Updated October 2025 

The mission of Nature Sacred is to provide the opportunity for a deeper human experience by inspiring and supporting the creation of public green spaces that offer a temporary place of sanctuary, encourage reflection, provide solace, and engender peace and well-being. We envision a time when every urban community in the U.S. will provide all people with opportunities for intimate, intentional daily doses of nearby urban nature through the creation of a system of nature spaces.  

 

Nature Sacred’s Commitment  

Fostering belonging in Nature 

We believe that nature is a right that should be afforded to every individual — like air to breathe and water to drink — we need nature to thrive. It is through nature, the act of reconnecting with it, that we can realize healthier, safer and more inclusive societies. 

However, the reality exists that for centuries nature has not been easily accessible or a sanctuary for all people. 

If this is to change, we realize that we all need to do more. At Nature Sacred we are committed to using our approach to healing centered engagement to build a sense of true belonging in nature.  

By supporting the creation of green spaces that are not only open, but are designed by the communities they serve – to honor culture, reflect local identity, and ensure each of these Sacred Places feels safe, welcoming, and authentically representative of the beauty of these communities. 

By cultivating a growing network of green space stewards – Firesouls – who support each other, share learnings, and lead with empathy, creating a ripple effect of care across neighborhoods and cities.  

By supporting these stewards with a trust-based philanthropic approach that affirms the wisdom and leadership of those community leaders, and ensuring they have the resources and flexibility they need to thrive. 

By humbly and continually examining our business practices – from hiring to purchasing to the experts we engage. We share our successes, hold ourselves accountable where we fall short, and embrace an ongoing commitment to practice this work for our community, our Board, our members, and our own staff.   

We will continue to work toward a world of belonging, unity, and peace; one where every person has access to quiet, contemplative nature spaces. We are continuing to learn, improve, and as always, we remain open. 

Going Deeper 

How we use our approach to healing-centered engagement to cultivate belonging in nature. 

We offer Sacred Places as sanctuaries for healing. Through the shared vision of the communities they serve, they are designed with the intention of healing. Through the Firesouls activation of these sites with programs and events that resonate with the unique cultures they celebrate – Sacred Places become hubs for collective healing. 

Healing-centered engagement (HCE) as described Shawn Ginwright, PhD in his book The Four Pivots: Reimagining Justice. Reimagining Ourselves is a holistic approach to well-being that emphasizes the importance of culture and community in healing from trauma.  

HCE expands beyond traditional mental health models by integrating cultural practices, spirituality, civic action, and collective healing into its framework. Rather than focusing solely on individual recovery, HCE aims to foster resilience and repair within communities, emphasizing the role of culture in promoting overall well-being. Ginwright’s model challenges the notion of trauma as purely personal, advocating instead for a broader, more inclusive approach to healing. 

After more than 2 decades of working to foster moments of beauty, peace, tranquility, and true human connection in nature this terminology deeply resonated with us. We have been witness to how transformative relationships can yield transformative landscapes and communities and we are grateful to Ginwright for giving name to an approach we seek to embody at Nature Sacred. 

How does this show up in our work: 

1) In Nature Sacred’s processes with communities to create and maintain Sacred Places.  

• Nature Sacred’s process intends to create spaces that are built for and by the communities they serve; welcoming to all and reflective of place, story and culture to allow belonging and inclusion to flourish.   

• To ensure that communities can authentically share their thoughts and insights, we begin with a Firesoul. Firesouls are community catalysts, who possess the spark and drive to make the community a better place, through nature. They are enmeshed in their community or workplace – familiar with its story, culture and unique challenges. They provide the essential invitation for our design team to partner with their community and create a safe space for a truly visionary and honest design process. 

• Nature Sacred does not make design decisions but facilitates partnership between Firesouls and landscape architects and designers to lead their community through designing inclusive spaces that encourage equitable use. The community, not Nature Sacred, becomes the client of the landscape architect/designer and their voice is centered in this process. 

• The Nature Sacred Charette process is uniquely crafted to champion community input and care, by providing a platform for diverse perspectives to be listened to, centered, and implemented in the ultimate Sacred Place design. This creates opportunities for healing in and across communities.   

• The Nature Sacred design process aims to provide a safe place for diverse perspectives to come together in the common goal of green space design. It often facilitates otherwise contentious discussions, elevates historical truths, and infuses community pride.   

2) In Nature Sacred’s Firesoul Network.   

• Every garden needs tending, just as people do. In Sacred Places, Firesouls are caretakers of the land and stewards of healing. They ensure that these natural sanctuaries are maintained and activated so that visitors feel welcome. While they face challenges in their role, they meet them with a spark of hope and passion for their communities. 

• The Firesoul Network brings these stewards together, fostering this community of peers. Through education sessions, inspirational speakers, career development tools, and both virtual and in-person gatherings, Firesouls have the opportunity to share, learn, and grow. Here, they acquire the tools and strategies needed to nurture their communities and Sacred Places. 

• Firesouls are bound by a shared purpose that transcends geography and background. What began as a network has become a living community — one that bridges differences, and cultivates connection and healing across distance and experiences. 

• Next generation Firesouls are typically selected by the outgoing Firesoul or other stakeholders in the Sacred Place to ensure that the next generation Firesouls have the characteristics to inspire inclusion and cooperation. They are oriented and mentored in their important role by Nature Sacred and current members of the Firesoul Network.   

• The Firesoul Network provides long term funding support for Sacred Places through enrichment and enhancement grants, so that Firesouls can bring free programs and activities to their site, or address key repairs or enhancements needed. We take a trust based philanthropic approach to this grant making to ensure that community driven activities and programs are realized in these sites. 

 3) In the Sacred Places themselves.  

• No Sacred Place “belongs to” Nature Sacred. We work with communities interested in creating Sacred Places that are community-led and which are open and accessible for all to use.    

• Each space embodies:   

• Open. Physically open and accessible to visitors regardless of race, ability, creed, background or beliefs — all are welcome.   

• Nearby. Located within the neighborhood it serves — close by.  

• Sacred. Designed to bring respite, encourage mindful reflection, engender peace.  

• Community-led. Built for and by the community it serves, reflective of place, story and culture.  

• Responding to the human need for a cohesive structure in landscapes, we design all Sacred Places with a clear flow of circulation using four key design features – an entry portal, a guiding path, a sense of surround, and a central destination that evokes awe. A fifth design feature, present in every Sacred Place, is the Nature Sacred Bench and Journal, which invite ongoing reflection and connection. Through shared reflections, visitors find healing and a sense of community in contrast to the isolation of modern life.