Dr. Alexia Barrable, University of Dundee
Research & Impact Panellist
Alexia works at the intersection of psychology and education, and in particular outdoor learning and the human-nature interactions in educational settings and beyond. She is currently exploring how different experiences and pedagogical approaches can promote (or hinder) nature connection in children. She is also interested in the promotion of mental health and wellbeing across the life span, through interactions with the natural world.
Patrick Boxall, Educator and researcher, QMU
Research & Impact Panellist
Patrick Boxall is an educator and researcher with primary interests in how critical and creative pedagogies can forward human and eco-centred conceptions of social justice. At QMU he is Project Lead for the creation of the Outdoor Learning Hub. The hub will be a centre for learning, professional development and community activity. He is also engaged in research towards a PhD by publication, that will focus on the importance of creative pedagogy in outdoor learning as enacted by leaders and practitioners.
He also trained as a Forest School leader and initiated the Forest College at Newbattle Abbey College in Midlothian, developing and writing the Forest and Outdoor Learning Awards. He has worked with a range of national and community partners to support lifelong learning outdoors.
Dr. Mariana Brussoni, Human Early Learning Project and University of British Columbia
Keynote speaker: Risky and Adventurous Play
Dr. Mariana Brussoni is a developmental psychologist, Director of the Human Early Learning Partnership and Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics and the School of Population and Public Health at the University of British Columbia. She is an investigator with the British Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute and the British Columbia Injury Research & Prevention Unit. Mariana is on the leadership group of Outdoor Play Canada. Her award-winning research investigates child injury prevention and children’s risky play, focusing on parents’ and educators’ perceptions of risk, and design of outdoor play-friendly environments.
Dr. Bevelie Dietze
Keynote speaker: Quality Outdoor Experiences
Dr. Beverlie Dietze is the Director of Learning and Applied Research at Okanagan College in British Columbia, Canada. She is the author of seven textbooks and many peer reviewed articles on early childhood education, with a particular emphasis on outdoor pedagogy. She is the publisher of the Canadian Play Outdoors magazine.
Samantha Friedman
Keynote Speaker: Connection to Nature
Samantha Friedman is a PhD candidate in the Centre for Family Research and Department of Psychology at the University of Cambridge. She is a qualified Forest School leader and is interested in how nature can be used to support mental health. Samantha’s PhD focuses on the impact of nature and nature-based learning methods on wellbeing in autistic children and adults across the life course.
Robert Kennedy
Keynote speaker: Risky and Adventurous Play
Robert Kennedy is one of the founders of Baltic Street Adventure Playground. Born and bred in the east end of Glasgow Robert is a champion for play in Scotland with the playground providing a vital play opportunity for local children and those farther afield. In an average year up to 21,000 children attend the Adventure playground. Since the pandemic the playground has also operated as a food hub, feeding the local community free of charge.
Henry Mathias
Keynote speaker: Quality Outdoor Experiences and Chair of Growing the Ambition Panel
Henry Mathias is Head of Professional Standards and Practice, Care Inspectorate
Henry has been instrumental in changing inspection culture and busting myths about risky play. This has involved producing a range of practice resources, such as ‘My World Outdoors’, ‘Our Creative Journey’ and ‘Gender Equal Play’. More recently he led the review of the Health & Social Care Standards for Scottish Government, which state “As a child, I play outdoors every day and regularly explore a natural environment.”
As an influential early years leader, he has been instrumental in changing the culture of regulation from measuring compliance with provider inputs to assessing and improving experiences of children.
Deborah Meechan, Lecturer: Early Years and Childcare. Glasgow Clyde College
Growing the Ambition Panellist
Deborah’s career in Early Learning and Childcare spans over 30 years. Originally working as an early years practitioner in a number of settings in Glasgow and Sydney, Australia.
Having spent 22 years teaching and training in early years, Deborah qualified as a Forest Kindergarten Trainer and Forest School Leader in 2019 and delivers both of these approaches to students and practitioners in early learning and childcare.
Dr Paul McCrorie
Research & Impact Panellist
Dr Paul McCrorie is a Research Fellow at the Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, Institute for Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow. His primary research relates to understanding how our physical, natural, and social environment impacts children’s health, wellbeing, and inequalities therein. Dr Paul McCrorie is co-leading (alongside Dr Anne Martin) a program of research evaluating the impact of outdoor and nature-based play and learning on the health and wellbeing of children, families and communities.
Gordon McLean
Keynote Speaker: Connection to Nature
Gordon McLean is the Early Years & Parenting Officer at Learning through Landscapes Scotland and leads their Early Years project, Nurturing Nature.
