Reclaiming the Cosmos for Teens and Young Adults

Youth Eco-Spirituality Leadership Camp

Spirituality and Environmental Awareness
Through Meditation and Nature Experiences

Photo by Malak, Copyright ©1999

Program for Youth

Youth Ages 13 – 18 plus young adults up to age 21

Deepen your connections to the earth through a curriculum that is simultaneously scientific and sacred, serious and fun, and capable of awakening young minds to a depth of awe.

The Youth Training Camp is a unique 8-day course, designed to support students while they develop a deeper sense of self through environmental leadership and eco-spirituality training. 

Now in its sixth year, our program provides high school and older students with an opportunity to explore various ecosystems through bio-regional (life-place) mapping and hands-on land use applications. By understanding flora and fauna and learning about restoration projects, students can develop and further a passion for science and embrace their role as the next generation of earth-keepers.

“Thank you so much for a really interesting and motivating week.  You have changed the way I will view things forever.”  — youth camp counselor

Three essential areas of the course content are:

  • Environmental training via field experience and teachings in bio-regional mapping, permaculture, environmental technologies, sustainable farming, management of waste, energy, water, and health.
  • Natural Law and Eco-spirituality through exploration of diverse spiritual perspectives, cultural traditions, and experiences of nature.
  • Leadership training through presentation, facilitation, and communication skills; conflict resolution; team building; networking; self-empowerment; project management.

Six Goals of the Youth Training Program are to:

  • Explore different philosophies and practical approaches to land use, construction, agriculture, and the management of waste, energy, water, and health;
  • Practice, through hands-on field experience utilizing materials, methods and technologies in each of the above areas;
  • Receive training in the Cosmic Camp for Kids Curriculum to be used with children to foster their own sense of awe and wonder towards the earth;
  • Receive support in discovering and further developing their own unique and individual leadership qualities;
  • Experience and develop skills in initiating and facilitating cooperative, co-creative group/team activities; 
  • Apply leadership qualities and skills through a variety of environmental assignments and field activities. 
 

Curriculum Content

Indigenous/spiritual teachings on Natural Law, Sacred Law and the Ecological Balance Laws.

Teachings on Permaculture and Integrated Systems. Videos including different speakers from around the world, versed in Natural Law from diverse cultural perspectives will also be included.

The youth will be participating in periods of reflection to deepen their connections to the earth. This program is a unique opportunity for youth to see the reclamation work they are doing in the context of ecological and spiritual values. Participants will gain insights into the renewal of our bioregions flowing out of reverence for the sacredness of Creation.

Our mission is to move hearts to respond to our urgent ecological crisis and to direct them to effective means to remedy the ills.

Activities include:

  • Guided Meditations
  • Outdoor Nature Experiences
  • Teachings in Ecology & Spirituality
  • Leadership Skills Training
  • Hikes, Nature Identification

Program Details 

When: Dates Flexible. Small groups of youth accepted, approximately 6 people
Location:    Newmarket (Davis and Bathurst Area). Field trips (depending on interests and availability of the group).     
Fee:  $400 for 8-day program, and all program materials.
Application deadline:  To be announced

      
“The camp has given me a chance to see nature through the eyes of a child, allowing me to gain a greater respect for nature and my place in the universe” – youth camp counsellor

Option to Work as a Counselor

Youth camp registrants may also apply to be to be hired on as a camp counselor for the Cosmic Camp for Kids. Our non-profit Cosmic Camp gives inner city kids the opportunity to experience the wonders of the natural world and explore current environmental issues.

Students that become counselors may earn credit towards their required volunteer hours and an honorarium.

“I wouldn’t want to work with anyone but inner city children from now on” – Youth Camp Graduate and Cosmic Camp for Kids Counselor

Camp Staff

We have an enthusiastic team, excited about offering this program because of the role that these young people will have in the world for years to come.

Marianne Karsh, B.Sc.F., M.Sc.F.

Marianne Karsh is the Director of Arborvitae and the Youth Camp. She has been leading eco-spiritual retreats and workshops in Canada since 1982.   Marianne worked as a Forest Research Scientist for over 20 years in Ontario, Newfoundland and Iceland. She is co-author of “Trees, Forestry and the Responsiveness of Creation,” published in This Sacred Earth: Religion, Nature and the Environment, a text book used widely in the U.S.

An experienced facilitator, Marianne has a deep passion for re-connecting people to the Earth. She has studied extensively at the Institute for Christian Studies in Toronto and is an associate of the Sisters of St. John the Divine (Anglican). She is well versed in Christian, Native, and other spiritual traditions as they relate to nature and incorporates these into her ecological teachings that are grounded in hope. She is a member of the Jesuit Ecology Project, which is sponsored by the Jesuit Centre for Social Faith and Justice.

Author, scientist, world traveler, and seminar leader, Marianne Karsh has been featured in articles and the media including The Globe and Mail, Woman’s Television Network, and Vision TV. She is the daughter of award winning photographer Malak Karsh and is the niece of Yousuf Karsh. She shares their love of beauty that touches the soul.

“Ms. Karsh is not only reconnecting [workshop participants] to nature but also reconnecting them to the sacred archetypes of the spirit.” Michael Valpy, Globe and Mail.

Resource People

Arborvitae brings in local resource people and experts to help facilitate various parts of the program.   


To Apply

Contact Marianne Karsh for an application package:

Marianne Karsh

905-421-9122