Could this be you?

[Path Finder]

Attention All Bushcrafters…

“Would You Like To Take Part In A Unique University Research Project To Discover If Nature Awareness Can Be Used As A Recovery Tool For People With An Addiction?”


A Unique University Research Project Is Looking For Serious Volunteers From The Bushcraft Community To Take Part In A study Into ‘Nature Awareness’… And Also Develop Two NEW Nature Awareness Games For Children

Here’s Your Chance To Join Us For 2-3 Days And Bag Yourself A FREE, Never-To-Be-Repeated, Signed First-Edition Copy Of A New Children’s Book… AND The Opportunity To Camp Out In One Of The Most Idyllic Locations In North Devon -- Complete With A Fast Flowing River, Buzzards, Dippers, Otter And Other Wildlife Galore!



From Geoffrey McMullan BEM:

Dear Friend,

In mid February 2008, in a secluded location in North Devon, I’m running a ground breaking University research project that aims to achieve TWO goals:

1) Provide evidence that Nature Awareness could possibly be used as a unique tool to help people with a variety of addictions to overcome their problems.

2) Test out two NEW Nature Awareness Games for a soon to be published children’s book.

Over 2-3 days in this very exclusive, privately owned, wooded river valley, my aim is to obtain data on the experiences people have with ‘Nature Awareness’ - to see if this could be a potential recovery treatment for people with addictions - in order to help them turn their lives around.

I also want to test out two NEW Nature Awareness games for a children’s book I’m writing.


And YOU Can Be Part Of Both Projects


And this is where I need your help…

You see, the evidence I need to collect and present to the University requires two groups of people:

1) A group of up to 10 men or women who openly admit they are NOT addicted to anything like Alcohol or Chemical Substances etc.
2) A group of up to 10 who DO have an addiction of some kind. To take part in the research project, you MUST fall into the first group: That is, you do NOT have an addiction.

The second group will be people from a Rehabilitation Centre close to where the project is taking place.

OK, here’s what you’ll be doing on Day One:

1) Those of you who have NO experience of my ‘Nature Awareness’ teachings at Natural Pathways - are required to take the main role in the partner assisted exercise. Don’t worry about this. It’s easy to accomplish and you’ll have a partner with you at all times. After the activity – I’ll be tape recording your experiences and taking research notes. That’s it!

2) Those of you who HAVE had experience of my Nature Awareness teachings - will be asked to support the people taking the main role in the partner assisted exercise. Once again, do not worry about this as it’s all very simple.
Now this is IMPORTANT: if you bring your partner or friend along, please do NOT tell them about your past experiences of Nature Awareness with me, because it’s vitally important that they know very little - or preferably nothing - about the Nature Awareness activities I teach. That way they will not unknowingly influence the results of the activities. So whoever you bring, try to make it someone who does not know anything about what I do… Thanks.

3) At the end of the activities, I’ll be carrying out taped interviews into people’s experiences during the activities.

On Day Two:

We’ll meet up with the members of the Rehabilitation Centre and assist them to carry out the same roles as you did the day before. This will give us two sets of results from two groups for analysis. We have to do it this way because the research evidence has to be as impartial as possible - or the data will NOT stand up to academic scrutiny. Once again, I’ll carry out taped interviews with the Rehabilitation Centre group - and this will be a perfect opportunity for you to venture around the grounds and do Bushcrafty things.

On Day Three:

If you can stay until then, you’ll be assisting me to develop and test TWO brand new Nature Awareness Games I’ve devised for children. And as a special thank-you for doing this, you’ll receive a signed copy of the children’s book when it’s published – absolutely FREE! You’ll also get an individual mention in the book. Now there’s something to show your friends and family!

And that’s not all…

You’ll receive a copy of the completed Nature Awareness research after it’s been submitted, studied and hopefully passed by the examination board.


So what will the research results be used for?

They’ll be put into a research report as part of my final year Masters Degree Course at South Bank University in London. The data will be analysed by leading academics that specialise in this area of research and study. If the project findings stand up to their scrutiny, then they may form the starting point for further detailed research.

