When

14 & 15 March

Sat 09:00-16:00, Sun 10:00-17:00

Where

Tomtit Farm, Matangi, Hamilton

⁠Extras

To join the optional yoga class 09:00-09:45, please arrive at 08:45. Workshop special: $15 pp for the yoga class.

Kai/ Nourishment

Tea & coffee included, bring a dish to share for lunch plus your own plates & cutlery

What this is and and why it matters

As the founder of Ecofluency, Saskia is delighted to bring her work to Aotearoa/ New Zealand for the first time, for an immersive workshop in communicating with Nature, hosted by Tomtit Farm.

But what is Nature Communication? Essentially, it's the oldest language that exists.

This inherent ability, sometimes called intuitive or interspecies communication, is a capacity that all humans have, because we are Nature. Since their earliest days, our ancestors knew intuitively how to communicate with all beings, including plants, animals, ancestors, landscapes and more. They were more deeply in touch with Nature, and this is where they got a lot of their knowledge from, such as harvesting plants for food, medicine, fibre for clothing and housing.

Even today, this ability is still within us, but many of us have forgotten it because of modern systems and ways of living. Fortunately, it is still practiced by indigenous cultures and spiritual traditions on every continent - karakia is one form of communication with the more-than-human world that is still used in Aotearoa today.

When we remember the magic and power of this birthright, it can help us embody greater health, humility, happiness and harmony in all of life’s relationships.

Everyone can do this, whether you're a farmer, corporate leader, home-maker, butcher, baker or candlestick-maker, or live any other kind of human lifestyle. Whether are your ancestors are Māori, European, South African or other, remembering this way of accessing wisdom is eco-socio-cultural repair on many levels, and is a tool for stitching both one's soul and the world whole again. And it can bring a sense of belonging, that benefits yourself, others and our beloved Earth.

Working with land in this way, we can reclaim our role as a keystone species in regenerating landscapes, not just restoring ecosystems as engineers, but as biodiversity artists.

The world of Nature is waiting - join the conversation!

What to expect

This workshop is aimed to help you rediscover and experience this ability yourself, so that you have an embodied reference of how it feels, and take home skills that you can use in everyday life.

On Saturday, we'll cover the what, why and how of Nature communication. This will include activating the body as listening instrument, and the basic steps of how to communicate with Nature, which we'll practice with animals and plants on the farm who want to engage with us. We'll also touch on communication with those elementals who are responsible for weather (especially water and fire), and balance in a landscape, with particular focus on agricultural landscapes. What is exciting is that this skill can be integrated into daily life and applied to conversations with any aspect of Nature, from tiny flowers to towering trees, small insects to large animals, clods of compost to constellations of stars, in urban and rural environments.

The information we receive in dialogue with the more-than-human can both inform practical everyday decisions, and bring insights into our personal development and spiritual evolution.

So, on Sunday, we'll go deeper and explore how Nature communication brings deeper meaning to our lives. We might dialogue with animals who've passed on, meet a Nature ally who can support you in your journey going forward, open a conversation with your gut microbiome, or find other topics to focus that best suit the the group's needs.

On both days there will be time for sharing about your experience (optional) and for Q&A.

Advanced Animal Communication Workshop, Varnavas, Greece, November 2019

Who is this for?

Open to everyone over 16 years, from all backgrounds and professions.

While Nature communication is a skill that every single human alive on this Earth of ours can rekindle (and children generally are quicker to regain this skill than adults), this particular workshop is designed for adults.

As much as we love animals, please leave them at home for this workshop.

No previous experience is required, just BYOB - bring your own beliefs!

What does it cost?

There are multiple ticket types, to help make this event accessible while honouring the time and cost of organising and running such a workshop.

You can choose to join just the first day's foundational workshop, or the full workshop at a discount for both days.

Unfortunately, joining on just the second day is not possible, because it would mean that you'd have missed out on the initial explanations on the first day.

Teaching and consulting in Nature communication is Saskia's only form of income, so donations are also very appreciated, to help cover the reduced price tickets, and to support the activism and pro bono work she does with Ecofluency.

Spaces are limited.

⁠Extras: To join the optional yoga class 09:00-09:45, please arrive at 08:45. Workshop special: $15 pp for the yoga class.

Ecofluency workshops in Aotearoa/ New Zealand:

For more about Ecofluency, please visit ecofluency.org.

Contact info

Please send any questions to saskia @ecofluency.org

Presenter bio

Dr Saskia von Diest is the founder of Ecofluency, an award-winning organisation that offers education and consulting in the field of Nature communication. She is also involved in research and activism within this field.

An animal communication workshop during her PhD in Plant Pathology (2012) sparked her interest in how farmers use intuitive communication with Nature to inform practical management decisions. From 2014-2020, she held two postdoctoral fellowships, at Stellenbosch University, South Africa, and at Coventry University, UK, to investigate intuitive farming as part of a wider new field of subtle agroecology. Throughout her postdoctoral years, she further developed her own understanding and practice in communicating with trees, animals, land, nature spirits and ancestors. She’s also trained as a Family Constellations facilitator, in Jikiden (Usui) Reiki, and in the Way of the Warrior Healer for psychic surgery.

In 2021, she founded Ecofluency, to offer consulting, teaching and coaching in Nature communication to individuals and organisations internationally, and to promote other human voices in this field. She is also a co-founder of the Organisation for Noetic Ecology, and a founding member of Nature’s Council.

With 15 years of experience in teaching and facilitating through various forms and in many countries, her passion now is creating opportunities for others to have their own experience of dialogue with non-human Nature. Through online and in-person programmes, her aim is to support people and organisations in reclaiming the power of these ancestral skills, for individual and collective transformation: ecofluency.org

Ecofluency immersion at Bodhi Khaya Nature Retreat, South Africa, October 2024

Service policy

Cancellation and refund:
- If we cancel the event for any reason, your booking(s) will be refunded in full.
- If we postpone the event for any reason, you will have the option of either a full refund, or a transfer of your booking(s) to the postponed event or a similar event.
- Refunds are not possible once the workshop begins.
- If you are unable to use your ticket(s) for any reason:
  - Ticket(s) are refundable up to 30 days before the event, OR
  - Ticket(s) can be exchanged for another in-person event of a similar length within the same year. To take advantage of this, please contact Saskia to request the exchange at least 7 days before the event, OR
  - You may transfer your booking(s) to a friend of yours. To do this, please contact me to provide contact details of the new ticket holder(s) at least 3 working days before the event so that I can give them any necessary details about the course.
  - No-shows without the above notice are not entitled to refunds, exchanges or transfers.

Workshop content is copyright of Saskia von Diest (c) 2026, all rights reserved.

Contact the host of Ecofluency workshop in Nature communication, at Tomtit Farm