THE REFUGE

The Refuge will be a place of solace where participants can have retreats, take time to unwind, and experience the healing qualities of nature.

EARN has a licensing agreement with Jefferson Land Trust on approximately 25 acres of forest along the Duckabush River on the Olympic Peninsula. The land is part of a permanent conservation project and contains a grove of old growth forest, pristine riverfront, and is home to a wide range of wildlife. EARN has an exclusive license agreement for use of the land for forest retreats, meditation, and recreational use.

People coming out of long-term incarceration face a wide range of challenges. Forest therapy, also known as Forest Bathing (from the Japanese "Shinrin-Yoku")*, helps us remember our place in a kin-centric network of relationships with all beings. Because it creates strong bonds between people and natural environments, forest bathing is an important foundation for ecological awareness and activism.

Forest therapy has been successfully used with soldiers struggling with PTSD and studies have shown that the majority of people who have experienced long-term incarceration have some form of PTSD. Many prisoners become institutionalized over decades of incarceration. We become normalized to an unnatural environment. Time spent immersed in nature provides an opportunity to reverse some of the impacts of long-term incarceration.

Whether it be formalized therapy, retreats, or a simple fishing trip, The Refuge will be central to the healing environment of the overall project and will also be made available to other partners in the collaboration for forest therapy and retreat work.