Nathan's Bio

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Nathan Binnema is treaty six settler on Amiskwaciy-Waskahikan, also known as Edmonton.  A lifelong resident of the city, he has been exploring nature connection in this area since childhood, mostly informally. He was introduced to the practice of phenological engagement through Ryan First Diver's Blackfoot Phenology course, completing a full solar cycle of immersion in a phenology site near Forest Heights in the 2016-2017 Blackfoot year.  He has continued to engage in the practice over the course of the subsequent years, and has now been visiting a site in the Mill Creek Ravine since September 2019.  He has also 

Nathan's Tour

Nathan leads a meditative nature connection walk through the southern portion of the forest.  Slow down, unplug, and take in the forest through all your senses.  Come away with a sense of wonder and gratitute.  The walk is structured as a series of invitations, each followed by a sharing circle.  Sign up for this tour if you are looking for a few hours reprieve from a fast-paced life, to reawaken your innate capacity to connect with our forest kin, or for an intimate and spacious experience of a very special living place.  

Kathleen's Bio

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Kathleen Mpulubusi (BSc, BEd) is a Treaty Six settler on Amiskwaciy-Waskahikan, also known as Edmonton. Kathleen is a lifelong resident of Edmonton and from childhood has had a deep love and fascination with the natural world. As she often says, “ As soon as I could walk, I walked towards the woods”. She is particularly fascinated by plants, the landscapes they inhabit and the connections between them.

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Kathleen worked as a Park Naturalist in several Alberta provincial parks, taught Geography and Natural Sciences in Zimbabwe and Junior high Science in Alberta. In 2024, Kathleen completed certification as a Forest Therapy Guide with the Association of Nature & Forest Therapy (ANFT).

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She currently facilitates presentations and nature walks with the Edmonton Native Plant Society and the Wings Over the Rockies Nature Festival in Invermere, BC. Kathleen’s goal is to marry her scientific and educational background with the intuitive, heartfelt ways of knowing to deepen connections to the natural world. In this way, she hopes to inspire people to care and advocate for the protection of natural spaces and the environment.

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Kathleen's Tour

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“The forest is the therapist, the guide merely opens the door” (ANFT) Kathleen will guide you on an immersive, sensory experience of the forest helping you to explore your connections to the natural world and to yourself. We will go at a slow, meditative pace to better take in all of the beauty and wonder the forest has to offer. The trail is on gentle terrain and we will not cover a great distance (1-2 km). Along the way, Kathleen will intertwine scientific, indigenous and medical knowledge of the forest beings and how spending time in nature has immense benefit to our physical, emotional and spiritual well being.

Every tour will include a guided meditation, a slow-paced wander through the forest and gentle sensory invitations to help engage you more fully and expand your nature connections. We will end with a peaceful tea ceremony with natural herbal tea and snacks. You will come away refreshed with a sense of calm and engagement with the natural world. The tours will be approximately two hours long.

As Joni Mitchell sang, “We are stardust, we are golden and we have to get ourselves back to the garden.” So come and spend time in nature’s garden. It will be time well spent.

Josh's Bio

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Josh Key is a treaty six settler and amateur naturalist with a particular passion for science communication and nature connection. Josh began his study of the natural world in his childhood by learning how to identify edible plants and collect insects. Josh has continued his education as a student at the UofA and a member of the Alberta Mycological Society. He spends his summers refining relationship with the natural world and running field trips and educational programs for kids.

Josh's Tour

Josh will introduce you to some of the inhabitants of the forest: learn how to identify the plants, fungi, and possibly animals (or even insects, if you are lucky!) that call New Jubilee Forest home.  Depending on the season, different of our plant, fungi, and animal kin will be highlighted, and of course they will be at different stages of their life cycles at different stages of the summer.  This walk is structured as an open conversation led by Josh, but with plenty of space for question and answer, or for walk participants to offer their knowledge.  Sign up for this tour if you are a mature naturalist who would enjoy being introduced to a forest you wouldn't otherwise meet, or a budding naturalist keen to level up your species ID skills!