Birgit has lived in the Park Ecovillage Findhorn with her daughter Olivia for about seven years and has been involved with the FHT for the last three. She is a valued and important member of the FHT team who enriches our organisation with her smiling face and positive attitude as well as the marketing and design skills she brings from her home country of Austria. What follows is a little bit about her story and involvement. Enjoy!
What inspired your love of nature?
My journey started in my late teenage years when I first discovered hiking in Austria – I was brought up in a small town surrounded by mountains but my parents were not outdoor people so it was only at this older age that I started to engage by sleeping in huts and tents with lots of lakes to swim in. In my early thirties I was then drawn to a wilderness school with all its ancient wisdom much from native american culture. 
We would learn to make fires using a bow and sleep outdoors when it was snowing using a tarp – these were beautiful experiences. Now as a mum it is also really beautiful as when my daughter Olivia was small this gave me many chances to be outdoors with her here in Scotland and do all the fun stuff like collecting, pressing flowers, gathering flower bunches, making leaf prints etc. There is lots of fun stuff for kids to do outdoors and it is great for adults too! This led me to start the Fledglings Group in Wilkies Wood in the Findhorn Hinterland. The initial motivation was to find a way to bring parents together whilst also giving time to let the kids play outdoors. We saw how great this was for the children. Sometimes we organised some activities for them but most of the time they made their own entertainment together. A fire was important as a centre point around which these gatherings would happen. It was about being there and having a commitment to show up in the woods every Friday morning. It was during the time of Covid when all of us particularly needed and greatly appreciated this.
What sort of work were you involved in during your working life?
My background is in marketing and design which I studied in Austria. I worked using these talents and skills with an Austrian company that is involved in furniture design, textiles as well as cosmetics and has very high environmental standards. I still do some work for them which includes marketing, writing sustainability and CO2 balance reports etc. Coming to Findhorn I realised that having both these talents was useful particularly to small organisations that do not have large separate marketing and design departments. My gift here is being able to offer these things in a package – asking questions and then being able to translate needs into a visual design to help market a product. At present I work with both the Phoenix and the Findhorn Hinterland Trust here at the Park Ecovillage Findhorn.
Why did you decide to get involved in the work of the trust and how have you been able to contribute?
My way into the FHT was very organic. It started by living with my family in your house in Bagend on the edge between community and everything that the trust looks after. I started to go to FHT work parties planting trees when Olivia was one. During the pandemic our family decided to take on the Woodland Garden – we were there most days enjoying seeing what was coming up on its own. This came about as I had got to know Ariane Burgess, who is now a Green Scottish MSP, by helping to finish off the Outdoor Learning Space building in the garden so we naturally got involved in the actual gardening. I was inspired by her helping to set up the garden and I wanted to give something back. It is a beautiful place particularly with a child who can then move around freely. Conversations with you followed and I became more aware of what the FHT does. I could see how I might be able to offer something by using my marketing skills to reach out to more people about the beautiful and fulfilling things the trust does. It is so inspiring the large number of things it is involved in which I don’t think most people notice. I think it is often taken for granted that we have these woods, these fire pits and shelters where we can meet. I do not take it for granted, it is very special and I am very grateful for those that started it and the people that come with the energy to volunteer. There is so much knowledge and passion that is being shared by various people. To have some paid work was ideal for me to be able to pay my rent when I split up with my partner so it was a win/win for everyone.
What aspects have you found most satisfying with regards to the FHT work that you have been involved in?
It really satisfies me when I do something and I see the impact it has. For example this spring when we did the fundraiser for the Big Give match funding appeal for the Dune Restoration Project. Coming up with marketing ideas that are a bit different to be able to reach people and come up with enough money to have a big impact in our backyard to save some species that may not have survived otherwise. If I do something really well with good energy there is something that comes in return and results in improving something in the future. Since I am a mum I think this is especially important to me. I was also involved in the design work of the Conservation Hub as part of the team where I found I could help with my skills and gifts. I have experienced how people coming to work parties feel after putting in three hours of work on the land – they connect to land, other people and who is holding the morning. They might gain some insight into what is special on this land, see how everyone can have an impact and learn what goes into caring for land or building a building in a different way.
What would be your high dream for the FHT be if anything was possible?
That it is a strong and solid organisation that has the set up and means to continue to do and expand what it already does so well including inspiring and involving more people. Establishing this as a place that people know that they can come to and find peace, rest and connection. A place where they can contribute as well as just be whilst knowing that someone looks after it. I would like it to be a place where people know that it is here and is available to nurture them on all levels. I would also like to find ways to bring all these beings that are so small and significant into the spotlight so that when we walk on the land we know more stories about what is going on. The passionate people here have these stories so that we can share them more and change human perceptions. We could make them big and have stories told through drama and creative storytelling for both children and adults. I am deeply grateful for the trust, the passionate people involved, and the enthusiasm of the team members to share, do and get things done.
