Seabirds, Sundew and the Spirit

From corncrakes to gannets, from marsh orchids to sea ferns and from seals to the increasingly rare heath snail, summer on Iona provides plenty of look out for. In the course of this week we will be exploring different habitats and using our observational skills as we combine bird watching with plant hunting in search of the island’s fascinating wildlife. In our sessions we will be learning not just how to recognise the birds and plants but some of the stories behind them, including their folklore. We will using all this as we explore a spirituality of the environment based on attentiveness and awareness and a reciprocal relationship with the earth, how this is manifested in various cultures and how we can develop a contemporary approach that combines past tradition with present experience in order to help us confront the current environmental crisis.

Programme Leader

Bob Gilbert is an environmental writer and broadcaster, his books include ‘The Green London Way, ‘The Missing Musk‘ and ‘Ghost Trees’. His work for BBC Radio 4 includes ‘The Sussuration of Trees‘, and ‘The Passion: a Pilgrimage in Plants’. An Associate Member of the Iona Community, Bob is a Quaker living in London.

Costs

6 Nights: £960 per adult, £480 concession.