Ph.D. in Forestry, focusing on Human Dimensions in Natural Resources and is the 2011 recipient of the Chief’s Awards, the highest honor in the U.S. Forest Service.

Tamberly Conway, PhD

What Is Nature and Forest Therapy?

forest therapy

Forest Therapy

Forest Immersion / Forest Bathing 

What is Nature and Forest Immersion (aka Forest Bathing or Nature and Forest Therapy)?

Shinrin-Yoku is loosely defined as, “making contact with and taking in the atmosphere of the forest”, which is a practice that is now backed by rigorous research showing the positive mental, physical, emotional and spiritual effects derived by this experience.

Throughout human history, we have been connected to nature. But now, with people spending nearly 95% of their time indoors, we have begun to see ill effects of this nature disconnect, such as . Authors such as Richard Louv, Last Child in the Woods, who coined the term “nature-deficit disorder” and Florence Williams, The Nature Fix, have captured extensive stories of research outcomes that reveal our intricate need for a reignited nature connection.

Are you feeling stressed? Would you like to feel relaxed and rejuvenated? Join me as I guide you into the healing powers of nature. Our bodies are designed to be in nature connection, so let’s just take the time for your mind and your body to remember this potent medicine of love, joy, peace and gratitude, as we enter into Nature and Forest Conexion.

The Nature and Forest Conexion experience is meant to slow you down, moving away from the frenetic everyday pace, into a slower rhythm, like a meander or a saunter, as you drop out of your head and into your heart and body. A series of guided invitations will lead you deeper into sensory connection, opening yourself to many senses that have been quelled and revitalizing your sense of pleasure and sense of self, as you bathe in the transformative essence of nature and reconnect with the more-than-human world.

Everyone benefits from a deep dive into nature connection. There is a tremendous, and ever-expanding body of research that continues to reveal the human need for nature. We host Nature and Forest Immersion walks for individuals, couples, families, groups of friends, health care professionals, colleges and universities, non-profit and corporate employees groups and faith-based groups. All are welcome to join in this fascinating journey into healing of people and the land through nature connection.

Why Forest Therapy?

What We Do
We strive to create a system of mycelial connections above ground in uniting humans and nature through the Nature and Forest Immersion practice, working with individuals, organizations, agencies and communities to carry forward this practice into the world for both human and forest wellness, which are so intricately intertwined.

What We Believe
We believe that together, through this re-emerging practice of remembering and reconnecting to the land, we can foster a vibrant future for ourselves and our loved ones, and future generations, as well as, our planet Earth to which we are all connected, as we move forward in unison on the land.

We believe this practice has the potential to heal a number of societal and climate change-related issues, as the practice lends to heart-centered decision-making practices and a renewed relationship and remembering of one’s connection with the land. This remembering often inspires a sense of stewardship and knowing that caring for the land, is also, caring for oneself and one’s community.

Who We Work With
I became a Certified Forest Therapy Guide in order to carry this practice forward into diverse communities and in connection with public lands. I believe coupling this reconnective nature and forest immersion practice with tree planting, care and monitoring, as well as general forest health practices and conservation, will serve to support healthy forests and therefore, healthy people, as we are interwoven together in a fine fabric of interconnectedness.

Why Forest Therapy?
forest therapy

Why Forest Therapy?

I amicably took flight from the US Forest Service in December 2019 to focus upon advancing this work of deep nature connection and relatedness, as a result of my many years working in the realm of forest conservation. I believe this practice brings healing to both human and forest communities, as they join in unison and in discovery of reconnection with one another.

Why Conservation Conexions?

Our vision is to empower communities through the lens of Nature and Forest Immersion as a support system that may be used in tree planting, care, tending and monitoring. This methodology will support relationships among people, individual trees and entire forest communities, thereby fostering long term focus on holistic concern and care that will develop a new cadre of conservation leaders and stewards, who will continue to share this conservation ethic with others in their communities.