Getting back outdoors and into nature is not only good for our overall hauora, but good for the soul and Aotearoa has the perfect landscape ready to explore. 

Research on vulnerable young people indicates that adventure activities that engage with nature and a pro-social peer culture are highly effective in achieving positive health and social outcomes. 

For this reason, a group of rangatahi wāhine based in Ōtautahi were able to experience this connection with nature as they embarked on an adventure of a lifetime where they built confidence, had to rely on each other and switched off from the digital world thanks to support from Sport New Zealand’s Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa funding.

Waipuna - St John of God Social Worker, Kelly O’Hagan applied for the funding to support her Adventure Therapy programmes offered to rangatahi wāhine. 

Waipuna – St John of God’s Community, Youth and Child Services deliver a range of programmes to meet the needs of communities, young people, and whānau in the Waitaha region.

O’Hagan leads the organisation’s Adventure Therapy programmes, for young wāhine and develops the learning modules and experiences within them.

The first of these programmes is called, Mana Wāhine. Referrals for this programme come from School Counsellors, Deans and Teachers from schools such as, Hillmorton High School, Te Aratai College, Avonside Girls High School, Mairehau High School, and Haeata Community College. The people on these programmes have challenges in their lives. This is a Term-long, one day a week Adventure Therapy programme run through their school.

Following the Mana Wāhine programme, participants can then choose to move into Waipuna St John of God’s weekly group called, Adventurous Whānau. This was originally set up as a maintenance/follow up programme but has since morphed into a life skills group that meet once a week.

“We run the Adventure Therapy programmes three Terms a year and in Term 4, we aim to go on an extended journey as part of Adventurous Whānau, in the past, this has typically been a tramping journey.  

With the support of Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa funding, last year’s end of year adventure, was adapted from tramping to a four-day, white-water rafting trip on the Grey River (initially planned to be the Clarence River, but that was a little far out of the students’ comfort zones).   

Nine students (wāhine and gender diverse) between the age of 12 and 18 participated in the end of year trip as part of the Adventurous Whānau group, plus two staff members from Waipuna and three Raft Guides from Inland Adventures. The group represented a range of ethnicities, including, Māori, Samoan, Australian and New Zealand European/Pakeha.

“We chose rafting because it’s a great way to adventure because everyone can achieve it, be together and carry each other in a way. We all journey together and those that are physically fitter can help the others in the boat. It’s also a fun, adrenalin-filled way to experience the outdoors and it’s a safe way to adventure with young people because you have an experienced guide with you,” says O’Hagan.

On Sunday November 21, 2021, the Adventurous Whānau group set off on their end of year trip. They spent the first night camping at Hanmer Springs and then continued their drive to Reefton the following day where they met their Raft Guides and had a day trip on the lower Grey River. This allowed the participants to have an introduction to the river and rafting.  They then camped in Reefton and the young people were able to experience a rural township. On Tuesday, November 23, the group packed their dry bags and loaded the rafts and set off on the Grey River for a three-day adventure.  

The diverse range of experiences this trip provided matched the diversity of the participants’ lived experiences. Some come with backgrounds of trauma, or lacking in peer support, or struggles of self-worth and identity, or deficits in developmental experience.  The developed social environment of this journey, together with the shared experience of its challenges and the richness of the natural environment, contribute to the positive outcomes for the participants. The young people simply loved the experience with feedback following the trip extremely positive.
One student commented, “Camping can be difficult but fun if you make it.  Very proud of myself for going.”
While another added, “The views were amazing, it wasn’t what I thought it would be!”

There were also many firsts on the trip, with many of the participants not having camped before.
“I saw my first shooting star,” noted one student.

Another added, “Sleeping in a tent was easier than I thought, it was my first time sleeping in a tent outdoors.”
Kelly loved seeing the group explore the outdoors and have new experiences as well as connecting with nature and each other.

“I just loved seeing them out in nature, and all the incidental learning that occurred, they learnt so much about being in the water.

“It was amazing to see people find joy in the outdoors and connect really well as a group. There was a night where they went down to the beach and star gazed - it was easy to find joy in the outdoors, let go of all the stuff around them and just be them for a couple of days,” she adds. 

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Article added: Wednesday 17 August 2022