Think like a Tree

Nature-inspired solutions for you, your organisation and our world

All living things share natural principles that allow them to grow, stay healthy, be adaptable, develop resilience, become connected and pass on what they’ve learned.

Drawing on a wide range of nature-inspired disciplines, Think like a Tree shares the hidden wisdom of the forest.

We guide you to discover a new way of being that is unique to your circumstances, guided by a set of principles that are the secret’s to nature’s success, tried and tested over hundreds of millions of years.

Think like a Tree - Lush Spring Prize shortlisted 2023

Discover solutions for:

Individuals

You are looking for novel tools and ideas for your life’s challenges and know that traditional, one-size-fits-all methods are not for you…

You are curious about what a nature-inspired approach might have to offer your unique circumstances.

Businesses and Organisations

You want to know how to combine purpose, people, planet, profit and productivity.

You are curious about regenerative leadership, and regenerative business.

Families

You are looking for solutions and resources for the problems that you and your child face.

You are curious about kinder alternatives to the current systems that harm people and planet.

"The more our world functions like the natural world, the more likely we are to endure on this home that is ours, but not ours alone"

Why learn from nature?

Regenerative living is the latest next big thing, with a 3.8 billion year track record

Humans have been mimicking nature’s successes for thousands of years, but in the past couple of hundred years we’ve ripped up the rule book that contains the secrets to success on planet earth.

Instead we’ve put in place systems that encourage destruction, over-consumption, inequality and unhappiness.
No wonder we aren’t thriving.

But there is an alternative ,which is already followed by millions of people, families, farmers, engineers, product-designers, coaches, leaders and experts worldwide.
They are using design systems such as biomimicry, systems-thinking, permaculture and regenerative leadership to design lives, livelihoods, products, services, economies and cultures that are regenerative.

Regenerative means learning from the rules that allow all living beings to thrive (that’s us too!), such as healthy growth, adaptability, resilience, living with purpose, valuing diversity, re-using rather than throwing away and being good ancestors.

In short, regenerative practitioners create conditions conductive to life.

What problem would you like nature to solve for you?

Wherever you are, however you spend your days, then there are regenerative, nature-inspired solutions that will benefit you, your life and work. 
At Think like a Tree we have made it our mission to translate nature’s language of life into simple solutions for individuals, families, businesses and organisations.

We’ve brought together the principles and practices that work, and have made it easier for you to transform your life and work, using tried and tested, whole-system methods that recognise that everything is connected.

Our experience tells us that it’s not enough to change just one aspect of your life or business – you have to look at the whole picture.  We realise that this can sometimes be scary, so it’s best to have an empathetic guide   That’s why we have gathered the skills and experience to be your Sherpas – we don’t physically carry your bags, we just help you relieve the baggage that might get in the way of achieving your new way of thinking, of living and of working. And we show you the paths that will lead to success – paths that are unique to you.

Time is tight, we have much to do, yet these are also the only solutions that have ever been proven to work on planet Earth, so we need to get a move on.

We would be honoured to be your guide on your regenerative journey...

About

Sarah Spencer

Trainer, speaker, author, founder

Sarah’s experience in business, organisations, charities, social enterprises  as an entrepreneur spans decades. The common thread is the purpose-led nature of her work, for people and planet.  

Sarah started her career working as a legal representative for refugees and asylum-seekers. From 1994 to 2010 she worked for the UK’s largest refugee charity, representing clients in appeals and managing a team of Caseworkers. The high-stakes work was incredibly rewarding and her clients taught her much about resilience.

After the charity folded in 2010, Sarah turned to her passion for nature, studied permaculture (she holds a Diploma in Applied Permaculture Design) and discovered a whole new world about how nature solves problems and approaches change and adaptability.

She is a founder member of Melbourne Area Transition, seeking community-led solutions to the problems we face, initiating project such as school food gardens, food festivals and a solar buying group.

She is a founder member, former chair and lead permaculture designer of Whistlewood Common, a community woodland social enterprise in south Derbyshire. As director and chair, Sarah guided the community-owned Community Benefit Society through startup, two share offers, business planning and new legal and regulatory processes.

She is a trained Forest School Leader and Mental Health First Aider.

Sarah is a perennial student – devouring hundreds of books and courses on nature-inspired and regenerative solutions, constantly looking for the common strands and solutions to problems that are faced by individuals, businesses, societies and the planet. 

If there’s one thing that keeps her busy it’s finding solutions to problems, big or small, and then sharing them.  

Living with a lifelong chronic illness, she turned her passion for nature into a career when she founded Think like a Tree in 2017. The illness has given her a unique perspective on how to balance work and life, and ideally how to ensure you adore your work so it doesn’t seem like work and you still want to carry on doing it even on the difficult days.

If you ask her why she does what she does she’ll say “There are so many problems in the world, and I know the solutions are out there, so I couldn’t not do what I do, sharing them with others”.

She is the author of Think like a Tree: the natural principles guide to life. She lives in south Derbyshire with her family on their smallholding where they have planted woodlands, forest gardens, veg gardens, orchards, dug ponds and rewilded areas. Wildlife has rocketed in their 20 year guardianship of the land.

Sarah’s latest passion is her campervan, Woody (named after Woody Guthrie) which she has renovated in quirky style from recycled materials and takes to festivals, sharing Think like a Tree.

The Think like a Tree Network

Facilitators with a diversity of skills and experience

The network is made up of facilitators with a wide variety of backgrounds, skills and experience.

Facilitators have all completed the Think like a Tree facilitator programme and have a high level of skills and competency. 

We practice what we teach too – guided in our day to day lives by nature’s principles and taking a conscious approach to the way we live.

Facilitators deliver Think like a Tree workshops, courses and programmes, as well as incorporating the natural principles and design practices into their own disciplines.

Click here to meet the facilitators:

Turn your passion for nature into a career

Are you:

Passionate about nature?

Committed to living in a conscious way?

Up for developing your facilitation skills to benefit all learning styles?

Looking for an exciting new direction? and/or

Want to incorporate nature-inspired solutions into your existing discipline? 

We’d love for you to join us!

Click here to find out more about becoming a facilitator:

"I take the underlying patterns and principles from the complexities of LIFE – the secrets to nature’s (and our) success - and put them into easy-to-access formats – books, workshops, training, programmes, talks and consultancy packages."

Check out Think like a Tree: The natural principles guide to life by Sarah Spencer

“A set of natural principles as a manual for the modern world” – John Everitt, Chief Executive, The National Forest Company 

Signed copies available to purchase via the website.

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