WISE WORDS
SIMON HARRIS
FOUNDER OF FOOTPRINTS AUSTRALIA I was born in Nottingham in the UK and now live on a farm with my partner in a tiny place called Salem in South Australia. I wake up every day and look outside at the fields, wondering how did I end up here? We’re doing a lot of work re-wilding on the farm but also many wild areas around where we live that really need conserving. On the farm, we have an irrigated intensive native seed orchard and a couple of paddocks full of native grasses that we’ll harvest seeds to re-wild a 300-hectare parcel of degraded crown land. I love running on the trails at a beautiful spot called Monarto Woodlands. Where I live is fairly isolated so I never see another soul whilst out running and I love that so much. Even on these same trails, things look different depending on the season, time of day and weather conditions. I just like to go there to enjoy my running. It’s the time in my day when I feel the most free. There is nothing else you need to do or worry about, and I absorb myself in the activity and surroundings. I stay away from anything that tries to direct my attention towards things that are not really important. Things like Strava, I just don’t use, and I’m not big on social media. One thing that drives and motivates me is getting people into nature. I’ve seen the power of connecting runners to wild places that need protecting so they can understand what needs protecting but more importantly realise their own power and agency to do something about it. Over the years, I’ve experienced and seen the power and motivation that these runners have when they unite to protect the environment. Runners are natural allies 98
of the environment and I feel so lucky and excited to be a part of this community. I also feel lucky to be surrounded by my trail running community; they’re a bunch of active, motivated and gifted humans who make the world a better place in their own way.
way to create action on important issues than sharing your goals with like-minded people and collaborating to find solutions.
So what is Footprints? Footprints is a climate action camp for trail runners and walkers. The premise is pretty simple: 15 exceptional people come together for five days in the Central Highlands of Victoria to bond, develop environmental knowledge and leadership skills, and connect participants with grassroots organisations and localised projects that are active in conserving and protecting these wild lands.
Outside of Footprints and on a personal
Campers are challenged, have fun, advance climate solutions through the development of their own projects, and eat delicious home-cooked food whilst working closely with world-class mentors and inspirational speakers such as Blake Hose, Majell Backhausen, Erchana Murray-Barlett and Beau Miles. The goal is for campers to be inspired by what they can do and to come away feeling prepared to take action on climate change. The camps provide inspiration, know-how and confidence to be effective climate action leaders.
Moab which I love!
We want runners to bring their ideas, initiatives, and projects to the camp for development to contribute to the ongoing campaigns to protect an additional 355,000 hectares of native forest through the Great Forest National Park Proposal. Footprints camp is dedicated to the idea that we all benefit from a healthy environment. Creating space in the wild for runners to build and strengthen connections – there’s no better
level, I’d love to run the Zion Traverse in the US. It’s an epic long run through an incredibly diverse landscape that cuts through scenic canyons tucked between towering sandstone cliffs. Apparently, the route drops from nearly 3000 metres to less than 1000 metres, with an epic change in the vegetation from a lush environment to sandy desert. Plus it’s next to
My absolute go-to meal after an event has to be a Sunday dinner, UK-style with all the trimmings – Yorkshire puddings, roast potatoes, nut roast, mash potato, roast turnips and peas – omg, yum! And if that’s not enough, a large packet of salt and vinegar chips. I know it sounds cliché, but nature has taught me that the ‘best things in life truly are free’ (queue Janet Jackson and Luther Jackson). When I think about most of my treasured memories, all of them are in nature or the outdoors with people I love! I think people are feeling immense overwhelm at the moment and often some of the simplest things and joys are overlooked and not given any credit. For me, one way I deal with the overwhelming is to get out into nature as often as I can – it costs nothing!
