Hello!

Okay – hoping you get this. We first sent this email on August 28, 2024… A very happy and hearty congratulations on completing the Awake in the Wild Teacher Training! You’ve worked hard over the past year, and we’re so glad that you will now be able to inspire more people to take their contemplative practices into nature. We cannot wait to see what the future holds for you, your practices, and your teachings.

We would also like to take this opportunity to learn a bit more about all of you, and your teaching interests, and to extend some information your way on how you can get involved with the growing AitW Alums Community and the larger AitW Student Community. Please read all the information below, as you will need to complete some requested information in order to fully participate as an AITW teacher going forward. Also Note: Since you have just graduated, your AITW certification fees are waived until the start of 2025 when you will receive an email inviting you to recertify.

Alums Portal

As an AITW Alum (trained teacher) you now have access to the Alums Portal which uses the password: aitwalums. This is where you can keep track of and access the regularly scheduled Alums meetings that Mark holds. He will often offer training content during these roughly hour-long meetings, and may also convey important information about opportunities to engage with the AitW community. The link to attend the meetings is posted in the Portal, as are the post-meeting videos if you are unable to attend the sessions live. 

AitW Annual (Re)Certification Dues

As an official graduate of the AitW teacher training program, you are invited each year to keep your certification to teach current. Certification dues are collected annually in January and the certification is valid for one year from Feb. 1 to Jan. 31 of the following year. Those who are serving as mentors for the next training cohort will have their fees waived for next year. This annual certification has many benefits! Please visit the final section of the Alums Portal to learn more. Since you have just graduated, your AITW certification fees are waived until the start of 2025.

The AITW annual dues are offered (on a sliding scale to those in need) with a suggested certification fee of $150 per year. Certification is available to all who have completed their coursework and have graduated from the Awake in the Wild Teacher Training yearlong program. Additionally, you are encouraged to maintain a regular daily practice, that includes some nature-based practice. We ask that you attend a weeklong silent meditation retreat, preferably in or in proximity to nature, each year, and that you attend the Alums Meetings and other Alum gatherings as much as you are able. Recertification can be paid annually from within the Alums Portal.

Annual recertification is required in order for Alum to teach AITW-sponsored or branded programs such as our online sits, half-day retreats, special events, in-person sponsored Daylongs, or any program you offer with the AitW name, etc. These annual certification dues also cover quarterly webinars with Mark or guest speakers, administration costs, research updates, and more. We will continue to develop ways for AitW Alums to share this work in the larger community, and even to earn dana for some events and programs.

Teaching Interest Form

Are you interested in teaching one of the programs offered formally through the organization? Fill out the Teaching Interest form in the Portal to express your interest. Please note that we may have more interest than openings at this time, and we will do our best to balance the two!

  • Daily Nature Meditation Sit
  • Sunday Evening Meditation Sit
  • The MBNC Course (Mindfulness-Based Nature Connection)
  • AitW Half-day Retreats
  • The Yearlong Community Meditation Q&A Sessions
  • Solstice & Equinox Celebration Events
  • In-person programs (Daylongs, MBNC, etc.)

Please fill in the teaching interest form linked in the Alums Portal. This is how you get invited to teach these programs. We can’t invite you if you don’t fill out this form, so please do this right now if possible.

Submit Your Bio

As a new AitW TT Alum, you are invited to have your bio and picture featured on the Awake in the Wild website in the Meet the Teachers section of the website. You can submit your bio – no later than Sept. 30th – to be added to the directory this year. Please only submit your bio if you plan to pay the upcoming Certification dues in January 2025 as current certification is required to be listed in the directory. Going forward, we only update the directory once per year – in February each year – and you will have an opportunity to submit bio update requests each January when annual certification dues are collected.

Alum Retreat & Training Opportunities

Mark will offer regular training and enrichment opportunities to all certified AitW TT Alums. Please keep an eye out for our Alums Newsletter announcing these opportunities, and please try to attend the Alums Meetings, where Mark will also announce and offer enrichment opportunities. We have held in-person Alum Retreats the past couple of years, and those who attended this year’s retreat were offered the opportunity to be certified to offer the 6-week Mindfulness-Based Nature Experience (MBNC) course. You can find more information about this course on our website. Mark will be teaching an alum retreat in 2025 April 23-27 in person in Point Reyes, California where he will be offering a training in the MBNC curricula training again.

AitW Logos

Alum who have fully graduated from the training program and who are current with their annual certification dues are permitted to use the AITW logos in promoting their events and in their online bios that mention that they are certified through the teacher training. You can download the logos from the Alums Portal page. Given you have graduated, and your fees are waived this year, you are permitted to use the AITW logo in 2024. To continue using them beyond January 2025, you will need to recertify early next year, or you must discontinue using them on your websites and in your promotional materials.

The AitW Website Events Calendar

If you are an Alum who is offering an Awake in the Wild program, you are welcome to submit a request to have your event listed on the Awake in the Wild website in the Join Us Live calendar section of the website. You must submit your events at least 4 weeks prior to the scheduled date of the event – (Please Note: last-minute calendar listing requests will not be honored). If you are ticketing/charging for the event, you must provide a link to where folks can register and/or pay for the event reservation. Feel free to contact me (Gary) through the Alums Portal if you have any questions.

 

Warmly Welcoming You,

Gary Sharlow

AitW Alum – USA Cohort 3