My name is Tracey Johnston, and I am from Scotland. I am of Celtic origin, and I have always lived within my homeland. I grew up in a small village in the central belt of Scotland, surrounded by fields and hills. I now live in a city, close to the city centre but next to a large park. I feel very privileged to be surrounded by nature. Growing up, I had my own patch in the garden and greenhouse, and I felt very rooted in nature. For a while, I felt separate from nature when I went to university and started living in a big city. However, through having children, I reconnected as I watched my children be in awe of nature around them. I have three children who have retaught me the wonder of nature through children’s eyes. I am very grateful for that.
I am involved as a guest editor in a special edition for a family therapy journal, ANZJFT, on ‘Kinship Indigenous worldview and Oral Traditions informed Systemic Practice’. Through reading the indigenous Worldview by Darcia Narvaez and Four Arrows, I became more aware of Darcia’s work on The Evolved Nest. This work made so much sense to me, and it fitted so much with my worldview and what I aspire to do in my day-to-day life, both personally and professionally.
My professional background started in Social work and has then continued to Systemic Psychotherapy. In the past, I worked with children who had not had the most nurturing start in life. Much of my work was in child protection and also offering parenting programmes to educate and support families in looking after their children.
I now work in independent practice, and I work with individuals, children, parents, couples, and families.
Going forward, I am interested in spreading the word about the importance of the Evolved Nest within my professional context in Systemic Psychotherapy. Therefore, my special project is to target layers of the system in the Systemic Psychotherapy world, through podcasts, writing and presentations on the relevance of the Nested World to enhancing Systemic Psychotherapy practice. My colleague and I are presenting on the Indigenous Worldview and Evolved Nest at the Family Therapy World Congress in Bergen, and we have a number of plans to write further within our professional context.
Please see the link for next year’s IFTA World Congress below.
Tracey’s Statement of Impact on Great Nonprofits
“I have been deeply moved and feel more connected as a result of being part of the Evolved Nest initiative with Darcia Narvaez and Lisa Reagan. Their work through the Evolved Nest and Kindred world has inspired me to live differently and seek to build community in every opportunity. I have learned a great deal about their research, and it has also challenged me to share this knowledge and to spend more time outside, enjoying being part of nature. I am so grateful to you both.”