Trainings
See more about my ecopsychology trainings and
TERRASOMA ECOPSYCHOLOGY TRAINING INSTITUTE here
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Professional Ecotherapy Certification Program
Spring 2022 Cohort April 23- August 23, 2022
(see Details Below)
and
Summer Cohort: Pending
(Dates TBD. Contact us for details)
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Somatic Ecopsychology & Wilderness Quest Apprenticeship Program, May- Nov. 2022
(see Details here)
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David has offered a variety of trainings for parents, teachers, and healing arts practitioners throughout the SF Bay Area. Past trainings include:
- Ecotherapy in the Office
- Introduction to Ecotherapy
- Parenting Strong-willed Teens
- Creating Coming of Age Ceremonies and Rites of Passage
- Experiential Therapy
- Therapy with Adolescents
- Somatic & Nature-based Research and Inquiry
- Human Development from an Earth-based Perspective
Contact David for more details.
Past clients include:
- California Institute of Integral Studies, Integral Counseling Psychology, Master's level
- JFK University, Professional Psychology Program
- Dominican University, Psychology Master's Program
- Sierra School, staff training, Santa Rosa, CA
- Novato Youth Center, MFT Intern Training
- Marina Counseling Center, MFT Intern Training
Continuing Education Credits: 75 CE credits are available for the Professional Ecotherapy Certificate Program and 7 CE credits for an Intro to Ecotherapy daylong
- CE credits for psychologists are provided by the Spiritual Competency Resource Center (SCRC) which is co-sponsoring this program. The Spiritual Competency Resource Center is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Spiritual Competency Resource Center maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
- The California Board of Behavioral Sciences accepts CE credits for LCSW, LPCC, LEP, and LMFT license renewal for programs offered by approved sponsors of CE by the American Psychological Association.
- LCSWs, MFTs, and other mental health professionals from states other than California need to check with their state licensing board as to whether or not they accept programs offered by approved sponsors of CE by the American Psychological Association.
- SCRC is approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN Provider CEP16887) for licensed nurses in California.
- For questions about receiving your Certificate of Attendance, contact Wilderness Reflections at info(at)WildernessReflections.com. For questions about CE, visit www.spiritualcompetency.com or contact David Lukoff, PhD at CE@spiritualcompetency.com

Professional Ecotherapy Certification Program
In the Office and On the Land in Marin County
**Designed to Accommodate Out of Town Students**
Spring 2022: April 23- August 23, 2022
** Early Bird Registration $300 Discount for Fall Cohort**
(Enroll by November 23, 2021)
Summer 2022 Cohort: Dates TBA (Contact us for dates)
Attention:
Experienced Therapists, Psychologists, Coaches & Social Workers:
Get The Skills And Confidence You Need
To Work With Your Clients In Nature
In the Office and On the Land in Marin County
**Designed to Accommodate Out of Town Students**
Spring 2022: April 23- August 23, 2022
** Early Bird Registration $300 Discount for Fall Cohort**
(Enroll by November 23, 2021)
Summer 2022 Cohort: Dates TBA (Contact us for dates)
Attention:
Experienced Therapists, Psychologists, Coaches & Social Workers:
Get The Skills And Confidence You Need
To Work With Your Clients In Nature

Have you ever felt alone and burnt out at the end of a long day of sitting in a room, supporting others?
Or maybe you’ve sometimes felt that being indoors with little movement or fresh air drains your creativity and zest for the little time you have to enjoy life?
How can you replenish yourself and grow your work in a meaningful way when you are giving all the time?
My name is Dave Talamo. I got into the field of therapy with a strong desire to help people make lasting, meaningful change in the their lives. But I found the traditional long days of sitting and working in the office with clients for many hours to be limiting and, at times, draining. Can you relate?