This is where parents, children and nursery practitioners are taken to areas of local greenspace to engage with nature, develop relationships and enjoy some proper play. Some of the favourite activities enjoyed are tree climbing, making rope swings, learning about and using fire, and getting covered in mud! Gordon also delivers the SQA Forest Kindergarten course and enjoys leading training sessions with groups of practitioners and teachers.
Andrew Shoolbread
Growing the Ambition Panellist
Andrew Shoolbread MA(Hons) MSc MEd PgAdvDip is the Policy and Research Manager with the Scottish Out of School Care Network (SOSCN), the national intermediary charitable organisation representing school-age childcare in Scotland. Andrew is a firm believer in the positive power of play to change children’s lives; much of his work focuses on supporting the implementation of the Playwork Principles and UNCRC Article 31: a child’s right to culture, leisure, rest and play in school-age childcare services.
Prior to working with SOSCN Andrew taught English and communication in Japan and Spain. He is also a qualified bookbinder.
Heather Douglas
Growing the Ambition Panellist
Heather Douglas Head of Early Learning & Childcare with Education Services, Glasgow City Council. Heather provides leadership across all of the Council’s nurseries, partner nurseries, early years family support and out of school childcare, which serve over 20,000 children. She has been involved for 30 years in early learning, play and childcare holding a variety of posts across 4 different local authorities, Scottish Government and within the voluntary sector. Heather’s commitment to outdoor provision is longstanding, and the aspiration is that all Glasgow children will be supported to access at least one full day per week of their ELC experience outdoors. She holds a Masters degree from Glasgow University and postgraduate qualifications from Strathclyde University Business School and Jordanhill College of Education.
Growing the Ambition Panellist
Kenny Forsyth is the Chief Executive Officer of Stramash, Scotland’s largest provider of fully outdoor ELC. They have four nurseries: Elgin, Inverness, Fort William and Oban and work with around 300 families per year. His background includes 25 years’ experience in senior executive and non-executive roles across a range of disciplines including public and private sector advisory. Within Early Years sector, he served as a Commissioner on Scotland’s Commission for Childcare Reform, worked with the Scottish Government helping form the 1140 policy, worked with many Scottish Local Authorities and was most recently Delivery Director for Glasgow City Council’s 1140 Childcare expansion. He is interested in the arts and has performed and recorded extensively as a professional musician.
Keynote speaker: Quality Outdoor Experiences
Lynn is Senior Education Officer in the Curriculum Innovation team in Education Scotland and is also completing a part-time EdD exploring the role of the child’s voice in early years policy. She started her career as a teacher of nursery and all stages of primary classes and has experience of teaching across three local authority areas in Scotland. She specialised in early years education, gaining a Masters with Distinction in Early Years Pedagogue from the University of Strathclyde, leading onto work in early years strategic support and development roles at regional and national levels. Lynn has co-authored and illustrated several publications including the current national practice guidance for early years in Scotland – Realising the Ambition: Being Me.
Keynote speaker: Quality Outdoor Experiences
Claire is an educational consultant who has developed her approach to Nature Pedagogy and Child-led inquiry through working in a variety of settings including her own multi award-winning nature kindergarten Auchlone, advisory work, and lecturing in further education. Claire is currently based in Scotland but frequently travels to Australia, the United States and Canada.
Author of over 20 books relating to child led inquiry through Floorbooks and nature-based pedagogies. Claire’s book, Learning with Nature – Embedding Outdoor Practice, was well received and has gained a place as required reading on many academic education courses. In her book Nature Kindergartens and Forest Schools Claire explores children’s connection to nature and naturalistic spaces such as forest schools, forest kindergartens, woodland camps, nature kindergartens.
Chair of Research & Impact Panel
Rachel’s focus throughout her career has been split between economic regeneration and working within the third sector. Until recently she was the National Programme Director for Children’s Neighbourhoods Scotland housed within the University of Glasgow – leading an evidence led, context informed place-based approach focussing on children and young people.
Previously Rachel lead on the design and implementation of the Thrive Outdoors fund at Inspiring Scotland, which focusses on improving childhood health and wellbeing through access to and engagement with our outdoor and natural world. She is a leading voice in helping to change and shape attitudes towards outdoor play and outdoor learning at a national policy level and on the ground, which has gained international recognition and cooperation with similar programmes and leading academics in the field.
Growing the Ambition Panellist
Matt Robinson is Learning through Landscapes Scotland Director. He leads on their Scottish Natural Heritage projects, supporting schools to make better use of local greenspace for learning. He is a qualified teacher and has led outdoor learning in residential centres across Wales, the Peak District and Highlands. He is responsible for Learning through Landscapes’ UK wide training offer, supporting risk management systems and being the office geek for social media and newsletters. He leads a variety of training from early years, primary and secondary, (both short twilights and INSET’s) through to long term, higher-level courses. In his spare time he is a keen cyclist and sailor.
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