Home 〉 Wilderness Courses 〉 Self-development
8 – 14 June 2025 | Tynset, Norway
7 – 13 September 2025 | Vågå, Norway
The major crises facing humanity are worrying you. You sense that the time for change in your life has come, and you want to take responsibility for yourself and your environment. But how can you shape your life according to this purpose? A Wilderness Retreat in Norway allows you to focus on this question. Immersing in unspoiled nature gives you a break from everyday life. Here, we create a space for your self-development and support you in aligning with your life purpose and finding your true place in the world.
The various crises caused by humanity are becoming more tangible to us all. New global challenges feed fear and uncertainty, even in our most familiar surroundings and, if we are honest, in ourselves.
In more and more areas of life, the question is how to cope with these rapid and often threatening changes. What is it that matters to us in these times of upheaval? – For ourselves, for our families and friends, in our working lives, for human society and for the planet? How can we focus on what is vital and become a positive force for the future?
You are seeking answers that will give meaning to your life. You are looking for ways to take your share of responsibility – for you, your inner circle and the world beyond: It is the wilderness retreat where you can find those meaningful answers.
The retreat is designed as a journey of self-discovery: Your quest will take you into uncharted territory, your “inner wilderness”. This journey into the unknown within will be paralleled in the tangible world outside, for the wilderness camp is nomadic. This means that we will be roaming freely in the great outdoors of Norway, with no set route, agenda or goal in mind. Media, mobile phones and watches are left behind. We take only the essentials: Sleeping bag, tarp and simple food. We draw drinking water from streams and cook over a campfire.
The retreat in the wilderness of Norway gives you a break from everyday life. Away from it all, you can achieve what normally seems out of reach: to shed your protective layers of civilisation, open up and become present in the here and now. We will carefully guide you through this process.
We support your development through facilitated exercises. These will:
Body work, sensory and cognitive approaches such as dialogue and group sharing will all be used in a balanced way.
The practice of living in nature, guided exercises, and deliberate shifts into silence and reflection will bring you into contact with yourself, with nature and with the group. As you engage, you will come into resonance with the living world.
In resonance with your environment, you can delve into what makes you human and how you relate to the world. It’s about realising who you really are and what you live for. We stand by you to explore your dreams and yearnings, as well as to face fear and pain.
We create a space where you can look at your life and work from different perspectives, reflect on your experiences and re-align your priorities.
The self-awareness you gain in the process will give you confidence and enhance your self-efficacy. Through our own experiences and our work as nature mentors, we know what energy this work can unleash. It is this source that empowers you to make a substantial change in your life and to shape it according to your purpose.
The living world as a whole and you as a seemingly separate person are inextricably intertwined. The world offers you every opportunity and it also sets you limits. So the way you unfold as a person is set by the world around you. Conversely, of course, you can also choose your own world to a certain extent, and in any case you can influence it. In fact, it even calls upon you to do so, because it is the subject of needs that want to be met. In the retreat, therefore, we encourage you to explore this question as well: What do you see as your purpose, role and place in the world?
We will help you find ways to live up to your twin responsibilities – to yourself and to the world. The retreat is designed to help you see your life’s purpose more clearly and grow into your mission.
Redirecting your life in a meaningful way will also help you find satisfaction and fulfilment.
The program is inspired by Joanna Macy (Active Hope, The Work that Reconnects), John P. Milton (The Way of Nature), Bill Plotkin (The Journey of Soul Initiation), Hartmut Rosa (Resonance), Otto Scharmer (Theory U), and Jon Young (Connection First).
The group will meet up for the 7-day wilderness retreats start and end at Tynset railway station (July) or Vågåmo bus stop (August), both in Norway.
In the afternoon of the arrival day, there will be a joint taxi transfer from the respective meeting point in Tynset/Vågåmo into the wilderness. There, we will set up the first camp.
The wilderness camp is nomadic, meaning we’ll move on to new camp sites several times.
The route is not fixed and depends on the situation, composition and dynamics of each group. We set up our camps each time, looking for new places to sleep, putting up tarps for shelter and rolling out insulating mats and sleeping bags. If necessary, we also put up mosquito nets. Our daily routine includes fetching water for drinking and cooking, collecting firewood, lighting and maintaining a campfire. Of course we also cook on the fire.
On the departure day, we’ll take down the last camp and erase our traces. Still in the morning, a taxi will take us back to the starting point in Tynset/Vågåmo.
The program starts and ends according to the train/bus schedules to/ from Tynset and Vågåmo.
The program may be subject to change.
Thoralf Rumswinkel (change wild!) and Manuel Sturm (Wilderness Vision) co-lead the camps.
Thoralf Rumswinkel (DE, 1965), Tynset, Norway
Nature Mentor and Wilderness Guide
Detailed information: change WILD! – Head
Manuel Sturm (CH/AT, 1989), Vågå, Norway
Wilderness Mentor Scandinavia, Wilderness First Responder, Study of Social Entrepreneurship
Detailed information: Wilderness Vision – Team
This offering is intended for adults.
Adolescents may attend under the supervision of a responsible adult.
Young people, too, can learn a great deal about how to live their future lives by experiencing a Wilderness Retreat. Whether a wilderness retreat is suitable for young people depends less on age than on personal maturity. This maturity is very individual. We will discuss with the young person beforehand whether they are ready for such a journey of self-development. Simply write a message in the contact form to get started.
No previous outdoor experience is required to be a participant. You do not need to be in good physical shape to do this either. What is important is your willingness to embark on this unusual journey.
Participants organize camp life collectively. Your active involvement is required.
You want to:
SELF DEVELOPMENT – Nomadic Wilderness Retreat
8 – 14 Juni 2025 | Tynset, Norwegen | English – German
7 – 13 September 2025 | Vågå, Norwegen | English – German
Fixed price 14 950 nok / 1 275 €
or
Pay what feels right * (price of your choice)
* Let’s trust that when we give, we’ll also receive. Therefore, we invite you to give what feels right to you. The amount – more or less than the fixed price – should reflect, within your financial means, what the course means to you and how you would like to support our work. Whatever you give, we accept as acknowledgment.
© change WILD!