I started mentoring in nature and guiding in the wilderness 35 years ago. When I went to graduate school, it was with the hope of finding ways of combining my deep work with people and time in Nature. As a licensed therapist, I spent many years keeping my passion for the natural world separate from my therapy practice. My clients were coming to me overwhelmed, overworked, drained, anxious and depressed. People would share little side comments like “I feel so great when I go to the beach” or “I love how I feel when I’m able to just go out for a brief walk”.
Although I had many different therapy modalities to help them, I always felt like something was tugging at my heart. I knew there was so much more I could offer, but I wasn’t sure how to bring this all together. I was waiting for permission and professional validation.
Then one day it hit me. I was headed home after a long, full, intense day of client work. My eyes went to the stars twinkling above a ridge. I knew I had to get my clients out on the land. It was time to integrate therapy and my wilderness work.
I’ve made it my mission for the last 22 years to create ways to bring the healing power of Nature into people’s lives. I founded Wilderness Reflections and the Terra Soma Ecopsychology Training Institute. Through this powerful work I’ve helped thousands of people.
“Dave is a pioneer in the field of ecotherapy. He is an inspired and clear teacher, deeply dedicated to the healing available in nature and to the aliveness and unfolding of the people around him. I know the inner riches to which he has access and wouldn’t hesitate to join his program.”
-Rob Fisher, Senior Hakomi Trainer, Author of Experiential Psychotherapy with Couples, international speaker
Too Many Professionals In Our Field Get Stuck In A Rut, Burnt Out, Or Depressed.
Is This You?
This Is The Year To Get The Skills You Need To Bring Nature Into Your Practice And Fall In Love With Your Work Again!
Read All the Details on Our Website...
Or maybe you’ve sometimes felt that being indoors with little movement or fresh air drains your creativity and zest for the little time you have to enjoy life?
How can you replenish yourself and grow your work in a meaningful way when you are giving all the time?
My name is Dave Talamo. I got into the field of therapy with a strong desire to help people make lasting, meaningful change in the their lives. But I found the traditional long days of sitting and working in the office with clients for many hours to be limiting and, at times, draining. Can you relate?
I started mentoring in nature and guiding in the wilderness 35 years ago. When I went to graduate school, it was with the hope of finding ways of combining my deep work with people and time in Nature. As a licensed therapist, I spent many years keeping my passion for the natural world separate from my therapy practice. My clients were coming to me overwhelmed, overworked, drained, anxious and depressed. People would share little side comments like “I feel so great when I go to the beach” or “I love how I feel when I’m able to just go out for a brief walk”.
Although I had many different therapy modalities to help them, I always felt like something was tugging at my heart. I knew there was so much more I could offer, but I wasn’t sure how to bring this all together. I was waiting for permission and professional validation.
Then one day it hit me. I was headed home after a long, full, intense day of client work. My eyes went to the stars twinkling above a ridge. I knew I had to get my clients out on the land. It was time to integrate therapy and my wilderness work.
I’ve made it my mission for the last 22 years to create ways to bring the healing power of Nature into people’s lives. I founded Wilderness Reflections and the Terra Soma Ecopsychology Training Institute. Through this powerful work I’ve helped thousands of people.
“Dave is a pioneer in the field of ecotherapy. He is an inspired and clear teacher, deeply dedicated to the healing available in nature and to the aliveness and unfolding of the people around him. I know the inner riches to which he has access and wouldn’t hesitate to join his program.”
-Rob Fisher, Senior Hakomi Trainer, Author of Experiential Psychotherapy with Couples, international speaker
Too Many Professionals In Our Field Get Stuck In A Rut, Burnt Out, Or Depressed.
Is This You?
- Work feels stale and draining
- You long to feel energized and excited again
- Dreams for your practice are on the back burner
- You want more physical movement, fresh air, and beauty in your work day
- Nature is healing for you and you want that for your clients
- You’ve been doing the same thing for a while, you are ready for something new
- You struggle with how to bring your love of nature into your practice
- Your fear and self doubt keep you from making the changes you long to make
This Is The Year To Get The Skills You Need To Bring Nature Into Your Practice And Fall In Love With Your Work Again!
