Cade Lucas
Anxiety about the growing impact of climate change is itself growing as natural disasters and extreme weather events become more common.
But in an attempt to ease anxiety about our changing environment, the Maribyrnong River and Waterways Association (MRWA) is inviting people to get closer to it.
The association runs river therapy classes aimed at easing participants’ fears, while deepening their connection to and understanding of the natural environment, specifically, the Maribyrnong River.
“People come to us feeling climate anxiety and not knowing what to do and how they can help the environment and this provides an opportunity for them to settle, focus and provide a sense of purpose around the environment,” said MRWA education coordinator Dr Angela Clarke who helps run the river therapy sessions.
“We use nature connection strategies, drawing upon things like forest therapy, mindfulness meditation, tai-chi and somatics, which is basically sensory perception, to connect to our local environment, create a sense of belonging and care for the environment,” she said explaining the mental health strategies used in the sessions.
Dr Clarke said by connecting participants with nature, they felt a sense of shared responsibility and less alone, easing their anxiety.
The MRWA has previously run river therapy sessions in Maribyrnong, Brimbank and Moonee Valley and is hoping to eventually add Hume, Macedon Ranges and Melbourne to complete all six council’s that make up the Maribyrnong River catchment area.
But first, Dr Clarke and her co-coordinator Dr Nicole Kowalczyk are bringing river therapy back to Maribyrnong with a workshop at Pipemakers Park on December 5.
Dr Clarke said the hour and a half workshop would mix mindfulness and calming techniques with education about the river itself.
“We build community water literacy, how water is managed, what sort of environmental flows are needed to keep platypus alive, who has authority over the water and how communities can have a voice in water management,” she said.
“We get people to think about the river as a living entity. Our catch cry is ‘source to sea’ so from Mt Macedon right down to Port Phillip bay, we need to be thinking about how water is managed.”
River therapy is free, but bookings are necessary: events.humanitix.com/river-therapy-maribyrnong
Details: maribyrnongriver.org.au/
