Claire Dunn says her work as an environmental campaigner left her burnt out and disillusioned about humans relationship with the natural world. So she quit her job, left her partner of 5 years and her house by the ocean, extracting herself from modern life to live in the Australian bush. While Claire learnt many skills to live off the land, built a shelter with her bare hands, navigated encounters with the wild creatures of the forest, I think what touched me most was Claire’s internal journey. Claire says she was addicted to achieving, doing, striving and proving her worth and it was the forest that brought her back into the flow of her feminine. Claire eventually realised she was not there to just learn skills or to slow down – although that was part of it – but she was there to learn how to be a woman again. Claire’s book “My Year Without Matches: Escaping the City in search of the Wild”, is her memoir of this year-long forest retreat.   RESOURCES MENTIONED + My Year Without Matches: escaping the city in search of the wild, Claire Dunn   CONNECT WITH CLAIRE + Website: naturesapprentice.com.au + Facebook: /natures-apprentice   OTHER WAYS TO ENJOY THIS PODCAST + Listen on Apple Podcasts+ Listen on Spotify + Listen on Stitcher Radio + Subscribe by email to get untangling stories delivered straight to your inbox   CONTRIBUTE TO THE CREATION OF UNTANGLED If my show has helped, inspired or spoken to you, it is with humble gratitude that I ask for your support through a small financial contribution. Each Untangled episode takes me about three days in total to produce. There is also a monthly outlay for hosting and software expenses. I am a one-woman show and I do and pay for everything myself. From as little as $1 a month, your support will help to cover the costs associated with producing and hosting the show. To make a contribution, head to the Patreon page here.

Terra Roam describes herself as a roamer, a traveller, a vagabond. For the last 30 years, Terra has trekked, sailed, snowshoed, skied, kayaked, cycled, hitch hiked, volunteered and worked through the most beautiful, dangerous and isolated parts of the world. Most recently she completed a 17,000km walk around Australia – being the first woman to do this alone and unaccompanied – raising awareness for mental health and suicide prevention, a cause that has personally impacted Terra in her own life. Throughout her pursuit of freedom, minimalism and discovery, Terra has embarked on a long journey of self-exploration, immersed herself in the healing qualities of nature and unlocked the power of the heart and mind to achieve her wildest dreams. A heads up: this story touches on suicide and sexual abuse, so please listen with care if you feel this may impact you.   RESOURCES MENTIONED + Sorrel Wilby + Tracks, Robyn Davidson + Wild, Cheryl Strayed   CONNECT WITH TERRA + Website: terraroams.earth + Blog: terraroamsearth.wordpress.com + Instagram: @terraroams + Facebook: /terraroam   OTHER WAYS TO ENJOY THIS PODCAST + Listen on Apple Podcasts+ Listen on Spotify + Listen on Stitcher Radio + Subscribe by email to get untangling stories delivered straight to your inbox   CONTRIBUTE TO THE CREATION OF UNTANGLED If my show has helped, inspired or spoken to you, it is with humble gratitude that I ask for your support through a small financial contribution. Each Untangled episode takes me about three days in total to produce. There is also a monthly outlay for hosting and software expenses. I am a one-woman show and I do and pay for everything myself. From as little as $1 a month, your support will help to cover the costs associated with producing and hosting the show. To make a contribution, head to the Patreon page here.

Kate Nelson has been disposable plastic free for 10 years. You might also know Kate as the sparkly, magical Plastic Free Mermaid. Kate says she first learnt the damage plastic was doing to our marine eco-systems when she volunteered at the Ocean Futures Society. She learnt that plastics do not break down but rather break up into tiny microscopic toxic pieces which are then consumed by marine life and make their way up the food chain. Shocked and horrified by what she was learning, Kate has been advocating for and creating a plastic free revolution ever since. This is Kate’s story.    RESOURCES MENTIONED + Mermaid Retreats + Ocean Futures Society   CONNECT WITH KATE + Website: iquitplastics.com + Instagram: @plasticfreemermaid + Facebook: /plasticfreemermaid   OTHER WAYS TO ENJOY THIS PODCAST + Listen on Apple Podcasts+ Listen on Spotify + Listen on Stitcher Radio + Subscribe by email to get untangling stories delivered straight to your inbox   CONTRIBUTE TO THE CREATION OF UNTANGLED If my show has helped, inspired or spoken to you, it is with humble gratitude that I ask for your support through a small financial contribution. Each Untangled episode takes me about three days in total to produce. There is also a monthly outlay for hosting and software expenses. I am a one-woman show and I do and pay for everything myself. From as little as $1 a month, your support will help to cover the costs associated with producing and hosting the show. To make a contribution, head to the Patreon page here.

