150: How is the Wilderness Therapy Field Changing?

How is the field of wilderness therapy changing, and is it changing faster than ever before? In this special 150th episode, we will explore these questions by looking at the impact of the controversies related to the field and how the pandemic is changing many aspects of providing services. This episode will dive into different episodes from the podcast to reveal which interviews and topics were the most downloaded in the series and how those conversations may reflect changes related to wilderness therapy.

 

About the host:  Will White is a nationally recognized practitioner, researcher, and speaker on the history of adventure and wilderness therapy.  He received his Master of Social Work degree from the University of Denver and his Doctorate in Leadership from Franklin Pierce University. His dissertation is the first in-depth chronicle of the history of wilderness and adventure therapy.  He contributed a history chapter to the book Adventure Therapy: Theory, Research, and Practice.  He is the author of the book, Stories from the Field: A History of Wilderness Therapy.  He is also the host of the podcast, Stories from the Field: Demystifying Wilderness Therapy. He has been profiled in Outside Online, the Today Show as well as Beautiful News.

Will recently founded White Mountain Adventure Institute which provides adventure therapy training, consultation, and therapy.

In 1996 he co-founded Summit Achievement, a hybrid wilderness therapy program in Maine that continues to operate in its original location.

He is a passionate advocate for the use of wilderness/ adventure therapy as a catalyst for change. He has taught Adventure and Wilderness Therapy classes at Plymouth State University for almost two decades.

Will lives in Northern New Hampshire with his lifelong partner and sons.