Ecopsychology Bringing Nature's Wisdom into Our Daily Lives Natural Systems Thinking To live in balance and harmony we need to re-learn what the nature-connected cultures people have known throughout time and re-build our relationship with ourselves and the web of life. Natural Systems Thinking (NST) is a process that helps us to do that in an enjoyable, non-threatening and rewarding way. Developed by Dr. Michael J. Cohen, a pioneering ecopsychologist and author of the book Reconnecting with Nature, Natural Systems Thinking is based on ecopsychology and is designed to enhance our innate ability to think and feel in harmony with both our own nature and Nature around us. As Cohen points out, when it comes to Nature’s Wisdom and the perfection of its eons of experience, there is no substitute for the real thing. So NST includes learning through Nature Activities that can be done anywhere, regardless of whether we live in a metro area, a farm or a remote mountain cabin. It takes us into Nature and enables us to reverse many of our problems and return our lives to a natural state of balance. The process starts with learning how to consciously make enjoyable, non-verbal, sensory contacts with Nature through the web of life, instead of trying to find what we’re missing in the various substitutes we’ve come to rely upon from shopping to overworking, over-eating, drinking, watching TV, smoking, etc. These sensory contacts with Nature enable us to consciously and sentiently, re-attach the strands that connect us to our origins within the web of life. Then, as we begin to feel and enjoy these connections, the process helps us to safely translate the sensory attractions we feel into verbal language so we can understand their meaning for our lives, use them in our decision-making and share them with others. In this way our sensory connections with Nature are validated in words and integrated into our psyche, our thinking, our reasoning and our lives. Through this reconnecting process, the natural world, be it potted plant or wilderness, becomes our classroom, mentor and library for learning to live in balance. Online and Continuing Education courses are available on this site on Natural Systems Thinking and its principles are woven into our our courses and our coaching. Home  Continuing Education  Newsletter  Books  Contact Us