“I was very anxious about attending camp because I didn’t want to share my story with total strangers, have emotional moments, and dwell on my past. Here there are no stories.
We learn how to center and care for ourselves and each other.” – B.K. 2015
What does trauma-informed mean?
Trauma-informed programming acknowledges that our participants are individuals with trauma histories. Our staff members are trained and prepared to recognize the presence of trauma symptoms, honor the role that trauma has played in our participants’ lives, and provide appropriate non-clinical support in the event that a participant gets triggered.
Our program design and operation is grounded in the following six principles outlined by the National Center for Trauma-Informed Care:
Our program design and operation is grounded in the following six principles outlined by the National Center for Trauma-Informed Care:
- Safety
- Trustworthiness and Transparency
- Peer Support
- Collaboration and Mutuality
- Empowerment, Voice, and Choice
- Cultural, Historical, and Gender Sensitivity
What is ecotherapy?
Ecotherapy is an umbrella term that includes a wide array of nature-based healing modalities — both clinical and non-clinical — such as outdoor meditations, gardening therapy, and any type of approach that connects an individual to the healing resources in the natural environment.
Ecotherapy supports a holistic approach to healing and recognizes that mind, body, and spirit are all part of an interconnected “ecological system” that we call the human being, and that human beings are not separate, but rather part of the natural world.
Ecotherapy supports a holistic approach to healing and recognizes that mind, body, and spirit are all part of an interconnected “ecological system” that we call the human being, and that human beings are not separate, but rather part of the natural world.
How do I sign up for a program?
Because our programs are in high demand and intentionally designed as “small group” experiences (12 participants max), individuals interested in attending a program should choose the appropriate program below and submit an application by the deadline stated on that program’s page.
Selected applicants will be notified of their acceptance via phone and/or email by the date listed on the application. Whereas survivors will not be charged to attend, it costs $900 per participant to offer a program, and the efficacy of our programs partially depends upon having every space filled. Therefore, accepted applicants will be asked to provide a refundable $100 attendance commitment deposit to secure their space. The deposit will be fully refunded upon completion of the program. If this amount poses a financial burden, we will work with survivors individually to prevent money from being a barrier to participation. In the event the participant cancels less than 7 days prior to camp or no-shows, the deposit will be forfeited.
As part of our commitment to reaching underserved populations, three spaces in each program are reserved for those living in the following geographically-isolated areas of Virginia: the Southwest, Southside, Hampton Roads, and Eastern regions.
Selected applicants will be notified of their acceptance via phone and/or email by the date listed on the application. Whereas survivors will not be charged to attend, it costs $900 per participant to offer a program, and the efficacy of our programs partially depends upon having every space filled. Therefore, accepted applicants will be asked to provide a refundable $100 attendance commitment deposit to secure their space. The deposit will be fully refunded upon completion of the program. If this amount poses a financial burden, we will work with survivors individually to prevent money from being a barrier to participation. In the event the participant cancels less than 7 days prior to camp or no-shows, the deposit will be forfeited.
As part of our commitment to reaching underserved populations, three spaces in each program are reserved for those living in the following geographically-isolated areas of Virginia: the Southwest, Southside, Hampton Roads, and Eastern regions.
Our Healing Programs
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For Adult Survivors
of Sexual Violence 
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For Adult Survivors
of Domestic Violence 
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For Professionals
Serving Survivors 
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For Teen Survivors
of Interpersonal Violence 
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Inclusivity Vision
The Center for Earth-Based Healing (CEBH) adheres to a vision that includes the express intention to create a safe container for all survivors of sexual and domestic violence, so that each participant can experience our healing programs regardless of race, gender, gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, age, religious/spiritual beliefs, physical ability, immigration status, financial status, or any other “cultural category.” The unique challenge this poses for CEBH is that our programs are intentionally designed as small group experiences where staff and participants share living and sleeping spaces (e.g., 4 participants per bunk room). This arrangement creates tension between CEBH’s commitment to serve all survivors while also respecting the “cultural, historical and gender sensitivity” of each participant. We incorporate that respect for sensitivity in our program design as one of six trauma-informed guidelines recognized by the National Center for Trauma-Informed Care.
Our first priority in all programming is to create a sense of safety for participants. In part, that sense of safety grows out of the rare opportunity participants receive in our programs to connect with other survivors “like them.” Therefore, our vision will gradually expand to include healing spaces for specific populations each year, in order to meet the needs of all survivors, while at the same time empowering each survivor to bring her/his own beliefs to their CEBH experience.
For example, our camp designed for survivors of sexual violence may be offered for cisgender women one year (biologically-born women whose gender identity matches their biological sex) and transgender women the following year (biologically born men whose gender identity is female, but whose outward expression of their gender identity could be expressed anywhere along the spectrum of “living full-time as a woman” to “appearing outwardly as a man yet still identifying as a woman”).
The Center for Earth-Based Healing is actively exploring the best ways to honor all survivors. We recognize that bringing this Inclusivity Vision to reality will require time, resources, and additional staff training. CEBH shares this intention as a first step towards making the Vision concrete, and because we hope that no survivor ever has to ask, “Am I truly welcome here?”—as all survivors are honored and welcomed in our programs.
Our first priority in all programming is to create a sense of safety for participants. In part, that sense of safety grows out of the rare opportunity participants receive in our programs to connect with other survivors “like them.” Therefore, our vision will gradually expand to include healing spaces for specific populations each year, in order to meet the needs of all survivors, while at the same time empowering each survivor to bring her/his own beliefs to their CEBH experience.
For example, our camp designed for survivors of sexual violence may be offered for cisgender women one year (biologically-born women whose gender identity matches their biological sex) and transgender women the following year (biologically born men whose gender identity is female, but whose outward expression of their gender identity could be expressed anywhere along the spectrum of “living full-time as a woman” to “appearing outwardly as a man yet still identifying as a woman”).
The Center for Earth-Based Healing is actively exploring the best ways to honor all survivors. We recognize that bringing this Inclusivity Vision to reality will require time, resources, and additional staff training. CEBH shares this intention as a first step towards making the Vision concrete, and because we hope that no survivor ever has to ask, “Am I truly welcome here?”—as all survivors are honored and welcomed in our programs.
How You Can Support Survivors
The Center for Earth-Based Healing spends $900 per survivor per program, and we need your support to continue offering our healing camps. Survivors are never charged to attend because we believe a lack of financial resources should never be a barrier to healing. We are a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, making your contribution tax-deductible. Please consider sponsoring a survivor at a level that suits your financial situation, or see our in-kind donation list on the DONATE page. Thank you for your generosity.
You will be taken to an external website to make your donation. Please list CEBH of AIWP in the Comments box.