What would you do if your child told you they didn’t like school? What if they preferred to stay at home with you rather than go to the school ground? Most of us, I reckon, would explain that this is just the way life is and that everyone has to go to school. But not Susanne Kolff. When her daughter began to struggle at school, it prompted a change in the way Susanne looked at life. Taking the kids to school, going to work, rinse and repeat, day in and day out. Susanne began to ask herself: What is this life? Who tells me we have to live this way? Why do we live like this? Fast forward to today, Susanne, her husband and three young children now live a simple life in amongst a Bulgarian apple orchard, in a Mongolian yurt . And what about school? Susanne and her husband are unschooling their children or as Susanne calls it ‘life education’ – informal education where her children are encouraged to learn from their life experiences. This is Susanne Kolff’s untangling story.   CONNECT WITH SUSANNE  + Instagram: @kidsoffthegrid   OTHER WAYS TO ENJOY THIS PODCAST + Listen on Apple Podcasts+ Listen on Spotify + Listen on Stitcher Radio + Subscribe by email to get untangling stories delivered straight to your inbox   CONTRIBUTE TO THE CREATION OF UNTANGLED If my show has helped, inspired or spoken to you, it is with humble gratitude that I ask for your support through a small financial contribution. Each Untangled episode takes me about three days in total to produce. There is also a monthly outlay for hosting and software expenses. I am a one-woman show and I do and pay for everything myself. From as little as $1 a month, your support will help to cover the costs associated with producing and hosting the show. To make a contribution, head to the Patreon page here.

Jordan Osmond became obsessed with documentaries in his late teens, struck by how they were having an impact on the world and how he lived his life. Wanting to create that same positive impact in the lives of others, yet not wanting to take on the exorbitant student loans of university, Jardan opted to teach himself how to use a camera and shoot stories by watching tutorials on YouTube. In 2015, with a small group of nine other people, Jordan moved onto a 20-acre property in Gippsland where he lived for a year documenting simple living, permaculture and natural building as a way to reduce our ecological footprint. The result was the feature-length documentary A Simpler Way: Crisis as Opportunity. This project set Jordan’s documentary career in motion. Over the last two years, Jordan has travelled New Zealand with his partner and fellow filmmaker Antoinette Wilson, creating their latest documentary Living the Change: Inspiring Stories for a Sustainable Future. Spattered in amongst Jordan’s passion for sharing stories of simpler living, we also explore the crises facing our world today, why it’s important we share positive stories of change and how our reconnection to nature is essential to the healing of our planet.   RESOURCES MENTIONED + A Simpler Way: Crisis as Opportunity + Living the Change: Inspiring Stories for a Sustainable Future + Michael Moore’s Bowling for Columbine + Robert Kenner’s Food Inc + Charles Eisenstein + The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know Is Possible, Charles Eisenstein + The Ascent of Humanity, Charles Eisenstein   CONNECT WITH JORDAN + Website: happenfilms.com | livingthechangefilm.com + YouTube: Happen Films + Instagram: @jordosmond + Twitter: @happenfilms + Facebook: /happenfilms   OTHER WAYS TO ENJOY THIS PODCAST + Listen on Apple Podcasts+ Listen on Spotify + Listen on Stitcher Radio + Subscribe by email to get untangling stories delivered straight to your inbox   CONTRIBUTE TO THE CREATION OF UNTANGLED If my show has helped, inspired or spoken to you, it is with humble gratitude that I ask for your support through a small financial contribution. Each Untangled episode takes me about three days in total to produce. There is also a monthly outlay for hosting and software expenses. I am a one-woman show and I do and pay for everything myself. From as little as $1 a month, your support will help to cover the costs associated with producing and hosting the show. To make a contribution, head to the Patreon page here.