Read All the Details on Our Website...
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Somatic Ecopsychology & Wilderness Quest Apprenticeship Program
May- Nov. 2020, in Marin County, CA and Sequoia National Park
- Align your work with Nature and the innate wisdom of the body
- Learn cutting edge therapeutic approaches for city or wilderness work
- Join a community of like-minded colleagues in a transformational journey
Blending the ancient ceremony of the wilderness quest with contemporary advances in ecopsychology and mindfulness-based therapy, this one-of-a-kind training is an opportunity to bring Nature into your counseling, coaching or healing work. With a curriculum informed by the ceremony of the wilderness quest, ecopsychology, Hakomi®, Somatic Experiencing® and other therapies, we’ll teach you an array of practices applicable to urban or wilderness settings. Over the course of our time together we’ll form a peer community that will nurture and support your personal growth and professional progress in the field of somatic ecopsychology.
This seven-month long training meets one weekend per month for two months leading up to a mid-summer wilderness quest and continues one weekend per month for three months after the quest. The wilderness quest is, in part, a time to give thanks to the earth and to ask for Nature’s guidance and blessing with others in an earth-based way. Readings, homework assignments and contact with colleagues will build program continuity across the duration of the training. We will also cover ecotherapeutic approaches more easily applied to urban and other non-wilderness settings.
Open to therapists, wilderness guides, coaches and anyone eager to work more somatically or in alignment with Nature’s healing powers, the Somatic Ecopsychology and Wilderness Quest Apprenticeship Program is ideal for people inspired to become wilderness quest guides.
The Details
When: For 2020 there are 5 weekend meetings May 8-10, June 5-7, Aug 29-30, Oct. 9-11 and Nov.7-8; and the wilderness immersion July 3-12.
Where: Marin Co. CA (weekends) and Sequoia National Park, CA (wilderness trip)
What you need to provide: Personal hiking and camping gear (list to be provided)
Fee: $3997 (deposit $500). (For those in need, some payment plans & financial aid are available on a first-come, first-served basis). Early Bird Discount of $300 for registrations completed by Dec. 20, 2018.
To Register: Go to www.Wildernessreflections.com/registration-form Or, send a $500 non-refundable deposit and a 1-page letter of intent stating why you wish to participate in the apprenticeship program to Wilderness Reflections, P.O. Box 311, Fairfax, CA 94978. Deposits are non-refundable and non-transferable. Balance of fees is non-refundable and non-transferable within 5 weeks of the start of the program.
Guides:
Dave Talamo, MFT is founder of Wilderness Reflections. He has over 40 years of experience guiding wilderness trips, works as a therapist with youth and adults, and is a certified Wilderness First Responder. He is committed to the expression of joy and authenticity through the body and to helping others experience their own embodied selves in an intimate, ecstatic relationship with Nature. Dave is an innovator in the field of ecotherapy, and trains therapists in these practices. He trained in wilderness quest guiding with Steven Foster and Meredith Little and has apprenticed himself to wild places throughout North America.
Amy Biesemeyer, M.F.T. is a gifted and dynamic quest guide, weaving together her passions for Nature, ritual, singing/chanting and personal transformation. In her ten years of wilderness guiding, she has learned to gently and skillfully help others navigate the territory between comfort and challenge. Drawing upon mind-body practices, she enriches her work with meditation, expressive arts and movement. She has been trained by the School of Lost Borders, in the therapeutic use of the wilderness. She is a licensed Marriage Family Therapist and Wilderness First Responder. Nature is her teacher and sanctuary, and she is honored to guide others in the magical unfolding of their inner wilderness.
David Talamo, MFT, CHT (Certified Hakomi Therapist) • (415) 339-7405
San Rafael Therapy Office • 705 4th St., Suite 200, San Rafael, CA 94901
San Rafael Therapy Office • 705 4th St., Suite 200, San Rafael, CA 94901