Certification Process

Certification Pathway

STEP 1:
6-month remote training

You will start with a 6-month remote training, where you will have access to:

Weekly live calls with trainers and fellow students
Comprehensive manual
Intuitive learning platform with 14 modules
Remote guided forest therapy walks
Assignments and explorations
Research and Studies
Guiding your own walks
A strong and supportive community of guides and trainers

STEP 2:
4-day in-person immersion

The second part of the training is a 4-day in-person immersion where you will:

be guided on forest therapy walks by your trainers
connect with other guides in training
practice your guiding skills
exchange ideas and learn from each other
deepen your embodied understanding of the practice

To view the available immersions click here.

STEP 3:
Get your certification

After completing the 6-month remote training and the 4-day in- person immersion, you will receive your permanent certification as an ANFT Certified Forest Therapy Guide and be part of the largest Forest Therapy Guide Community Worldwide. Click here to see the guide directory.

The Purpose of Certification

Our certification program is building a growing network of professional forest therapy guides who:

Create consistently high-quality, safe and healthy experiences for clients
Inspire the confidence of physicians and other health care system referrers
Contribute in a positive way to the public and policy maker perceptions of Shinrin-yoku, forest therapy, and other forms of nature-based therapy and eco-therapy.
Increase public awareness of the connective and healing power of nature
Help establish certified forest therapy trails, areas for mindful walking and sensory-opening activities on private & public lands
Are information and advocacy resources for forest therapy and nature connection
Work on the front lines to help transform our cultural relationships to forests through fostering deeper relationships and positive experiences with forested areas

Once your cohort has had its online first meeting with your training team, you will return every two weeks for another online meeting. In these meetings you will receive information from your trainers and participate in group discussion. Meetings are recorded and made available to you on the Thinkific Platform for your cohort only. You can also request access to the Forest Therapy Facebook Group, a private group for ANFT trained guides from throughout the world. This group is a remarkable and very active resource for exchanging information and supporting ongoing learning.

ANFT certified guides can now be found in over 65 countries. These local guides are a resource for trainees to experience being guided. You can harvest a lot of practical wisdom from them. They love to help new trainees!

After you complete the online course and the assignments with it, you will attend a four-day immersion and graduation event. This will be organized by local trainers. Dates and locations will be set as the time for the immersion draws near. We’ll be looking at the weather and other factors when we choose dates. It is quite likely that you will meet trainees from other cohorts at your immersion. This will help to give you a sense of the community of guides that has grown and is active throughout the world.

Certification is a fun, engaging, and challenging process

Forest Therapy Trail Exploration
Tea Plant Exploration
Exploring the Web of Interbeing
Learn the Language of Invitation
Encounter your learning “edges” and develop greater “headroom” for successful guiding.
The Way of the Guide
Building your Deck of Forest Therapy Invitations
Reading for Professional Growth
Learn to guide in many different environments and for many different populations
Use the Standard Sequence confidently

First Aid Certification Requirement

Before you can be certified as a Forest Therapy Guide, you must possess a current Wilderness First Aid (WFA) or Wilderness First Responder (WFR) certificate. This is obtained from third-party organizations like National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI), and many other organizations. The class is typically a two-day event, and tuition is usually in the range of $175-300 USD.

Curriculum

Trainees have access to printable information with each learning module. Together these documents comprise A Guide’s Handbook of Forest Therapy, available only to ANFT Forest Therapy Guide trainees.

Module Name and Number	Learning Focus
Pre-Learning - Soil	Preparation for the course
1 - Fire	What is Forest Therapy – Experience your first guided walk
2 - Mycelia	What is a Forest Therapy Guide – What we do and what we don’t do
3 - Seed	The Way of the Guide – The core of what we do, how we work in partnership with the forest and trust. The forest is the Therapist – the Guide opens the doors
4 - Roots	The Standard Sequence – the structure of the walk, highly efficient and very adaptable to many situations, locations and populations.
5 - Seedling	The Language of Invitation – How to Word the invitations on our walks to allow each person to have an authentic experience without prescribing what they should feel or the result they should obtain
6 - Trunk	Bioregional Learning – Get to know your bioregion, the trails, the watershed, the awarenesses, the tea plants
7 - Branch	Senses, Embodiment and Relationships – The important role senses play in this practice. It is simple yet difficult.How senses lead to embodiment and from there foster relationships.
8 - Leaf	The Heart Sense – The heart is much more than just a blood pumping organ. It is communicating and perceiving all the time. Learn how to support people in tapping into their heart sense
9 - Flower	Edges and Headroom – Edges are uncomfortable and an opportunity to grow. Learn about common participant’s edges and explore your own edges and how to gain headroom
10 - Fruit	Gathering, Sharing, Listening – This module is about how to hold space for people and how to welcome all experiences in.
11 - Crown	Health Impacts of Forest Therapy – Learn about the health benefits of Forest Therapy. Get access to the most recent research papers and studies
12 - Habitat	Business – Get some insights about what has worked for others in buidling a succesful forest therapy business.
13 - Feast	Harvest – What are you harvesting from this journey? This is so much more than just learning the skills and tools to guide a walk.
14 - Return	Threshold of Incorporation – Find a way of completing your journey and bring back what you have learned to incorporate it into your walks and your life

The sequence of themes for each module follows the growth cycle of many forest species. These are powerful metaphors for the journey of the individual guide, and of the the whole cohort as a group.

Post Certification: Professional Development Courses

After receiving your certification, we encourage guides to deepen their skills and knowledge through practice, continued education and self-reflection. Professional Development Courses such as Guiding Children, Embodiment for Forest Therapy Guides, Guiding in Winter, Story Weaving, Find Yourself in Nature, and others offered by ANFT are a potent opportunity to strengthen your connection to and knowledge of this work. You may also choose related courses provided by other organizations or create your own learning experience.