Here’s something else you should bear in mind: This is an interesting and fun exercise that I’m sure you’ll enjoy and get a lot out of (in fact - a lot of people in the past who’ve taken part have said that it’s one of the most amazing things they’ve ever done), however, while taking part if you feel that you no longer wish to continue YOU HAVE THE RIGHT to pull out at any time, no questions asked and no hard feelings. And I GUARANTEE that any private discussions we have will be treated in the strictest confidence. You have my word on that, I take your privacy very seriously and I will treat everything with the strictest confidence.

There’s absolutely NO pressure on you to do anything you don’t want to do. Now having said that, it would be great if you could complete the exercise, as the more people we have taking part, the better quality the results.

OK, that’s the main gist of what’ll be happening over the three research days in Devon.


But There’s One Drawback To This - And It’s Only Fair To Tell You What That Is…


Due to my own time commitments and the programme schedule at the Rehabilitation Centre – the 2-3 days will more than likely be on a Thursday, Friday and Saturday in mid February – but I am hoping for the 14-15-16th Feb (to be confirmed). Now I know that may be inconvenient – but believe me, the benefits for coming along are amazingly good…

Here are just some of the things you can expect:

• A River Runs Through It. Yes, there’s a wonderful fast flowing river to explore! The location is in a wooded valley with a river at the bottom. There’s hardly any restriction within the boundaries of the property to walk and explore the river banks. If the gurgle and tinkling of the water doesn’t calm you – then quite frankly – nothing will. Believe me when I say that this is a fantastic place to camp out and practice your skills. Lots of people would pay good money to stay here – but you’ll be getting use of it for FREE!

• This is a perfect opportunity to go tracking along the river bank. With no-one else to bother you or the wildlife, there’ll be hardly any ‘foul tracks’ to contend with. You can track wildlife knowing that what you find on the ground is the real deal. In fact, there are reports of Otters in the area, so perhaps you could be the one to confirm it!

• Dippers are plentiful along the river, so if you still haven’t seen one and want to add it to your list of birds, then what better opportunity will you get to tick this wonderful, charismatic bird off your list!

• You’ll be able to have an ‘open’ fire. You just need to respect the location and the virtually untouched environment around you - and you can practice your fire making and cooking skills all you want. And as a ‘responsible’ bushcrafter – that won’t be a problem to you.

• No cost to you at all. That’s right – it will not cost anything to take part in the research at all. The only cost you will have to meet will be your own transport and food etc.

• Buzzards galore! On a recent trip to the river valley, I saw at least three buzzards circling over-head all at the same time, gliding effortlessly on the thermals looking for prey. There’s been a sighting of a possible GOSHAWK in the area as well. Now can you think of a better way to spend some quality time in the wilds than watching these magnificent birds going about their day? I certainly can’t!

• Try out your water collection and purification skills. Use the water from the river for a shed load of tasks and see what DOES work and what does NOT work. Remember, not everything you read in the survival manuals is true. So here’s a chance to test it out for yourself!

• The perfect opportunity to recharge your batteries in a new environment. And you’ll see that the old saying, ‘a change is as good as a rest’ is very true in this location.

• Because the location is on private land – no one else goes there. So just imagine how good that’ll be with no-one else to interrupt your enjoyment.

• You’ll have a direct say in the development and improvement of the NEW Nature Awareness Games. When the book is published, you’ll get a FREE signed copy to keep. You’ll be named in the book as a contributor to the development of the games. Just imagine the feeling you’ll have knowing that you’ve helped develop something that’s fun for children to play in complete safety - and they’ll be learning valuable life skills at the same time.

Now doesn’t that sound like a great way to spend a couple of days? You bet it does.

So how can YOU get involved with this…?


Here’s How You Can Take Part In This Unique Opportunity


I just need to say again that this is SERIOUS University academic research and you’ll only be helping me if you treat it as such. That’s not to say that we won’t have fun as well – because we will - it’s just that this is your chance to have an input into making someone else’s life better.

Think of it this way: If the valuable research data we collect over these few days is accepted, then you can feel proud that you’ve helped to promote the benefits of Bushcraft to a wider audience… and most importantly… helped someone less fortunate than yourself potentially turn their life around. And that has to be something to feel good about, right?

