Our philosophy | Naturens Hemligheter

our philosophy

the pot

Through our many years as outdoor-practitioners, we know the importance of good food. But we also learnt that food should be more than a source of energy. We put much effort and care into the produce and the preparations of these, to make every dish a pleasure to eat as well as to cook.

In our main cooking courses, there is a big focus on handling fire as a heat source, as well as various historical and modern techniques of using fire as a "spice" in cooking. We have high standards and ambitions on the food we cook together on our cooking courses. Food tastes

at its best outdoors and we know that together we can make it taste even better.

the knot

From part to a whole, it is important to strengthen your cooperating skills, raise the bar and overcome obstacles together through practising trust. Outdoor pedagogics offer endless opportunities for "location-based learning"; connecting our senses to the physical place we can help give context to knowledge. We emphasize this way of learning by doing, combined with theory and reflection to achieve a learning process that lasts.

the tent

The tent symbolises the basic but all important techniques and tips that we offer in our courses. How to organize your packing, how to dress according to weather and geografical conditions, how to build a shelter, making fire, making knots etc. The tent also symbolises a sense of togetherness, something we always strive to make you feel both during and after a course with us.

the fire

Joy, motivation and inspiration; we are passionate about nature, and we want to share it. The fire symbolises that in a safe enviroment one can be curious and develop new skills, through the process of learning by doing. The fire also symbolises a fundamental part of human history, where the ability to safely make, contain and maintan a fire has secured our survival.

the compass

We function as the middle in a guiding compass. Even if we feel safe in our leadership and the enviroments we teach in, we want as a participant to be challenged to leave your comfort zone. We see our function as a compass, something to show the way and to guide you.

Enviroment

Naturens hemligheter always strive to actively work with the enviroment and in harmony with the changing seasons. As much as possible we use localy sourced, organic and fair trade produce in all of our courses. If we are cooking with fish or seafood it is important that everything is MSC-registered which means that they are responsibly sourced. We also work with a handful of local fishermen and hunters who supply us with fish and meat of the highest quality! All of our courses offer basic knowledge in the swedish "allemansrätt" (every persons right to roam in and use the surrounding nature in a responsible way). We always use produce in season, and we harvest it ourselves if possible and can be done in a enviromentaly responsible way. Being able to connect the food we are preparing, cooking and eating is an important part of outdoor-pedagogics and a way of aquiring knowledge described as "location-based learning".

Eating a freshly grilled pike-perch caught from its native lake Mälaren, or sheltering from the september rain by a fire eating a lovely mushroom-risotto gives essential context to your experience and connection to the surrounding nature.

availability

Naturens hemligheter work according to the motto that nature is for everyone! Unfortunately, we have realized that nature is in many cases almost the opposite for several social groups. Our courses are based on our belief that the more people who stay in and realize the value of accessible nature, the greater knowledge and willingness to care for and preserve it is created. In our endeavor to give as many people as possible the opportunity to discover nature, we have a collaboration with Willut since spring 2022. Willut is run by wheelchair-bound adventurer Anders Andrae. Anders works as an accessibility consultant and nature guide with a focus on inventorying natural areas and guiding in nature for people with disabilities. Anders is, among other things, the initiator of Den Långa Vandringen Dalarna (The Long Walk Dalarna) - Vasaloppsleden's 90 km in a wheelchair and has many spectacular adventures in his backpack.Together with Linus Palmqvist (Naturens Hemligheter), Anders hiked between Östersund -Åre along St. Olavsleden, 125 km in varying terrain, in the summer of 2023. The project received a lot of media attention and contributed to an ever-increasing interest in adapting the trail for people with disabilities. In 2024, Naturens Hemligheter and Willut will take the concept Den Långa Vandringen to other places in Sweden, where the walk in Jämtland will be the world's longest organized walk for people with functional disabilities! In 2025, we will develop the concept and take the walk to even more places.

The constantly growing society with increased internationalization, place demands on people's ability to live with and to understand cultural diversity. In addition to people with disabilities, there is a large group of people who lack the socio-economic benefits to discover nature based on the conditions to which they should be entitled. Naturens Hemligheter actively works to reach groups with newly arrived in order to get an exchange of knowledge about cultural heritage and action-based knowledge from each culture.