Note: Trainers Path is now by Invitation only. Information on this page is subject to change.
A Calling
Some guides feel a call to support the growth of Forest Therapy by becoming a mentor or trainer with ANFT. Before embarking on this journey, we think it is important that applicants understand one essential idea:
This path is not about checking boxes, completing assignments, and earning credentials. This path embodies an incredible sense of mystery for those who choose to walk it. Like liminality, there is no knowing what will be found on the path or how long the path will be. It’s not about ‘getting there,’ it’s about ‘being here.’
Those who consider walking this path should first consider whether they genuinely love the experience of being on a training. Those who love the practice and love the work will experience this path as a never-ending adventure. Those whose core intention is to reach the end of the path may never see it. The most important qualification for becoming a mentor or trainer is that you genuinely love the work and are willing to show up embodying such love.
Mentor & Trainer Qualities
There are several other qualities that we look for when considering who to invite further along the path. These include:
A sense of humility. All those who walk the path are bound to make mistakes. We do not expect perfection; what we do expect is that when a mistake is made, candidates have the humility to own it and make changes to avoid it in the future. Candidates should demonstrate a willingness to adapt and grow as needed for the benefit of the training and to maintain a strong and united training team.
Leadership skills grounded in respect, compassion, and omnipartiality. When working with people, candidates must be able to put aside their own stories so that they can support people who they may otherwise find personally challenging.
Leadership presence that inspires confidence. Candidates are able to be present with a group or individuals, the training team, themselves and the more-than-human world with authenticity, heart and integrity.
A deep understanding of the ANFT curriculum and an embodiment of the Way of the Guide. Candidates should understand that they must be skilled teachers and have a deep understanding of the practice so that participants perceive them as experts in the field. It is equally important that candidates be adept at creating space for the stories of others and understand how to navigate the space between what is “correct” in a curricular sense and what is possible beyond the boundaries of right and wrong.
A grounded approach to working with people, characterized by hospitality, firm boundaries, and a commitment to self-care. Being on a training team is not the same as being a participant on the training. Candidates should understand how to tend to their own self-care through a long and strenuous week, while also tending to the needs of the group, and doing so in such a way that the two can be harmoniously balanced.
A sense of teamwork that is grounded in flexibility, service, and transparency. Candidates should understand that it takes a team to make the training work, and that teamwork requires everyone to be willing to shift their plans in such ways that may be edgy or uncomfortable.
Path
The path begins with an application to assist at a training. Applicants will be interviewed and, if accepted, on-boarded by the Training Teams Coordinator. Accepted applicants may request to assist at one or several trainings. After each training, the trainers will forward their reflections on the candidate’s performance to the Trainer Council, comprised of the Training Team Coordinator, the Director of Training, and the Director of Practicum and Certification. So long as the candidate is not disrespectful or disruptive during a training, they are always welcome to request another opportunity to assist in perpetuity.
When there is an opening for mentors, the Trainer Council may invite candidates who have assisted to become mentors. At this point, a separate on-boarding process will take place to support new mentors, who are compensated for their work in this capacity and must comply with contractor requirements for employment. Mentors may continue to assist at trainings if they wish to deepen their skills and knowledge, although it is not a requirement to be considered for next steps on the path. Once candidates become mentors, they may acquire more headroom in leadership and facilitation by mentoring, continuing to assist and by attending the annual trainer-mentor gathering.
When there is an opening for apprentice trainers, the Trainer Council will invite feedback from trainers on potential candidates and may invite candidates who are currently mentors to become apprentice trainers. It is at this point that ANFT will begin to compensate and subsidize the development of candidates for their participation in trainings. Apprentice trainers may request to participate in as many trainings as they choose. Each training will support apprentice trainers in deepening and developing their skills in the field.
When there is an opening for senior trainers, the Trainer Council will invite feedback from trainers on potential candidates and may invite candidates who are currently apprentice trainers to become senior trainers.
Every step of the path is invitational. There are no guarantees that a candidate will ever move beyond any step of the path. This can be fundamentally challenging for people. Many among us have experienced professional development pathways where there is a predetermined mutual agreement of what happens between the beginning and the end of the process. This path is not like that. We have chosen this kind of non-linear system for a few reasons:
We don’t want to make any promises we cannot keep.
We want training teams to be comprised of individuals who genuinely, from the depths of their hearts, absolutely love the work.
We want mentors and trainers to be fully prepared to perform the work and have highly developed leadership skills and presence; we consider the ANFT training to be the most prestigious Forest Therapy guide training in the world, and the quality of the program is directly tied to the professionalism and competency of the trainers and mentors.
We want to ensure the number of trainers is commensurate with the amount of work we are able to offer.
Before completing this application, we’d like to invite you to take a few days to consider this decision. If, after consideration, you feel that there is no place you would rather be than on an ANFT Forest Therapy guide training, please submit an application.
The path is long and challenging, and we encourage you to not take this as an ominous warning, but as an invitation to know what to expect. Within the long and challenging path, there are many beautiful experiences to savor along the way. On this path, you will find relationship with new places, cultivate relationships around the world with guides and training team members and explore new depths of your inner landscape. If you ask any trainer, they will tell you that the highest joy is in the work itself, and we hope that this is true for you as well.
Awarenesses
Please be aware of the following requirements before submitting an application:
Assistants must:
be an ANFT certified guide
be a current Level 1 Certified Guide or Level 3 membership with the Association
be responsible for their own food and lodging as well as a small $150 fee that covers the expenses related to your trainers path handbooks and on-boarding calls
hold a current Certification of Wilderness First Aid or higher (e.g. equivalent, comparable or company approved training, etc.). Submit the certificate with agreement.
maintain an active guiding practice and have logged at least 10 walks in the guide portal per year. We encourage assistants to have at least 25 walks logged before assisting for the first time.
comply with any insurance requirements, with all federal, state, and local laws requiring a driver’s license and other licenses permits, insurances and certificates required if you intend to drive any vehicle.
carry personal liability insurance of minimum $1,000,000 general liability, if based in the U.S. or Canada. If outside of the U.S. and Canada, carry current insurance equivalent of $1,000,000 general liability or the minimum requirements of place of residence. Submit the certificate of insurance to ANFT. Provide certificate in English if original is not in English or if this cannot be secured in time please be prepared to translate the terms/limits of the insurance upon submission. List any excluded territories upon submission. Insurance Resources
submit a valid driver’s license if you have been issued one.
if driving at a training, have auto insurance that includes hired and non-owned auto for a minimum of $1,000,000 or the requirements of your place of residence if higher. If you don’t carry such insurance, you will obtain this minimum of auto insurance coverage through the vehicle’s rental agency, ensure that the owners auto insurance of any vehicle you intend to drive will cover you at the required minimum, or not drive any car that is not your own to, from or at the event.
if bringing your own personal vehicle, have auto insurance with a minimum of $1,000,000 or the requirements of your place of residence if higher.
have adequate health insurance and adequate travel health insurance when traveling abroad for a training.
possess a mobile phone that will be operational at the training site.
carry a first aid kit with you at all times during an event.
For Mentors and Trainers:
Mentors and Trainers are contractors with ANFT. They must meet the above criteria for assistants, and have a business license .
Trainers are paid contractors and are not required to pay the $150 USD assistant fee .
If you have questions about any part of the mentor’s path, please contact the Director of Practicum and Certification. If you have questions related to your participation on trainings as an aspect of your mentor-trainer pathway, please contact the Director of Training