OK, it’s quick and easy to take part in this exciting and rewarding piece of research. All you need to do is contact me right NOW and I’ll send you full joining instructions:

E-mail: pathfinder777@btinternet.com
Mobile No: 07823691408
Phone: 01271 374456

So don’t delay, contact me right away and I’ll fill you in on any missing details or concerns you may have by sending you a detailed information sheet on what you can expect and if you decide to take part just fill in the consent form, return it to me in the SAE and I will send you joining instructions. See you there and remember. Time is of the essence and I really do want you to be in on this, so don’t delay and get hold of me as soon as you can. I need to let the land owners know the number of Bushcrafters attending so they can make their arrangements.

Thank you for reading this letter and I hope to see you in the very near future on this exciting project.


Geoffrey McMullan

Geoffrey Mc Mullan BEM


P.S. It’s not everyday that you can get involved with a University research project that studies ‘Nature Awareness’ and its effects on people with an addiction. And also not everyday you can help test and refine TWO brand new Children’s Nature Awareness games either. So now’s the time to get in touch by email or phone - and become part of this worthy research study.

P.P.S. Last but not least - here’s your chance to join us for 2-3 days and bag yourself a FREE, never-to-be-repeated, signed first-edition copy of a new children’s book… and the opportunity to camp out in one of the most idyllic locations in North Devon -- complete with a fast flowing river, buzzards, dippers and other wildlife galore.

P.P.P.S. I tried to do an attachment but the system would not let hense the long message

 

[firebreather]

well thats most of us lot out of the first group as we all have a sharp and shiny addiction.
:sad6: On a serious note this looks like good research, I just wish i could make myself free to attend.
PM sent.
Greg

 

[UKHaiku]

I'll be honest my first thought was that this seemed to be a bit on the dodgy side - the poster is brand new to the forum, all capital letters (a bit 'salesy' without a good grounding in grammar), a non-university/organisational email address (and indeed, no mention of the university at all).. Very unusual...

However, it looks like it might be associated with:

http://www.promis.co.uk/

Not that many details on the website though, for all it's polish, but does look genuine..

 

[Toddy]

Well it's a novel first post
Wish he'd given a bit more info about him tho'
He hit Post one minute and disappeared the next. Seven minutes from log on to finish posting that whole thing; guess he was well prepared.

What does BEM stand for apart from British Empire Medal, or Black and Ethnic Minorities?

No idea; real or a hoax?

Sounds fun, but surely if it's a children's book and activity games then would not families be a better target?

Sorry, a long day.
Who's up for volunteering then?

cheers,
Toddy

 

[Path Finder]

Hi Guys

Yes it s a bit of a sales pitch as a good friend of mine wrote it for me, he is into copying writing and I am grateful to him etc.

I had to post it this way as the system would not accept my old login details so I had to reregister.

OK

My name is Geoffrey McMullan former Natural Pathways and former employee of Promis. I my doing Masters into Addiction Psychology and Counselling and I am now in my 3rd Year (research) at South Bank University, London.

My question is:
Exploring how people with addictions experienced Nature Awareness as a therapeutic intervention.

Nature Awareness has over two years produced some very good results now I need to demonstrate this as a potential intervention.

It is certainly not a hoax. I do not need families as the research is into addictions the new games & book offer is me doubling up on my resources in other words killing two birds with one stone.

So if you are really serious about taking part send me a PM with your address details so I can send you more information.

Nice to see someone knows about Promis any connection there?

Best wishes

Geoffrey

PS BEM stands for British Empire Medal: I received it for Anglo German Relations and Conservation. It was one of the last to be issued, basically I established a Nature Reserve while I was serving in Germany and was still doing it while preparing to go to the Gulf War for some reason some people liked that... see link to the Zach which is the nature reserve.

http://www.nabu-soest.de/Frameset_OG_LP.htm

 

[Path Finder]

Hi Guys

Geoffrey Here again...

For those of you who might be interested I am part of a recently formed group that uses wilderness/nature therapy and in my case Nature Awareness (not the "what’s on the box is what you get" Nature Awareness) as my medium for helping others in need.

