Co-Director, Nature-Connection Programming

M.A., Educator, Wilderness First Responder

Shae has a passion for facilitating transformative nature-connected experiences through relationship with plants, animals, wild landscape, and authentic community. She is particularly inspired by the meaningful impact animals have on people and loves partnering with them in the educational and therapeutic process.

From 2016-2018, Taylor and Shae developed and co-directed Sowing Seeds, a program aimed at bringing nature-based education and food literacy skills to local at-risk youth. In 2019, Micky Morton and Shae partnered to create and co-direct Seedkeepers Forest School, serving children 3-9, where Shae worked as an educator and co-director for three years. Prior to this, Shae worked as a senior field guide in the field of wilderness therapy with children and adolescents, and supported the launch of Emerald Arrow, a wilderness therapy program for young adults. She continues to serve as the Program Developer and Lead Trainer for this program.

Shae holds a Masters degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and specializes in facilitating nature-connection therapeutic experiences. During her graduate program, she was given the opportunity to co-create a Nature-Based Therapy graduate certificate at ETSU, along with colleague Dr. Bethany Novotny. When it comes to individuals' healing journey, she understands the earth to be the first healer. She continues to pursue a vision of making nature-based therapy and nature-based education accessible to all in East Tennessee.

Co-Director, Nature Connection Programming

Farm Manager, Educator

Taylor is a farmer, educator, researcher, builder, and philosopher. He received is bachelors in Philosophy at ETSU in 2014, and has been doing community farm and food work since. Although he grows a good sized veggie garden every year, his particular focus has been on growing regionally-adapted perennial crops such as fruit, nut, and fodder trees. He has managed chickens, pigs, and goats (right now there are just chickens on the farm), and hopes to get some cows on the farm soon. He and Shae started an after-school program for inner city youth at an edible park in Johnson City. Activities for the children included plant identification, planting, pruning, rooting, grafting, building, foraging, harvesting, processing, cooking, and of course, eating! He brings a diversity of skills to the farm with his background as a wilderness therapy field guide, timber framer, agricultural consultant, and program coordinator at a farm-focused non-profit. He looks forward to cultivating a farm landscape rich with food for the mind, body, and soul.

Resident Farm Steward and Earth School Instructor

Iliana Pate (she/her), is excited to be joining the Fauna Forest School community this fall. Iliana was born and raised in Sewanee, Tennessee, and homeschooled, along with her siblings, on her parents farm before attending St. Andrew’s Sewanee School for highschool.

Iliana has spent the last few years traveling the country, in an attempt to further her own education, she has spent time at the John C. Campbell Folk School, Sequatchie Cove Farm, Uplands Cheese Creamery, and most recently, completed a stint on a prescribed burn crew for the Southeast Conservation Corps.

While the nomadic lifestyle has treated her well, Iliana is ready to begin working towards her true passion of alternative education. Iliana is excited to share her love for traditional crafts, such as basketry, spinning, weaving, and cooking with foraged foods, and hopes that through these practices, she can help young people develop a closer relationship with the natural world and a deeper understanding of their place within it.

Farmer

My name is Juniper and I am a steward of the Earth, a mother, and a budding farmer with a heart full of passion and a spirit eager to learn. I have lived as a private chef, a yogi, a meditation guide, and a student of the stars. Each chapter of my life has been a journey, weaving together a tapestry of experiences that have shaped who I am today. 

 I am honored to be a part of the Fauna Forest Farm community. Here on the farm my dream of a sustainable poultry farming is taking root. I will be exploring regenrative and biodynamic farming practices that embrace the rhythms of nature. I will be rotationally grazing chickens on pasture, allowing the chickens to roam freely not only fertilizes the land but also improves soil health and encourages biodiversity. This harmonious cycle benefits the environment while producing nutrient-dense food that nourishes both body and spirit. Through this venture I will be able to offer sustainable poultry and eggs to our community.

 In this role, I am committed to nurturing the land with care and intention, ensuring that every step I take is in harmony with the environment. I am excited to explore innovative farming techniques that honor the earth's natural rhythms while providing for our community in meaningful ways. This journey is not just about growing food; it's about growing a future where we live in balance with the planet and each other.

M.A., LPC-MHSP

I am an animal-lover, nature-lover, and a professional artist with a deeply spiritual and creative orientation to life. I feel profoundly lucky to do the work that I love. 

My education and professional background help me to support therapy and coaching clients from an integrative & systemic perspective, applying the powerful practices of mindfulness, embodiment, and trauma-responsive therapies. I currently teach meditation and offer workshops on mindful living, spiritual integrity, & creating healthy relationships with other humans and the natural world.

​Clients can expect to guide their own sessions while I offer perspective and tools like mindfulness, body-centered practices, family/systemic constellations, and practical self-regulation skills to bring movement back into parts of their life which have felt stuck.

 I love to work with clients who want to more deeply relate to and care for themselves, in order to see their relationships thrive and to contribute to their communities and the world in meaningful ways.