Interviewed by Jonathan Caddy
August 2024
Meet the Team – Birgit Carow
What inspired your love of nature?
We would learn to make fires using a bow and sleep outdoors when it was snowing using a tarp – these were beautiful experiences. Now as a mum it is also really beautiful as when my daughter Olivia was small this gave me many chances to be outdoors with her here in Scotland and do all the fun stuff like collecting, pressing flowers, gathering flower bunches, making leaf prints etc. There is lots of fun stuff for kids to do outdoors and it is great for adults too! This led me to start the Fledglings Group in Wilkies Wood in the Findhorn Hinterland. The initial motivation was to find a way to bring parents together whilst also giving time to let the kids play outdoors. We saw how great this was for the children. Sometimes we organised some activities for them but most of the time they made their own entertainment together. A fire was important as a centre point around which these gatherings would happen. It was about being there and having a commitment to show up in the woods every Friday morning. It was during the time of Covid when all of us particularly needed and greatly appreciated this.
My journey started in my late teenage years when I first discovered hiking in Austria – I was brought up in a small town surrounded by mountains but my parents were not outdoor people so it was only at this older age that I started to engage by sleeping in huts and tents with lots of lakes to swim in. In my early thirties I was then drawn to a wilderness school with all its ancient wisdom much from native american culture.
My background is in marketing and design which I studied in Austria. I worked using these talents and skills with an Austrian company that is involved in furniture design, textiles as well as cosmetics and has very high environmental standards. I still do some work for them which includes marketing, writing sustainability and CO2 balance reports etc. Coming to Findhorn I realised that having both these talents was useful particularly to small organisations that do not have large separate marketing and design departments. My gift here is being able to offer these things in a package – asking questions and then being able to translate needs into a visual design to help market a product. At present I work with both the Phoenix and the Findhorn Hinterland Trust here at the Park Ecovillage Findhorn.
My way into the FHT was very organic. It started by living with my family in your house in Bagend on the edge between community and everything that the trust looks after. I started to go to FHT work parties planting trees when Olivia was one. During the pandemic our family decided to take on the Woodland Garden – we were there most days enjoying seeing what was coming up on its own. This came about as I had got to know Ariane Burgess, who is now a Green Scottish MSP, by helping to finish off the Outdoor Learning Space building in the garden so we naturally got involved in the actual gardening. I was inspired by her helping to set up the garden and I wanted to give something back. It is a beautiful place particularly with a child who can then move around freely. Conversations with you followed and I became more aware of what the FHT does. I could see how I might be able to offer something by using my marketing skills to reach out to more people about the beautiful and fulfilling things the trust does. It is so inspiring the large number of things it is involved in which I don’t think most people notice. I think it is often taken for granted that we have these woods, these fire pits and shelters where we can meet. I do not take it for granted, it is very special and I am very grateful for those that started it and the people that come with the energy to volunteer. There is so much knowledge and passion that is being shared by various people. To have some paid work was ideal for me to be able to pay my rent when I split up with my partner so it was a win/win for everyone.
It really satisfies me when I do something and I see the impact it has. For example this spring when we did the fundraiser for the Big Give match funding appeal for the Dune Restoration Project. Coming up with marketing ideas that are a bit different to be able to reach people and come up with enough money to have a big impact in our backyard to save some species that may not have survived otherwise. If I do something really well with good energy there is something that comes in return and results in improving something in the future. Since I am a mum I think this is especially important to me. I was also involved in the design work of the Conservation Hub as part of the team where I found I could help with my skills and gifts. I have experienced how people coming to work parties feel after putting in three hours of work on the land – they connect to land, other people and who is holding the morning. They might gain some insight into what is special on this land, see how everyone can have an impact and learn what goes into caring for land or building a building in a different way.
That it is a strong and solid organisation that has the set up and means to continue to do and expand what it already does so well including inspiring and involving more people. Establishing this as a place that people know that they can come to and find peace, rest and connection. A place where they can contribute as well as just be whilst knowing that someone looks after it. I would like it to be a place where people know that it is here and is available to nurture them on all levels. I would also like to find ways to bring all these beings that are so small and significant into the spotlight so that when we walk on the land we know more stories about what is going on. The passionate people here have these stories so that we can share them more and change human perceptions. We could make them big and have stories told through drama and creative storytelling for both children and adults. I am deeply grateful for the trust, the passionate people involved, and the enthusiasm of the team members to share, do and get things done.
Interviewed by Jonathan Caddy
August 2024