Sanne de Roij, 30, personal leadership facilitator/coach
Her belief about the power of nature is simple: "In nature it's pure, so you and I, become pure. There's so much less distraction. What remains is what really matters. I believe nature shows us who we really are."
What she sees happening, often after some initial resistance, is that people start to connect. Moving through nature together means you are already sharing an experience, which makes it easier to open up and share something more personal. In that exchange, new insights can arise. Nature creates the space to pause for a moment, look at yourself and reflect on the direction your life is taking.
One experience that has stayed with Sanne was a six-day Personal Leadership trek she guided for MyQuest, with a group of young people from the Netherlands and Nepal. Together, they headed into the mountains, taking on both a physical and social challenge. Their phones stayed at home, along with much of what was familiar to them. "Over the course of those days, I saw the connection between the different nationalities grow, despite the language barrier," Sanne says.
What impressed her most, however, was watching the young people gradually open up and become more confident in who they were. They stopped simply following the group and started making their own choices. Some took the lead, while others found the courage to speak openly about what they wanted from life. "Police officer. Psychologist. Flight attendant. Lawyer," Sanne recalls. These were the dreams they began to say out loud. "I was impressed by how everyone grew in their ability to connect with themselves and, from there, really determine their own direction. Full of confidence and strength."
Space is a key word for Sanne. "When there's so much space around you, there's also more room to think and see things differently," she says. She also believes strongly in the metaphors that nature offers. A mountain, a winding path or the effort it takes to keep walking can become a way of looking at something in your own life. And because people experience those metaphors themselves, they often stay with them long after a programme or session has ended.
For Sanne, this is particularly relevant for young people growing up with smartphones and social media. She sees not only less face-to-face connection and more loneliness, but also increasing pressure to be successful. Social media constantly presents different versions of what a successful life can look like, making it easy to compare yourself with others. Nature offers a chance to step away from that noise and return to more fundamental questions: Who am I? What do I enjoy? What am I passionate about? What am I naturally good at? And where do I want to make a difference?
From there, Sanne believes, young people can return to the world with greater self-confidence and a clearer sense of direction. Her favourite format reflects that belief in simplicity. "I'm also learning more and more that less is needed," she says. Her ideal experience is to walk for several days, at least three, carrying everything you need in a backpack, sleeping in a tent and leaving your phone behind.
"You don't need much. Nature, the journey, does the work by itself."
Check out Sanne’s work at: