About Us
We are a group of artists, makers, ecologists, herbalists, mycologists, educators and wellbeing practitioners based in South Devon near Totnes. We found each other through the work of The New Futures Academy and through our mutual love of the natural world.
We run events and workshops and a youth group. We offer wellbeing services and make and sell our wares (baskets, tinctures, art and more besides). Through this work, each of us is exploring and sharing this love of nature in a variety of different ways.
Much of our work and activities happen in a very special place: a regenerative land settlement project in Littlehempston, in The New Futures yurt. It is a beautiful space for learning and sharing, with 12 acres of woodland and 12 acres of field overlooking the River Dart.
Have a look around this website. You can find out what events and activities we are offering, or find links to websites and social media pages for each of our different collective members.
We have a ‘core group’ of practitioners who oversee and facilitate the ethos and organisation of the collective, we have the active members who offer events and activities both at the yurt and elsewhere, and we have our followers and workshop participants. All of these lovely people contribute to the decisions, direction and identity of the collective.
Meet the Team
(See who's behind the scenes, making it all work)
Chris Smith
Chris is the founder and director of The New Futures Academy CIC, and lead tutor for the Forest Crafts Youth Group.
Chris wears many hats (including a flat cap) besides this; for instance, he runs a private counselling practice and has taught art and photography at Arts University Plymouth for 19 years. Chris is also currently the Green Minds Project Co-ordinator for Arts University Plymouth.
Almost everything Chris does is some kind of variation of 'finding ways of helping others (and himself) to reconnect with nature; and that, says Chris, is a "delightful and ever-changing journey of discovery"
(Chris is the one on the left in the picture left...)
Jenna Blencowe
Jenna is a Nature Connection Facilitator and Eco-therapist. Jenna co-facilitates on the New Futures Forest Crafts Youth Group and also works in a similar capacity for WildWise Enterprises.
Jenna started her career as a teacher, gaining experience across both primary and secondary schools in London. She soon became more and more interested in the intersection between nature-connection and wellbeing, and so in 2016 took a step away from teaching full time to pursue training in Forest School (Level 3), Ecotherapy and Forest Bathing.
She spent three years working on a care farm where she delivered programmes for vulnerable young people, whilst also completing her masters in leadership in education, focussing specifically on leadership for wellbeing.
More recently Jenna has rekindled her love of campfire singing and has begun running outdoor signing workshops.
Richard Loizou
Richard is also a co-facilitator for the New Futures Forest Craft Youth Group. He is a qualified Forest School Leader, as well as a trained psychotherapist. Richard has led outdoor learning workshops and programmes in a variety of different contexts, including at Embercombe, On the Hill, Wildwise and Acorns. He is currently also building his own house!. Richard loves starting fires (bushcraft style) and bashing copper with hammers to make beautiful jewellery.
