"If we concern ourselves firstly with education – not that of the teaching of facts, but of discovering the wisdom of how to live – then surely there is nothing we cannot achieve." ~ Headwaters Wilderness Program
Philo-sophia – Love of Wisdom
In our journey toward the development of an environmentally moral education, we ground our work in three pillars: Development, Delivery, and Dissemination being the foundation of everything we do (to read more about this model, click here).
The dissemination of our research and findings takes many forms, including: presenting at conferences, symposiums, and events; publications in journals, books, and websites; ongoing research projects; and professional development partnerships.
Poke around this page for a glimpse into our activities, findings, and publications.
Presentations & Workshops
Engaging in Discourse | Sharing Our Findings
Headwaters regularly takes part in – and presents at – conferences, symposiums, events, and gatherings of professionals in our field. Sharing our ideas and engaging in thoughtful discussion with others is paramount to our Socratic model of community-oriented action research.
Workshop: 2024 Make Peace with Winter Conference
Hosted by: The Council of Outdoor Educators of Ontario (COEO)
Date: January 19-21, 2024
Winter Media for Communities of Educational Care: Transportation and Shelter in Time and Space
Before you even formulate the content or curriculum of your lesson, how does the pencil the students will use impact the values being taught? What about cross-country skis, winter clothing, and outdoor shelters? In this workshop, by critically examining how the media (a broad term encompassing communications devices and methods, transportation modes and means, physical objects, and organizational structures) of educational settings shape our relations to space and time, we will uncover the overlooked importance of media on the values and lessons disseminated via education. With a particular emphasis on winter, we will learn how modes of transportation (such as cross-country skis) and aspects of shelter (such as clothing and wall tents) play a fundamental role in building communities of care and warmth between humans and nonhumans. No technologies are neutral and, as such, being intentional about one’s media is the first step in building resilient and caring educational communities.
Workshop: 2024 Annual Fall Conference
Hosted by: The Council of Outdoor Educators of Ontario (COEO)
Date: September 20-22, 2024
After the Canoe Trip Ends: Using Shared Moral Language to Bring the Values of the Wilderness Home with Us
Outdoor and environmental education programs pretty much all share a common feature: they are time-limited; they end, often just as the most transformative part of the experience has begun to set in. As such, an overlooked yet essential component to any program seeking to make education wild – seeking to teach the values of the wilderness – is the question of how to bring those teachings home. While canoeing on a remote lake or sleeping under the stars, the inherent teachings appear obvious. But how do we maintain those teachings while back home, sitting in traffic on the 401 or standing in line at the coffee shop? Through group activities and discussions, we will wade in these murky waters, discovering how the use of a shared moral language (established at the outset of our programs) enables us to bring home – to the cities and our domesticated places – the teachings of the wilderness, nature, and the nonhuman.
Presenter: 2025 Kingston Climate Change Symposium – Rooted in Action: Empowering Youth to Grow a Sustainable Future
Hosted by: Sustainable Kingston
Date: January 20, 2025
Environmentally Moral Education
Headwaters presented a booth at the Kingston Climate Change Symposium – a youth-focused event attend by school groups and educators from Kingston and the surrounding area. Throughout the day, we engaged in numerous and wide-ranging discussions with symposium participants on the need to establish an environmentally moral education and ways in which Headwaters is working to develop, practice, and disseminate education as such.
Workshop: 2025 Make Peace with Winter Conference
Hosted by: The Council of Outdoor Educators of Ontario (COEO)
Date: January 24-26, 2025
If We Are to Succeed: The Need for an Undeniable Case in Favour of Outdoor Education
Outdoor education, when done well, is the best form of good teaching. However, outdoor education is, as we all know, under funded, under respected, and constantly under threat. If we’re being truthful, this is largely because most people think of canoe trip leaders as “not a real job,” and consider any type of nature-based field trip to be “extra-curricular.” While few would question the benefits of time spent in nature, many would question what, exactly, we mean when we say that our students are “learning with nature as co-teacher.” What does that mean beyond spooky sounding claims that can never be verified? If we believe in this work – if we believe in the transformative and necessary role of outdoor education for both well-lived human lives and for the flourishing of wild creatures and places on this planet – then it is time for outdoor educators to present a sophisticated, robust, intelligent theory: an explanation as to what it is that we do “out there” with our students. It is time, in other words, to stop playing continual defence and to mount an undeniable argument in favour of the case for outdoor education. For all those interested in educational change for a better world, join this workshop and be part of the discussion. While it may not be a technique you can take home and use with your students on Monday, this is important, long-term work. And if these discussions are not had at COEO conferences, then where will they be had?