Vienda Maria has lived a very nomadic, transient life since her late teens. She’s actively designed a business and lifestyle that allows her to do what she loves – travel and follow her free-spirited heart. After falling in love with her Canadian partner Julien, they agreed to try a different kind of lifestyle, returning to Julien’s home town in Canada. They purchased a house and life, from the outside, appeared almost perfect. And yet, Vienda says, within a month of moving to Canada, her health started to decline. Insomnia, panic attacks in the middle of the night, hormonal imbalances and adrenal fatigue. Confused as to why this was happening, having always been so healthy, Vienda did what most of us would do. She saw a naturopath, took supplements and changed her lifestyle so she could have more rest. But she saw no improvement in her health. It wasn’t until Vienda left for a trip to Mexico and her symptoms cleared up that she realised something else entirely was going on. This is Vienda’s very graceful and vulnerable story of how she’s courageously navigated an untangling while in partnership.   RESOURCES MENTIONED + Intuimethod – A 15-day interactive video course with a simple method for accessing, trusting and acting on your intuition while addressing the key obstacle that stops you from following your souls’ path. Use the code intui20 to receive a 20% discount.   CONNECT WITH VIENDA + Website: viendamaria.com + Facebook: /viendamaria8 + Instagram: @viendamaria   OTHER WAYS TO ENJOY THIS PODCAST + Listen on Apple Podcasts+ Listen on Spotify + Listen on Stitcher Radio + Subscribe by email to get untangling stories delivered straight to your inbox   CONTRIBUTE TO THE CREATION OF UNTANGLED If my show has helped, inspired or spoken to you, it is with humble gratitude that I ask for your support through a small financial contribution. Each Untangled episode takes me about three days in total to produce. There is also a monthly outlay for hosting and software expenses. I am a one-woman show and I do and pay for everything myself. From as little as $1 a month, your support will help to cover the costs associated with producing and hosting the show. To make a contribution, head to the Patreon page here.

Bionca Smith was living a very comfortable life. A successful entrepreneur, living in a Condo, with a fancy BMW. Yet, Bionca says she was living pay check to pay check, her son Carter was struggling in school and she was struggling to keep the household afloat. And then, an innocent Facebook post changed the trajectory of Bionca’s life. “One day I want to travel the world with my son.” Bionca wrote. “What’s stopping you?” was the response. This question set in motion a series of events. In 30 days, Bionca gave notice on her apartment, pulled Carter out of school and sold or gaveaway everything she owed. She slipped the key to her unsold car under the doormat and flew out of the country. Since then, Bionca and Carter have travelled the world and more recently they purchased a campervan. Bionca home schools Carter and runs her coaching business and not for profit organisation – The Bully Barricade Foundation – all from the back of her van.   RESOURCES MENTIONED + The Podcast School - 50% off sale. Use the code MAGICSALE on checkout. Sale ends April 12. + Girls Love Travel Facebook Group + Connections Academy + Bully Barricade Foundation: Facebook | Instagram   CONNECT WITH BIONCA + YouTube: Off The Grid With A Kid + Facebook: /smithbionca | /offthegridwithakid + Instagram: @bioncasmith | @offthegridwithakid   OTHER WAYS TO ENJOY THIS PODCAST + Listen on Apple Podcasts+ Listen on Spotify + Listen on Stitcher Radio + Subscribe by email to get untangling stories delivered straight to your inbox   CONTRIBUTE TO THE CREATION OF UNTANGLED If my show has helped, inspired or spoken to you, it is with humble gratitude that I ask for your support through a small financial contribution. Each Untangled episode takes me about three days in total to produce. There is also a monthly outlay for hosting and software expenses. I am a one-woman show and I do and pay for everything myself. From as little as $1 a month, your support will help to cover the costs associated with producing and hosting the show. To make a contribution, head to the Patreon page here.

The term wild woman has become a bit of a fad in the feminine spiritual uprising. But today I’m speaking with a true wild woman. Miriam Lancewood spent six years in the New Zealand wilderness with her husband Peter, hiking, exploring, hunting, gathering and living out of a tent. Miriam is also the author of the book Woman in the Wilderness where she shares the tales of her epic six year untangling. As you’ll hear, Miriam has no phone or laptop, so I consider myself pretty fortunate to speak with her and bring this interview to you.    RESOURCES MENTIONED + Woman in the Wilderness, Miriam Lancewood   CONNECT WITH MIRIAM LANCEWOOD + Website: miriamlancewood.wordpress.com   OTHER WAYS TO ENJOY THIS PODCAST + Listen on Apple Podcasts+ Listen on Spotify + Listen on Stitcher Radio  CONTRIBUTE TO THE CREATION OF UNTANGLED If my show has helped, inspired or spoken to you, it is with humble gratitude that I ask for your support through a small financial contribution. Each Untangled episode takes me about three days in total to produce. There is also a monthly outlay for hosting and software expenses. I am a one-woman show and I do and pay for everything myself. From as little as $1 a month, your support will help to cover the costs associated with producing and hosting the show. To make a contribution, head to the Patreon page here.

