Natalia Brightwood

Natalia Brightwood is an Environmental Educator and Mentor who has dedicated her life and career to Wilderness Protection and Education, with a passion for guiding and mentoring personal connections to the Earth.

Natalia began learning about wild edible plants, the magic of the outdoors, all the creatures and the fae who live there, as a young girl with her grandmother in Suquamish, Washington. It was through her grandmother that a strong connection with wild places inspired her and opened the door to her life’s work.

Natalia studied environmental Biology, Chemistry, and Geology of the Pacific Northwest and began work as an activist for the Washington Wilderness Coalition.

Motherhood fostered a realization that something was missing from the education of our youth. Natalia studied to become an Environmental Educator at Trackers Earth in Portland, Oregon, worked with Tracks and Tales in Duvall, Washington, and Adventure Quest in Bellingham, Washington.

Versed in Coyote Mentoring through the Wilderness Awareness School, she founded WildWise – A School of Outdoor Adventure, and has been teaching and mentoring children and young adults for fourteen years.

She is a Wilderness First Responder, formally trained in Tidelands to Timberline Natural History, and Restoring Rites of Passage for Youth.

Natalia is also a Land Steward with the Jefferson Land Trust.

Natalia’s hobbies include Herbalism, Ancestral Studies, Anthropology, Activism, Hiking and Camping, Backpacking, Pathfinder Gaming, Rites of Passage, Cultural Reclamation, and spending time with her family. She is married, a mother of three, and lives in Kingston, Washington.

Natalia hopes to always continue learning, and one day be the world’s most awesome Grandma.