Guest Lecture: Queen's University Economics Department, Winter 2025
Hosted by: Queen's University
Date: March 10, 2025
Subjecting Human Decisions to Nature's Value: Towards a Holistically Non-Anthropocentric Economics
Invited by a Queen's University economics professor, Brock presented a guest lecture in March of 2025. An audience of undergraduate and graduate students was in attendance to hear about ideas on the cutting edge of the field of economics. Focused on solving the problem of modern economic theory being unable to account for the inherent and intrinsic moral value of non-human beings, Brock's talk drew from his past research work while also pointing towards future initiatives in this field. In particular, the lecture ended by highlighting the field philosophy work the Headwaters Institute is undertaking in the summer of 2025 with regard to the old growth forests of the Temagami region of Ontario; a project which will include, among other aspects, an examination of how, exactly, nature's value may be determined in a local, place- and care-based way such that economic models may account for it.
Presenter: 2025 Green Career Fair
Hosted by: York University, Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change
Date: April 2, 2025
Education as a Pathway for Meaningful, Impactful Environmental Work
Headwaters presented a booth at York University's 2025 Green Career Fair. Alongside a wide range of other organizations – from NGOs to community housing projects to big banks – we engaged with students and recent graduates of York around the possibilities and potentials in pro-environmental work. Headwaters, in particular, presented on the foundational yet often overlooked role of education within the environmental sector, discussing with participants the ways in which an environmentally moral education – and the work needed to create and facilitate it – will be essential to the success of any other environmental initiative or positive change for our planet.
Presentation: Ontario Nature Youth Council Webinar
Hosted by: Ontario Nature Youth Council
Date: April 8, 2025
Immersive Wilderness Experiences as a Catalyst for Nature Conservation
Invited by the Ontario Nature Youth Council, Headwaters gave a virtual presentation about the role in which immersive wilderness experiences – and canoe tripping in particular – has to play in catalyzing nature conservation. We also answered questions regarding our upcoming conservation-focused canoe trip programs for summer 2025.
Featured Community Partner Workshop: 2025 Change Your World Event
Hosted by: York University, Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change
Date: April 30, 2025
Immersive Conservation Experiences for a Better Tomorrow
Going beyond high school biology class, online activism, and public demonstrations, how can on-the-ground, land-based learning develop the environmental leaders of tomorrow? Our innovative “Immersive Conservation Training Program” takes up this challenge. At this workshop, discover how “Immersive” educational programs — going into the places we’re learning about, rather than just reading about them — can help turn the tide on the climate crisis and lead to a better future for all of our planet’s species.
Featured Community Partner Presenter: 2025 TurtleFest Event
Hosted by: Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) Youth Council
Date: May 18, 2025
Community-Building for Wilderness Preservation
Coming soon...
Academic Research Panel Presentation: Educating the Educators: Violence, Participant Experiences, and Land-Based Learning
Hosted by: Environmental Studies Association of Canada, at Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences' Congress 2025
Date: June 2, 2025
Land-Based Learning: Reimagining Environmental Education
At the Federation for Humanities and Social Sciences Congress, hosted by the Environmental Association of Canada on June 2, Anissah presented based on her current research. The theme of this year's conference was “Reframing Togetherness” and included a variety of presentations related to environmental justice, environmental education, food systems, sustainability, climate change, and biodiversity. Anissah’s presentation involved an overview of her positionality as a second generation settler in the context of her land-based relationships. She shared her perspective pertaining to the growing concerns regarding climate change and emphasized that her passion for caring for the environment stems from a deeply rooted relationship with the land. Her presentation echoed the two objectives of her thesis work; first, the significance of implementing land-based learning into the Ontario curriculum through a reimagination of environmental education using a framework that focuses on building students’ capacities to form reciprocal and respectful land-based relationships. Secondly, she spoke about her hopes to address the gaps in the existing environmental education policy framework titled, 'Acting Today, Shaping Tomorrow' (Ministry of Education, 2009). Anissah emphasized the significance of reimagining the current policy framework for environmental education by highlighting statistics from recent research that represents Canadian’s perspectives on climate change (Field et al., 2020: Schwartzberg et al., 2022). To conclude, audience members were invited to ignite their imagination and consider the potential benefits of integrating land-based learning across grades 1-8 in Ontario through an immersive activity with guided questions.
Co-Chair, Presenter, and Outfitter: 2025 Ontario Wilderness Leadership Symposium
Hosted by: The Council of Outdoor Educators of Ontario (COEO)
Date: June 19-22, 2025, Trip A: Killarney Provincial Park
Conference Organizer, Co-Chair, Workshop Facilitator, and Outfitter
The Ontario Wilderness Leadership Symposium is a unique event designed to support the development and leadership of young or early-career outdoor educators, including wilderness guides, teachers, camp staff, and canoe trip leaders. Starting from the understanding that all education, at its core, is about building good people, OWLS looks beyond the “hard skills” of outdoor education work. Join a community of peers, along with experienced mentors, in this co-learning event and focus on the deeper questions that are rarely asked. Illuminating the often-murky waters of educational practice, OWLS will examine such questions as: what is outdoor education? How is the campfire a site of learning? Why are wilderness trips such potentially powerful experiences, and how do we ensure that they are for our students? Taking the form of a 3-day canoe trip plus one night in the frontcountry beforehand, in either Killarney or Algonquin, OWLS is a unique experience. With the trip itself – and the natural world – as our co-teachers, we invite you to join us in June and be part of Ontario’s next generation of outdoor education leaders.
