Test 1

Cultivating Mindful Living can result in a less intense stress responses.  Practicing mindfulness also helps improve concentration and focus.

Try and practice formally twice a day for 5 minutes. Keep a log and record where and when you practiced, and what you noticed before and after your practice.

When you practice pause and notice your breath.

Our bodies and minds are connected. Calm your mind and energize your body with the body scan. At least once a day, in the middle of the day, practice the body scan.

Cultivating Mindful Living can result in a less intense stress responses.  Practicing mindfulness also helps improve concentration and focus and reduce the experience of pain and suffering.

Try and practice formally twice a day for 10 minutes. Keep a log and record where and when you practiced, and what you noticed before and after your practice.

When you practice pause and notice your breath.

Our bodies and minds are connected. Calm your mind and energize your body with the body scan. At least once a day, in the middle of the day, practice the body scan.

At least once this week, practice RAIN.

R - recognize

A - Allow

I - Investigate

N - Non-identifying

In your journal/notebook write down or drawn what you notice.

At least twice before we meet, and on different days,  practice this guided meditation.

Cultivating Mindful Living can result in a less intense stress responses.  Practicing mindfulness also helps improve concentration and focus and reduce the experience of pain and suffering.

Try and practice formally twice a day for 20 minutes. Keep a log and record where and when you practiced, and what you noticed before and after your practice.

When you practice pause and notice your breath.

Our bodies and minds are connected. Calm your mind and energize your body with the body scan. At least once a day, in the middle of the day, practice the body scan.

At least once this week, practice RAIN.

R - recognize

A - Allow

I - Investigate

N - Non-identifying

In your journal/notebook write down or drawn what you notice.

At least once before we meet, and on different days,  practice these guided meditations.

Cultivating Mindful Living can result in a less intense stress responses.  Practicing mindfulness also helps improve concentration and focus and reduce the experience of pain and suffering.

Try and practice formally twice a day for 20 minutes. Keep a log and record where and when you practiced, and what you noticed before and after your practice.

When you practice pause and notice your breath.

Our bodies and minds are connected. Calm your mind and energize your body with the body scan. At least once a day, in the middle of the day, practice the body scan.

At least once this week, practice RAIN.

R - recognize

A - Allow

I - Investigate

N - Non-identifying

In your journal/notebook write down or drawn what you notice.

Continue to practice these guided meditations.

Let us use our meditation time to practice:

~Calm - this is the time to walk our talk and practice inner calm amidst 

uncertainty and impermanence. This is the time to garden our inner landscape with strength, resilience, compassion, and acceptance. Not a deluded sense of being blinded to reality, or passive resignation but rather to look within, and shape our inner reality into more wakefulness and beauty rather than being a ball of reactivity at every possible instance.

~Contemplation - This is a great opportunity to think deeply, journal, and reflect if we are truly living the life we want to live. Let's take the time to contemplate and let it sink in that we are mortal beings who have an opportunity of this precious life, and are my pursuits, relationships, work, life or is my own mind serving me...or am I just galloping to nowhere merely marking off to-do lists on a daily basis?

~Connect, Community, and Contribution - It is heartwarming to see so many people

in the local as well as online community coming together and encouraging, 

helping, and serving each other in their own beautiful way, no matter how big or

small their contribution.

By Herky Feroz

Are you a professional in healthcare, recreation or tourism involved in designing for Blue Economy wellbeing?

Responsible design fosters genuine multi-sensory engagement and active participation. Ethical considerations are paramount. Design choices can either reinforce superficiality and commodification or facilitate deeper, authentic and mutually beneficial approaches.

With a trailblazing and unique perspective inspired by the blue water and green mountains outside my studio, especially when these turned brown during States of Emergency floods in 2021, 2022 and 2025, woven with my attempts to "bridge the gaps", Bluewater Endeavours focuses on the facilitation, innovative design and implementation stage of your project, bridging academic research to result in real-world impact. Embrace experiential learning; learning by doing. 

Experiential learning is a process, rather than an outcome and involves:

• Concrete experience 
• Reflective observation
• Abstract conceptualisation 
• Active experimentation 

Dive in Deeply to Design for a Resilient Future.

Sometimes there are gaps between theory and practice, or across disciplines, resulting in challenges with moving awareness to action. Have you first participated in The Art of Awareness signature program Moving Awareness to Action - Exploring Inner and Outer Adventures? 

Deborah’s world class research and writing has included science communication and regulatory documents (USA and UK), newsletters (USA), blogs (Australia, USA and Aotearoa/New Zealand), monographs and articles, book reviews, historical, science, permaculture, nature and wellbeing reports (USA, Aotearoa/New Zealand and UK), e-booklets (USA), online teaching material (Australia and USA) and research (UK, Africa, USA). Between 2004 and 2006 she was a workshop presenter and leader at the American Medical Writers Association’s Annual Conference/Princeton Conference, USA. She is a past president of the American Medical Writer’s Association Delaware Valley Chapter, USA and served on the Editorial Advisory Board of the Institute of Clinical Research, UK. She has also taught reflective writing, at the Masters-level, to healthcare professionals in Australia. She has served, internationally, on several expert advisory boards across different approaches to health and wellbeing.