A little along the lines of Brat Camp (but not quite the same)

I am not able to post attachments so if you send me an e-mail: pathfinder777@btinternet.com

I will send you a really good article on Nature Thinking written for the RSPB by Dr Bill Bird no pun intended this is for real.

Or you can go to this link but you might need to register to download it?

http://bushcraft-educational-society.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=1396.45


Best wishes

Geoffrey

 

[Jedadiah]

Hi Pathfinder,

i've sent you an e-mail, hope to hear from you,

 

[John Fenna]

Hi Pathfinder
E-mail sent!

 

[Jedadiah]

Just contacted Pathfinder and it certainly does not seem to be a hoax. This is the e-mail i sent.

Hi Geoffrey,

my name is Spencer and i am very interested in taking up your offer. I'll tell you a little about myself. I'm currently in the Armed Forces and have been for the past 22yrs. I'm an instructor at ******* in ***********, so i have plenty of Instructional experience. I've been into bushcraft since before the phrase was coined, though i would not say i am the most experienced, i am very enthusiastic and interested.

As well as my Armed forces career, i volunteer for ***** Youth Offending Team which has given me a lot of experience working with young people who have had brushes with the law, many of them with drug and alcohol dependancy issues. I have been doing this since 2003. During this time i have completed my CPCAB certificate in Counselling skills.

I am currently studying for a Diploma in Social Welfare at ********* College in ********. The reason for this is i intend to embark on my Degree in Social Welfare, starting September 08, with a view to becoming a social worker when i leave the Forces. This has resulted in enhancing my understanding, empathy and communication skills with people.

I feel sure that my experience and enthusiasm would benefit your experiment and would appreciate it if you could contact me with more information if you think i am suitable.

If you would like to speak over the phone, my number is ************* and i should be available on evenings and weekends. Many thanks, i look forward to hearing from you,

Spencer

Hopefully we'll get to know a little more. I'm up for it though, what harm can it do?

 

[Toddy]

.......... I had to post it this way as the system would not accept my old login details so I had to reregister.

Hi Geoffrey,
Can you please either pm Admin or one of the Mods about this? We try to eliminate the double identities to keep things tidy.

You study sounds much like a lot of the stuff that Forst Schools are working with too; our local FEI group are actively engaging a group with addiction problems and are finding it really is improving things for those people.
All good stuff


cheers,
Toddy

 

[firebreather]

He appears legit and has asked me to post up my PM to him so I added his reply too.

From me to him

Quote:
Originally Posted by firebreather
Hello and welcome to BCUK.

First of all may i apologise for my jape on the forum. It was very tongue in cheek with no offence intended. I am sending this pm as this is a subject close to my heart. I am currently finishing my mental health nurse training and in the future I hope to use wilderness camping and the outdoors to assist the the recovery for people suffering from mental health issues. When i read your post it intreged me and I would very much appreciate it, if it would be possible to view the findings from the research.
Unfortunatly I am unable to assist in this trial as it clashes with the final placement of my training. So i am kicking myself as this is exactly the kind of opportunity to be involved in research that I would have loved to partake in
Good luck with the study.

Cheers Greg

His reply seems fair nuff

Dear Greg

No offence taken, great to read your response can i ask a favour? would you post your response on the post as for me this subject is also close to my heart and the more people that se this the more who will take it to heart.

I amgoing to post a paper which I know you will love is a really good paper on nature and mental health.

I will call you as you may be able to do other things with me watch the post as I want to get the word out there.

Cheers mate

Good luck with your studies buddy

Aye

Geoffrey

Greg

 

[Dougster]

I know that there is an awful lot of research going on like this - I listened to a programme on radio 4 yesterday about how this exact thing is used to overcome gaming addiction ( a cause of death) in South Korea, and it seems to work well.

This seems to be an effective, cost effective mehod of overcoming the problem which has no secondary problems.

I wish I had the time and skills to participate and wish all of you who take part a fruitful outcome.

 

[Rob]

Just contacted Pathfinder and it certainly does not seem to be a hoax. This is the e-mail i sent.

Hi Geoffrey,

my name is Spencer and i am very interested in taking up your offer. I'll tell you a little about myself. I'm currently in the Armed Forces and have been for the past 22yrs. I'm an instructor at ******* in ***********, so i have plenty of Instructional experience. I've been into bushcraft since before the phrase was coined, though i would not say i am the most experienced, i am very enthusiastic and interested.

