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Parenting, Educating Teens Workshop & Showing of Tending Fires

Published November 19th, 2012

Wild Earth wants you to know:

Saturday, Dec 8th, our Executive Director, David Brownstein, will be speaking at Sun River High School’s Parenting and Educating Teens workshop along with Elisabeth Lesser, Michelle Hughes, Ev Mann, James Porter and Thomas Workman. Later the same evening don’t miss a showing of Wild Earth instructor Peter Ferland’s film, Tending Fires.


Parenting and Educating Teens: an interactive workshop for helping parents and teens stay inspired and connected.

Sat, Dec 8, 1:00pm-5:30pm
at High Meadow School
in Stone Ridge, NY

Sun River High School* is sponsoring this interactive workshop for all who care deeply about how to help younger people grow and genuinely thrive. Visionary educators and counselors will gather to share options and tools that engage teenagers.

In a variety of ways – through presentations, discussions and small breakout groups – participants will learn, become inspired and come home with practical tools to support teens and their own parenting journey.

Following the presentations, participants will have an opportunity to dialogue in breakout groups facilitated by the presenters.

Elisabeth LesserLuminary Elisabeth Lesser, co-founder of The Omega Institute, is the keynote speaker. Additionally presenting are local leaders who dedicate their lives to educating children with love, vision, and deep values for manifesting a world alive with possibilities.

Michelle HughesMichelle Hughes, Director of the High Meadow School in Stone Ridge, will discuss “Keeping Curiosity Alive through Age Appropriate Education”.

Ev MannEv Mann, founder of the Center for Creative Education and Director of Marbletown MultiArts (MaMA), will explore “Creativity as the Essential Pathway to Self Connection”.

David BrownsteinDavid Brownstein, founder of Wild Earth, will speak about “Re-Visioning Connections as We Parent Our Teens”.

James PorterJames Porter, MA, CPC, a counselor and Life Purpose Coach to teens and the Supervisor at Ulster County Healthy Start will engage participants in a skills building workshop focused on helping teens discover their passions and manifest their purpose.

This event, held at the performing arts center on the High Meadow School campus in Stone Ridge will be an opportunity to learn about the newly formed Sun River High School and talk with the founding directors.

Sun River High School

Sun River High School*Sun River High School will open in September 2013 with its main campus located at MaMA in Stone Ridge. In addition, Sun River will be utilizing the Ashokan Center as a field campus site for nature based and environmental studies. Learn more at sunriverschool.org

Sun River High School redefines how teens are educated by integrating academic curriculum, utilizing place and project based learning and offering core curriculum areas of concentration in Nature-based Studies, Social and Emotional Literacy, Healthy Technology, the Visual and Performing Arts, and sustainability, farming and service opportunities.


After the talks, stick around for a showing of Wild Earth instructor, Peter Ferland’s film, Tending Fires at 7pm.

“Tending Fires” is a documentary by Peter Ferland about a teen coming of age ceremony created for 7 adolescent boys in the Hudson Valley, the multi-generational circle of men who showed up to help create it, the impact it had on their families, and the larger ramifications for community when culture is created.

Learn more and watch the trailer at tendingfires.org.

While the rite of passage was not a Wild Earth program (the New Paltz Times got a little confused) it did involve many people from Wild Earth and is near and dear to the heart and the vision of community and nature-connection that Wild Earth strives to create.

Interested in Rites of Passage? Learn more about True North, a Wild Earth facilitated Rite of Passage for 6-8th graders.


These events are not being offered by Wild Earth. The talks about Parenting and Educating Teens are not being offered by Wild Earth and Tending Fires is not a Wild Earth film.


Simon AbramsonSimon AbramsonSimon Abramson,

As a child Simon spent countless hours exploring the forest, streams and wetlands of his neighborhood in NJ. Simon has a B.S. in Environmental Studies from the University of Vermont where he focused on the relationship between a healthy human psyche and a vibrant natural world. He has staffed and studied with various wilderness schools throughout the Northeast including the Institute for Natural Learning, White Pine Programs and the Vermont Wilderness School. When he’s not in the woods, Simon is designing and building websites and other internet solutions. More about Simon's work.

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