Past clients, employers, collaborators and volunteer groups with which she has engaged over her varied career include, numerous pharmaceutical companies and CROs (i3 Research, Ely Lilly, Chiltern; USA and UK), educational institutions (Nantien Institute; Australia, University of Florida - Center for Arts in Medicine, West Chester University and Drexel University College of Medicine; USA) and trusts (Te Ātiawa Trust; Aotearoa/ New Zealand). With an interest in behaviour change, she is a previous member of the American Psychological Association Division 34 (Society for Environmental, Population, and Conservation Psychology) and in 2024 served on the Annual Convention Abstract Review Committee and Virtual Conference Committee. She has a lifetime of experience with working alongside Indigenous groups in different countries, particularly to support the health and wellbeing of women and children.

She is a past member of the NZ Society of Authors and Marlborough Representative to the Committee for the Top of the South. She is also a former Trustee for Endeavour Inlet Conservation Trust and former workshop leader at the Adventure Therapy Aotearoa Conference.  She also facilitated a monthly sustainability group across the Top of the South. In 2025 she served on the organising committee, and as MC, for the Marlborough Biodiversity Forum - What is Under the Surface. She is a current postgrad. student in the Faculty of Environment, Society and Design, Te Whare Wānaka o Aoraki  Lincoln University; Aotearoa/New Zealand.

A bridge-builder, she recognises biophilia and how human wellbeing is interconnected and dependent on a healthy environment. Her current creative non-fiction writing and story-telling bridging art and science for positive change inspire, entertain and educate readers internationally. Between 2020 and 2024 she was a regular contributor to the Journal of Biophilic Design (30 000+ subscribers) and associated podcast with her most recent article here. 

Learn more via Linkedin. Listen to and read her podcast conversations and publications. Find out what others say.

NOVEMBER 2024: To mark the 6th anniversary of The Art of Awareness studio I was delighted to catch up with Jennifer Walsh from The Lost Art of Being Human which also recently celebrated an anniversary. Living at the opposite ends of the globe we are in different physical environments, but we are still each connected by what it means to share the human experience; to love the beauty of the natural world and people, to walk with wonder and to have a sense of belonging. The last few years have seen lots of changes as we've adapted to a changing world. I share how self-awareness is the foundation for the actions we take and these shape design and our world. Awareness is a way of being, but is different to mindfulness. Learn more.

You can listen to our conversation below. As you do, try and imagine us each in place, Jennifer  walking in Central Park amongst the gingkos in NYC, and me living in the forest and my home accessed only by a walking track or via boat (a strong storm and wind whipped up around me during our call).

Inspired by the terrestrial and marine forests around my home my current focus is on human behaviour, nature-culture connection/identity, our relationship with the natural world and, subsequently, with each other. Moving forward the direction for The Art of Awareness will be more refined with a focus on Are You Noticing Your Nature - Exploring Inner and Outer Landscapes - my signature offering for professionals in healthcare, parks/recreation and urban planning.

"A nicely written personal account of a travelers first trip to the rainforests and mountains of Peru. Deborah captures the variety of rich cultures and natural beauties experienced by visitors. Her words embody the sights, sounds, and smells of her experience and portray both the pleasures and challenges of her travels to the reader. An enjoyable read of Deborah's transformative experience."

 ~ Joseph Bishop PhD - Landscape Ecologist, Penn State University and Chair, of the Science and Education Advisory Committee of the ACEER (Amazon Center for Environmental Education and Research) Foundation.

"Debbie Early has provided an excellent feel for the wonderment and magic of the rain forest to the Andes of Peru."  ~ Jerry Cott PhD - Scientific Advisory Board American Botanical Council 

"I would definitely want to read more. Well done! ~ Andrew Collins  - Gotham Writers Workshop Faculty.

".....  It is accessible and well-written...." ~ Dragonfly Books, UK

 " I had the pleasure of working with Dr. Early  when she was a contributor to the Herbal Academy's The Herbarium, a  membership-only online resource of herb-related articles, multi-media  offerings, and herbal monographs. Dr. Early's contributions to this  collection of knowledge were submitted on time and were well-written and  nicely organized. Communication was a breeze, and she was open to  feedback and edits. She was certainly an asset during her time as a  contributor, and I recommend Dr. Early for any herbal and/or  health-related writing project." ~Annie Hall, Editorial Team, The Herbal Academy, Herbarium

 "...I had the pleasure of working closely with Deborah during her tenure as President of the Delaware Valley Chapter of AMWA....I have great respect for her abilities... " ~ Brian Bass, Past President American Medical Writers Association (AMWA) via Linkedin

"Classes with Debbie went very well.  Debbie was very patient with me when I asked questions or didn't understand something. She always looks for a  way to help you.  Debbie is very kind, she is very knowledgeable and  stimulates the student.  Thank you Debbie for teaching me and making me confident...."

SLF ~ Blenheim, New Zealand (2023)