Next Steps
Thank you for being a part of International Nature Journaling Week 2024!
International Nature Journaling Week has been a chance to celebrate nature journaling as a worldwide community. We creatively captured our observations of the cycles of life in countries all across the world!
Revisit the INJW resources
The resources on this website will remain here for you to explore. You can go back to this year’s program or find all the videos, prompts and events from previous years. To find more nature journaling inspiration, visit the Books and Inspiration page. You can also read the posts on the Blog and follow the links of the authors you enjoyed.
Connecting with community
Being part of a nature journaling community, either online or in person, can help everyone learn and grow together. The biggest online nature journaling community is The Nature Journal Club. It is a Facebook group which is a diverse group of artists and naturalists who meet together to connect to nature through art. This community is a great place to find like-minded nature journalers who will support you in your journey.
Joining an in-person nature journaling group can be an amazing experience. Sitting in nature with others and exploring the world brings community, connection and mutual support. Have a look at this map of nature journaling clubs around the world: Find a nature journal club near you. If you can’t find a nature journaling club near you, start one! This is what was done by Cati Vawda, Thembani Luthuli and Mbali Zulu who started Nature Journal South Africa, and Eriko Kobayashi, who started the Japan Nature Journal Club. You can read Eriko’s story on the blog post entitled ‘Why I started a nature journal club’.
Find, or become, a mentor
Finding a nature journaling mentor or teacher can also be a useful experience. John Muir Laws has compiled a list of nature journaling teachers and mentors around the world. It is important to remember that we can ALL be nature journaling mentors for each other, even if we are just starting out. John Muir Laws explains how and why in his moving presentation below:
Keep learning
The Wild Wonder Foundation is dedicated to encouraging nature connection and conservation through attention, curiosity, art, science, and community.
They strive to make nature and nature journaling accessible to everyone by sponsoring the annual Wild Wonder Nature Journaling Conference as well as other events, educational workshops, field trips, teacher trainings, retreats, exhibits, grants, and other activities and projects in support of their mission.
This organization is the direct result of 35+ years of dedicated work by author John Muir Laws to create, nurture, and grow a diverse, worldwide nature journaling community through his legendary generosity, enthusiastic teaching, and boundless energy and joy.
There are many opportunities to continue learning about nature journaling, through the Wild Wonder Foundation. Check out the Nature Journal Educators Workshop, the up-coming Wild Wonder Nature Journaling Conference and the Wild Wonder Community Calendar where you will find regular workshops and events.
The Wild Wonder Foundation have recently launched Your Quick Start Guide to Nature Journaling, a handy zine covering everything you need to start nature journaling. You can download and print this to carry with you in your journaling kit or give copies to others who are curious about nature journaling. Click here to lear more and to download the zine.
Listen for inspiration
In curating the blog for INJW, with all the wonderful insights from nature journalers across the globe, Bethan Burton (Journaling With Nature) has been deeply moved by the stories and inspired to learn more. This has sparked the idea to create Journaling With Nature Podcast which features interviews with nature journalers, going deeper into their work, passion and nature connection. Listen here.
Nature journaling on YouTube
You can find a lot of nature journaling inspiration on YouTube. There are several people in the nature journaling community who have active YouTube channels, sharing content to keep you motivated and learning:
Marine biologist, Elizabeth Mills, shares her joyful explorations of marine environments through science and art on her channel Marine Mumbles.
Kim Lapere loves to share her nature journaling adventures, art and tips with an Australian focus. Follow along at Kim’s Nature Journaling Adventures.
Bethan Burton shares videos about INJW, as well as nature journaling workshops and livestreams about creative play. Visit the Journaling With Nature channel.
Alex Boon shares regular nature journaling vlogs, tips, and tutorials on his Alex Boon Art channel.
Marley Peifer shares interesting, informative and fun videos every week on his channel The Nature Journal Show.
Julia Bausenhardt has a very active channel where she regularly shares tutorials for nature painting in watercolour and gouache.
Kuniko Kikuchi posts nature journaling tutorials, sketch videos and nature journal flip-throughs on her channel
自然を描こう!チャンネル (Let's draw nature!).
Johanna Fiorere shares nature journaling videos with a dreamy, vintage aesthetic on her channel Eumycota.
John Muir Laws has a huge number of videos on his channel which will help you go deeper with every aspect of nature journaling.
Nature journaling courses and workshops
Many nature journaling teachers around the world offer in-person workshops. You can find a list of nature journaling teachers here. For online learning, here are a few suggestions for nature journaling courses and workshops you can do at home:
Alex Boon has a nature journaling course for beginners called "How to Start a Nature Journal", focused on making nature journaling accessible for anyone to begin. He also runs the Nature Journaling Circle free online community and has online and in-person workshops listed on his website.
Artist Liz Clayton Fuller has a comprehensive nature journaling course called ‘Nature Journaling and Field Sketching’ offered online through The Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
Julia Bausenhardt has many courses on her website on different aspects of nature journaling. These are also offered through Skillshare.
Johanna Fiorere has two classes on Skillshare, ‘Introduction to Nature Journaling’ and ‘Creating a Mushroom Illustration Using Watercolour & Gouache’.
Kelly Johnson from Wings Worms and Wonder has many workshops and classes on nature journaling and nature art.