As well as my Armed forces career, i volunteer for ***** Youth Offending Team which has given me a lot of experience working with young people who have had brushes with the law, many of them with drug and alcohol dependancy issues. I have been doing this since 2003. During this time i have completed my CPCAB certificate in Counselling skills.

I am currently studying for a Diploma in Social Welfare at ********* College in ********. The reason for this is i intend to embark on my Degree in Social Welfare, starting September 08, with a view to becoming a social worker when i leave the Forces. This has resulted in enhancing my understanding, empathy and communication skills with people.

I feel sure that my experience and enthusiasm would benefit your experiment and would appreciate it if you could contact me with more information if you think i am suitable.

If you would like to speak over the phone, my number is ************* and i should be available on evenings and weekends. Many thanks, i look forward to hearing from you,

Spencer

Hopefully we'll get to know a little more. I'm up for it though, what harm can it do?

lol - you sound right up Geoffrey's street

 

[John Fenna]

I have just heard back from Pathfinder and it all seems very genuine and very interesting.
We had quite a chat and I am looking forward to recieving a lot more info about the lines of research he is following.

 

[Jedadiah]

lol - you sound right up Geoffrey's street

What do you mean Rob? A bit too CV? It's just that it's not everyday you get an opportunity to mix both of my major interests; Bushcraft and helping people.

I'm doing a lot of applications at the moment and this may come across as too in your face, but, Ho Hum!

 

[falcon]

Geoff is well known to quite a number of people on this forum, including moderators I believe, having been a part of at least the first two Wilderness Gatherings with Natural Pathways. This will be a bone-fide project....on the occasions I've met Geoff and heard him speak, it's clear he's completely committed to the work he's doing to help people with their problems and, IMHO, people have no reason to be sceptical. He's good company and has some fascinating ideas on our relationship with nature.....just a shame I can't be free at the proposed time. I hope it goes well....

 

[leon-1]

Sorry I hadn't picked up on this before as I have been away, but Geoff is one of the good guys.

Good to see you on here Geoff and it was good to see you again at The Gathering I enjoyed the talk we had about this project.

 

[UKHaiku]

Yeah, sorry if I sent up the balloons prematurely - just wanted to make sure this was genuine.. It was the new account that got me worried, and the fact that it was written about Geoff in the 3rd-person - and being new here I hadn't come across Geoff previously..

In answer to you question Geoff, I found out about Promis by googling you..

Unfortunately I won't be able to make it in Feb, else I might have been interested in having a go - I'm a volunteer mediator myself, so I'm always keen to support this sort of activity

Good luck with it..
Dave

 

[Still Waters]

Hi i would love to join in on this and very much so for the reasons its been run.
I loved what monty don tried to achieve with the rehabilitation of drug users.
However i suffer from chronic fatigue syndrome
( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronic_fatigue_syndrome)
and im concerned how challenging physically the tasks would be?
If my illness could be accomadated then i would love to be part of this and be able to give an honest and constructive review on the activities.

 

[Path Finder]

Hi Guys

I would like to say thank you to everyone who has contacted me, your response has been fantastic and also thank you for all the kind words of support from my friends etc.

It was good to make contact with you again as I have been of the scene for while doing my studies, and as you know Hannah is now running Natural Pathways very successfully I might add.


I still need some women to take part in the research... now guys please do not take this the wrong way but research does indicate that women produce higher results and it has been my experience with Nature Awareness as well certainly in Rehab.

So where are you girls?

Some people have said they would love to come but the dates could be a problem... just to let you know I am aiming for the 14-15-16th Feb, these dates still have to be confirmed I am hoping to do that by next week.

However in terms of the research, you could just come for the first day which is when I am doing the comparison study group i.e. you guys.

I will need some people the next day to support the other group from Rehab, and the 3rd day is optional for everyone I just thought it would nice for people, so please do not feel you have to come for the full three days although that would be good, its not set in stone.

Once again thanks everyone for your tremendous support, please tell your friends.

Best wishes

Geoffrey