Co-Chair, Presenter, and Outfitter: 2025 Ontario Wilderness Leadership Symposium
Hosted by: The Council of Outdoor Educators of Ontario (COEO)
Date: June 19-22, 2025, Trip B: Algonquin Provincial Park
Conference Organizer, Co-Chair, Workshop Facilitator, and Outfitter
The Ontario Wilderness Leadership Symposium is a unique event designed to support the development and leadership of young or early-career outdoor educators, including wilderness guides, teachers, camp staff, and canoe trip leaders. Starting from the understanding that all education, at its core, is about building good people, OWLS looks beyond the “hard skills” of outdoor education work. Join a community of peers, along with experienced mentors, in this co-learning event and focus on the deeper questions that are rarely asked. Illuminating the often-murky waters of educational practice, OWLS will examine such questions as: what is outdoor education? How is the campfire a site of learning? Why are wilderness trips such potentially powerful experiences, and how do we ensure that they are for our students? Taking the form of a 3-day canoe trip plus one night in the frontcountry beforehand, in either Killarney or Algonquin, OWLS is a unique experience. With the trip itself – and the natural world – as our co-teachers, we invite you to join us in June and be part of Ontario’s next generation of outdoor education leaders.
Publications
Written Work | Research and Observations
Aiming to be at the forefront of environmental philosophy and education, the Headwaters community produces written work for a wide variety of outlets. Some of it is published internally, by the Headwaters Institute, while much else is published in external sources. From academic journals, to books, to nature blogs, the Headwaters community is active in the fields of knowledge sharing and production.
To read stories from the trail and noticings of nature, head on over to our blog: The Campfire.
‘Extending David Hume’s Analogical Argument for Nonhuman Animal Minds to Plants’. Noēsis: Undergraduate Journal of Philosophy, vol. 22, no. 1, 2021, pp. 25–34.
‘Plight and Possibility: In Dialogue With Change’. Pathways: The Ontario Journal of Outdoor Education, vol. 36, no. 1, 2023, pp. 24–26.
Seize the Means of Education: A Theory of Media Virtues. Master's Thesis in Environmental Studies & Education, 2023, forthcoming as a book.
Subjecting Human Decisions to Nature's Value: Towards a Wholistically Non-Anthropocentric Economics. Master's Thesis in Economics, 2024.
'Seize the Means of Education: Implementing Harmonious Transportation for a Wild Pedagogy'. Pathways: The Ontario Journal of Outdoor Education, vol. 37, no. 1, 2024, pp. 18–21.
Research Projects
Field Philosophy | Action Research
Headwaters is a research-based organization with a unique take on what research is and how we conduct it. We view research as an engagement in field philosophy, re-situating philosophy as in the world. It is Henry David Thoreau who said "[t]here are nowadays professors of philosophy, but not philosophers. Yet it is admirable to profess because it was once admirable to live." Lamenting the reduction of philosophy to those professing it from within the safe confines of the classroom, while abandoning it as a way of living and relating on Earth.
The philosopher Kathleen Dean Moore has said that the "work of philosophy is like the work of ospreys." Beginning by soaring high above and getting a broad view, they "catch a glimpse of a shadow below the surface," compelling them – philosopher and osprey both – to dive-in, grab on tight, and engage directly with the world, wrangling to the surface a catch worth sharing.
From the insights of Thoreau and Moore, we develop our approach: insisting, above all else, that meaningful research constitutes an engagement with the world aimed beyond the writing of words. That good research – good philosophy – is as much lived as it is thought, and that this living is always striving, aiming despite potential failure toward a world of flourishing for human and non-human beings alike.
Summer 2025
Developing the Case for Old Growth Forests
The Headwaters Institute is working on the development of a new philosophical and economic argument in favour of preserving old growth forests. Specifically, we aim to show that when you account for the intrinsic value of non-human beings, it can be economically optimal to not do such activities as old-growth logging. That is, it can be shown that, on top of the usual ethical appeals that may be made in favour of protecting the forests, economic arguments can be given for the same conclusion. With the red and white pine old growth forests of the Temagami region of Ontario as our case study, we aim to utilize our newly developed model of economic analysis, coupled with an environmental virtue ethics framework, to conclusively argue for the protection of old growth forests by demonstrating that it is economically optimal to not log the forest, even when profits and business interests are taken dully into account. This ground-breaking research project involves combining data regarding the Temagami forest with a field philosophy investigation. Our aim is to produce another arrow for the preservationist's quiver, mixing philosophical and economic academic work with on-the-ground research via material activism and youth-involved canoe trips. We intend to take this field philosophy project to it's conclusion, arguing before the Government of Ontario for the complete and permanent protection of our province's old growth forests.
"[The program adopted] ought to be radical… because it is easy to convert a natural area to industrial or motor usage, impossible to do the reverse"
~ Robert Marshall, The Problem of the Wilderness, 1930