About Earth Embodied Journeys
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About Earth Embodied Journeys
Our Intentions:
Our intentions are to offer a safe and supportive environment for humans to explore, awaken, restore and deepen their unique relationship with the Earth, their body, soul, and community.
Our Core Philosophy:
Earth and Body are inseparable.
Our Teachers:
We have immense gratitude for the teachers, mentors, authors, schools, and philosophies that have influenced Earth Embodied Journeys. Some of them include the School of Lost Borders, the Animas Valley Institute, the Earth-Based Institute, and the Somatic Nature Therapy Institute. We have been greatly influenced by the more-than-human-world, including the ocean, desert landscapes, oak trees, hawks, owls, hummingbirds, mountains, Big Sur, and the Santa Cruz mountains. We are grateful for the frameworks and methodologies that have guided our work, including, indigenous history & literature, ancestral wisdom & skills, Ecopsychology, Rites of Passage, the Four Shields, Ecotherapy, Partswork Therapy, Somatic Experiencing, 5 Rhythms & Ecstatic Dance, Coyote Mentorship, Nonviolent Communication, and the Soul-Centric Human Development Wheel.
About Deanna Renee Falge
Founder & Guide
My Short Story:
My full name is Deanna Renee Falge.
I grew up in Santa Cruz, California, land of the Awaswas people, which is also where I live now.
I am passionate about supporting others through transition and transformation by guiding them into deep and meaningful relationship with the Earth, body, soul, and community.
Earth Embodied Journeys was seeded out my first wilderness vision fast journey, and has been a culmination of my work and experience in embodiment facilitation, dance, nature-based life coaching, mentoring, ecotherapy, outdoor education, mindfulness, wilderness guiding, backpacking, and rites of passage.
When I am not working, you can most easily find me surfing, playing in the ocean, contemplating life in an oak tree, dancing, singing, laughing, gardening, wandering off trail, or eating quality dark chocolate
My Qualifications
I am a Certified Professional Nature-Connected Life Coach (NCC) and Transformational Guide (TWG) through the Earth-Based Institute (ICF Accredited), Certified Wilderness First Responder (WFR), trained in the art of wilderness vision fast guiding through the School of Lost Borders, and trained in Ecotherapy ("Level 1 Certificate") through the Earth Body Institute.
I hold a Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) as well as a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Biological Psychology from UC Santa Barbara. I am a Registered Associate MFT, currently practicing as an equine-assisted psychotherapist through the Equine Healing Collaborative, and an eco-somatic psychotherapist through Natural Bridges Therapy in Santa Cruz.
I am trained in various somatic approaches to healing, trauma-informed coaching, nature-based partswork, embodiment facilitation, council facilitation, mirroring, mindfulness-based practices, wilderness rites of passage and vision fast guiding, the four shields model, nonviolent communication, various ancestral skills, and coyote mentorship. My work is greatly influenced by the School of Lost Borders and Animas Valley Institute, and even more significantly by my personal relationship with the Earth and more-than-human world.
I hold years of experiencing working with teens and adults as a guide, life coach, ecotherapist, mentor, outdoor educator, embodiment facilitator, wilderness skills instructor, nature-connection guide, backpacking guide, and wilderness rites of passage guide.
Partner Guides
Angela Vincent
Women's Wilderness Ceremony Guide
Angela is a soul guide disguised in many forms. She has spent her life following the golden threads of mystery, swimming in alpine lakes and wild rivers, bathing like a lizard on hot rocks, and above all being awed by the beauty and irony of the world. She brings the gifts of humor, wildness, love, and deep witnessing to others’ unique unfoldings. Through her many experiences of deep connection to the soul of the Earth, she has formed a deep commitment to helping others remember their innate belonging and purpose.
She has studied with The School of Lost Borders, The Animas Valley Institute, and Martin Prechtel's "school," Bolad's Kitchen. Her formal education includes a Bachelor's degree in Secondary Education and a Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy.
Ariana Evelyn Kaback
Earth Women Guide
Ariana is a certified Birth Doula, Postpartum Chef, Wilderness Guide, Body Worker, & Rites of Passage Facilitator. She has dedicated her life to supporting women’s transformations and initiations into motherhood, adulthood & womanhood.
Ariana is a Nature lover. She is here to empower women to connect to their own inner knowing, innate wisdom, and body intelligence to lead a life of love for themselves, the Earth, and their communities. Ariana bridges a connection between Earth, Body, and Spirit and uses nature as her guide to support others.
Ariana also has a degree in Outdoor Education and Holistic Health from San Francisco State University. She is trained in nonviolent communication, is a Wilderness First Responder and Wilderness First Aid. For many years, Ariana has studied meditation, yoga, council facilitation, the art of play, dance, and feminine embodiment practices.
Ariana loves to hike, dance, sit in circle, commune with the Earth, swim in the ocean, travel, share songs, and be among great women and men.
Kelly Goldberg
Wilderness Backpacking Guide
Kelly is an accomplished backpacking guide, outdoor education facilitator, and trained ecotherapist with over a decade of experience in various settings and modalities.
Since participating as a high-school student himself in 2010, he has been leading a transformational group and community supported, nature-based workshop on personal growth for youth with Carmel High School (CHS) for ten years now. As a backpacking guide, he has led groups of youth and young adults on introductory backpacking experiences for 6 years and counting with the Ventana Wilderness Alliance and CHS. During the summer of 2018, Kelly participated in training on facilitation of wilderness rite of passage ceremonies with Rite of Passage Journeys, then proceeded to lead a group on a backpacking trip and wilderness ceremony as a guide with the same company. Since becoming a licensed associate therapist in 2024, and training with the Earthbody Institute in Ecotherapy practices, Kelly designed and implemented a handful of ecotherapy interventions for a team of clinical mental health therapists to utilize in clinical settings in collaboration with Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy techniques.
Being deeply supported in his own personal and professional growth by the rhythms, seasons, and landscapes of the more-than-human-world along like-minded individuals with shared reverence and experience, all moved Kelly to culminate his work as a guide for others on the path of life. Kelly brings his natural skill of empathic listening, and reflection to his work, with existential and analytical influence from the perspectives of Carl Jung, Ram Dass, Francis Weller, Joseph Campbell, and Bill Plotkin, to name a few.
With his initial connection to wilderness and ample work within the Ventana, Kelly brings a wealth of knowledge and intuition among the Big Sur backcountry.
He holds a BA in Adventure Education from Prescott College, MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from UMass, and is a California licensed Associate Professional Clinical Counselor. Kelly additionally holds a Wilderness First Responder (WFR) from the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS).