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ABOUT
The Founder
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Hi, my name is Connor Hwang and I founded The Wilderness for Wellness Project. I am currently a rising junior at the Lawrenceville School. Previously, I lived in Hong Kong, where I started my journey of Boy Scouts. That path led me to become an Eagle Scout in January of 2024. I am an active member of my school’s Wellness Council. I decided to combine two sections in my life to come up with this organization. My goal is to bring awareness, especially to adolescents, about the benefits of taking time in nature when having issues with mental health.
Our Mission
The Wilderness for Wellness Project is a student-led organization committed to spread awareness about the benefits of therapy based in nature. Our organization is driven by the belief that spending time in the wild, paired with learning and practicing survival skills, can profoundly enhance individual well-being and promote mental resilience. I have experienced and researched the effects that being in the wilderness can bring to one’s wellness. During the pandemic, I dealt with loneliness and depression, likewise to many other teenagers at the time. When I turned to nature and skills learned through Boy Scouts, my wellness improved. This journey ignited a curiosity to delve deeper into the correlation between mental health and wilderness experiences, leading to the inception of Wilderness for Wellness.
With this experience, The Wilderness for Wellness Project is motivated to enable adolescents with mental health issues to manage their problems in a universally available way. By doing so, we hope to provide participants with opportunities to not only learn practical survival techniques but also to find therapy in nature. We have developed presentations and findings on how to better one’s mental health, drawing from research such as Friluftsterapi and Wilderness Adventure Therapy. Through these presentations, we hope to convey the importance of reconnecting with nature and inspire individuals to embrace the wilderness as a source of healing and growth.
We believe The Wilderness for Wellness Project is needed now more than ever in societies where mental health issues and disconnection from nature have been rising in rates. By providing accessible opportunities for individuals to be in touch with nature and learn essential survival skills, we hope to develop a culture of resilience, self-reliance, and holistic well-being. Together, we hope to adventure on a journey of empowerment in the wilderness.