The influence of the capitalist system on our spirits: this was the theme of discussion I proposed to Lyla June when we began our interview. You see, Lyla June’s story is quite different from those we’ve heard previously. Believing that capitalism is the root of destruction of the earth and the people, she’s lived a series of life experiments, consciously weaving in and out of the capitalist system with an ultimate goal to change that very system. Life experiment number 1: She chooses not to be part of the capitalist system and for three years she practices what she calls “fearless generosity”, giving away her work and gifts, in a selfless act, for the betterment of her people. Life experiment number 2: she enters the corporate world, this time with the goal to change the system from the inside. Life experiment number 3: she decides to build her own system, returning to her traditional institutions and working with Diné peoples to create and sustain their own education systems free of white colonial fetters. In addition to Lyla’s very unique personal story, you’ll also hear her talk about: + The role indigenous cultures and traditions play in helping western societies rebuild social systems and models for a more sustainable world. + Putting women at the root to create stable societies + And stories highlighting the historical events and treatement of the Diné people.   ABOUT LYLA JUNE Lyla June is a anthropologist, educator, musician, public speaker and internationally recognized performance poet. She was raised in Taos, New Mexico and is a descendant of Diné (Navajo) and Tsétsêhéstâhese (Cheyenne) lineages. She is a fellow with the Original Caretakers Initiative at the Center for Earth Ethics. She is a co-founder of The Taos Peace and Reconciliation Council, which works to heal intergenerational trauma and ethnic division in the northern New Mexico. She is a walker within the Nihigaal Bee Iiná Movement, and is the lead organizer of the Black Hill Unity Concert. She is the also the founder of Regeneration Festival, an annual celebration of children that has occurred in 13 countries around the world. Her most recent book is a poetic rendition of the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, entitled Lifting Hearts Off the Ground: Declaring Indigenous Rights in Poetry. Lyla graduated with honors from Stanford University in 2012 with a degree in Environmental Anthropology. She is currently pursuing graduate studies in American Indian Education at the University of New Mexico. Her current work involves working with Diné peoples to create and sustain their own traditional education systems free of colonial fetters. Connect with Lyla June at: + Website: sodizin.net + Facebook: /lylajune + Instagram: @lylajune   SPONSOR UNTANGLED If my podcasts have helped you, inspired you or spoken to you, I would be so grateful for your generous contribution. As a one-woman show, in which I do everything myself, your sponsorship – from as little as $1 a month – will help to cover the costs of producing and hosting Untangled plus, eventually with enough support, I hope to release additional episodes and create in-person live untangling events and workshops. This is my dream. To make a contribution, head to the Patreon page here.   LOVE AND FEEDBACK If you love this podcast, I would be so grateful if you would take a couple of moments, head over to Apple Podcasts and leave a rating and review + subscribe to the podcast while you’re there.   WAYS TO SUBSCRIBE TO UNTANGLED You can subscribe to Untangled so you never miss an episode. + Click here to subscribe on Apple Podcasts + Click here to subscribe on Stitcher + Click here to subscribe on SoundCloud

Back in 2012, Fenja Sepers traded her job and home in Amsterdam for a surfboard and a suitcase and the plan to have no plan. She figured that our understanding of life and the world is not generated through reasoning, but through experiencing, and so taking distance and breaking with the Western system was necessary to create a rupture in the way of thinking and open up to new ideas and worldviews. Fenja baptised her journey Navigate on Trust, taking on a life-experiment that embraces the age-old wisdom of uncertainty. In 5 years she travelled through many countries, experienced joy, beauty, loss, and insecurity, which led to some profound life lessons.   RESOURCES + Transition Coaching with Alana – if you’re ready to untangle from society’s giant rule book, move away from the mundane, smash out of the box and create your version of a meaningful life, this coaching might just be for you.   ABOUT FENJA Back in 2012, Fenja Sepers traded her job and home in Amsterdam for a surfboard and a suitcase and the plan to have no plan. She figured that our understanding of life and the world is not generated through reasoning, but through experiencing, and so taking distance and breaking with the Western system was necessary to create a rupture in the way of thinking and open up to new ideas and worldviews. Fenja baptised her journey Navigate on Trust, taking on a life-experiment that embraces the age-old wisdom of uncertainty. In 5 years she travelled through many countries, experienced joy, beauty, loss, and insecurity, which led to some profound life lessons. Connect with Fenja at: + Website: navigateontrust.com + Instagram: /navigateontrust   SPONSOR UNTANGLED If my podcasts have helped you, inspired you or spoken to you, I would be so grateful for your generous contribution. As a one-woman show, in which I do everything myself, your sponsorship – from as little as $1 a month – will help to cover the costs of producing and hosting Untangled plus, eventually with enough support, I hope to release additional episodes and create in-person live untangling events and workshops. This is my dream. To make a contribution, head to the Patreon page here.   LOVE AND FEEDBACK If you love this podcast, I would be so grateful if you would take a couple of moments, head over to iTunes and leave a rating and review + subscribe to the podcast while you’re there.   WAYS TO SUBSCRIBE TO UNTANGLED You can subscribe to Untangled so you never miss an episode. + Click here to subscribe on iTunes + Click here to subscribe on Stitcher + Click here to subscribe on SoundCloud