*New* The Cosmology of the Andean Shaman 

Transformational Ecopsychology: Earth-Based Practices

Ecopsychology education incorporates spirituality into psychologyIf you are interested in a degree in ecopsychology, consider Southwestern’s certificate program in Transformational Ecopsychology (TEP). This program uses ecotherapy, transpersonal and depth psychology, transformational learning, indigenous healing traditions, wilderness rites of passage/vision quest, and other earth-based healing modalities. Together they form a wellspring of knowledge and nourishment for the helping professional who wishes to incorporate soul-centered, earth-based practices into the mental health field.

The program offers an opportunity for the student to discover, both intellectually and experientially, what it means to assist self and others in accessing the soul’s connection with Nature as a transcendent source of healing, wisdom, and creativity, and to birth this connection into compassionate service and aliveness in everyday life.

The TEP program will allow the student seeking certification to draw upon many rich resources of study and experience in developing professional expertise as an eco-therapist for the soul centered individuation process of their clients. Students may be current masters candidates, mental health professionals seeking CEUs, and members of the community interested in the field.

Courses offered quarterly provide the student with direct experience and practice of earth-based healing modalities, including shamanic techniques, medicine wheel as a map for healing, the way of council, self-generated ceremony, and rites of passage/vision quest. Leadership skills in rites of passage/vision quest can be acquired by co-leading a vision quest with the program director, Carol Parker, PhD., LPCC.

Earth-based healing in ecotherapy and ecopsychology Achieving Certification
A total of 200 hours in the training and classroom modules is required for the certificate in Transformational Ecopsychology. There are required courses for certification with a number of additional coursework offered during the year to augment the studies and earn hours to achieve certification.

Required Coursework
1. Vision Quest – 60 contact hours/3 Units/CEUs
2. Facilitation Skills for the Transformational Eco-Therapist

Other Coursework
May include “Reunification of Ancestral Thought”, “Pipemaking with the Lakota” “Psychopathology based on the Medicine Wheel” “Exploring the Goddess Within” and more. TEP courses will be designated in the quarterly course schedule and are 20 or 30 contact hours.

Enrollment in the Certificate Program is not required for participation in a designated TEP class. Students may choose to attend 3 courses in the program prior to submitting an application. To apply for the program, find out more from the Admissions Office.

Vision Quest Experiences

"The Vision Quest was the most important decision I've made in my adult years. It offered me an opportunity to get to know myself at an even deeper level."

SWC student, Ivy Costello

 


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