• Immersive programme for professionals, including therapists

  • Led by an experienced psychotherapist, including outdoor activity

  • Mind Environment programme in Languedoc, France, October 9 – 13


Mind Environment is a three-day, four-night immersive experiential programme for professionals who want to explore their purpose in the world, set in a hidden village in the mountains of Southern France. 

Designed and led by an experienced psychotherapist and leadership consultant, Mind Environment takes place in Bardou, a remote 16th Century mountain village that’s a world of its own, free from modern distractions.

This programme might interest you if you are exploring your purpose in the world for some of the following reasons: 

  • You are at a life transition point and looking for a new challenge
  • You want to better understand the choices that will inform the next phase of your life
  • You are wondering how to contribute to making the world a better place. 

Surrounded by the stunning wilderness of the Parc Naturel du Haut Languedoc, Bardou provides a thought-provoking setting to explore interactions between individual, community, and natural world. With these three realms in mind, over the course of three days and four nights of pared-back mountain living, and through a combination of facilitated group discussions and outdoor activities, the Mind Environment programme provides layered opportunities for you to explore:  

  • How you function, and the choices you make
  • The forces that shape your interactions with others
  • Your purpose and direction in the world, and how you might contribute to making it a better place



The programme in more detail

Most days will start with an early morning outdoor activity guided by the programme’s Outdoor Activity Leader, such as hiking at sunrise, or gathering firewood. 

After breakfast, we will begin the psychological group process, which is led by an experienced psychologist and leadership consultant, who will attempt to draw the most out of the discussions. As well as dialogue, this process will include other techniques such as drawing, Active Imagination and meditation, that are designed to access your inner psychological environment. Outdoor activities, meanwhile, are intended to feed into what is discovered in the group process, by bringing the natural environment back into mind.

After lunch, alongside the group process, most afternoons will feature another outdoor activity, such as helping to rebuild Bardou’s paths, working with trees, or baking bread in the village’s 16th Century wood-fired oven. The day ends with an evening meal and then free time to relax and contemplate around a fire. 

Each day is guided by a theme: 

Day 1: Where – and who – am I in my life, and what are the below the surface forces that influence my situation? 

Day 2: What can being in this group teach me about how I operate in the world? 

Day 3: Revisiting my purpose: what would I like to do with what I’ve learned? 

On the third day, you will be encouraged to develop your purpose map – a distillation of your thoughts about how to apply what you’ve learned. This may be a personal statement of intent, very simple in its contours. Or it could be a more ambitious collaborative exercise involving other Mind Environment participants. 

On the final evening, there will be a special dinner to mark the end of the programme.


What to do next

We’re approaching this, our first programme with a workshop mindset, and ask that participants give us honest feedback that we can use to hone the programme. We’re hoping this approach might be of interest to psychotherapists, counsellors, coaches and consultants, or anyone who is curious to learn more about how they operate in the world. 

In recognition of your contribution, the team are working pro bono, so that we can reduce the cost of participation down to £450, which covers the cost of accommodation and meals. Programmes in spring 2020 start at £2,650, so this is a unique opportunity. 

Please note that we have very limited space on the October programme, so please do register your interest soon if you would like to take part. 

For more information, visit our website, where you can download a brochure, application form and booking form.