KINNECTAR
noun /kə-ˈnek-tər/
1. A bond between people and the living world
2. The quiet richness of that exchange
THE ORIGIN
The name came from nature.
During a forest bathing immersion with guides from around the world, each of us drew from a hat to lead part of a group forest bathing walk. A fellow guide said something I still carry: the hat gives what you most need, even though you do not know it yet.
I drew the invitation portion. The one I had been dreading. The instruction was simple: do not prepare. Trust the forest.
We drew our location. The pollinator's garden.
The garden did the rest. Hummingbirds worked the blossoms. Bees moved between flowers. Even the bats were sleeping in the leaves. When it was time, the invitation came to me all on its own: with care, gather what the garden offers. Crush and combine the treasures, the flowers, the leaves, into something only you and nature could make. Then give it back. Walk through the garden pollinating the plants and each other with the nectar you just made.
That evening, I tasted honey from the hives in that same garden. Smoky. Warm. Cinnamon and caramel. Straight from the place we had tended that afternoon.
Kin and nectar. The name came from that exchange. You give to the living world. The living world gives to you. Not as a transaction. As kin.
Say it aloud and you hear a third word. Nature connector. That is what this practice is.
YOUR GUIDE
Kate Tredway
I grew up in Washington, playing in its forests, its mountains, its wetlands. I have known this land my whole life.
My career has spanned nearly twenty years in tech, though I have always found my way back to the land. First as a volunteer wilderness ranger in the wilderness regions of Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. More recently as Chief of Staff at onX, a company whose mission is to awaken the adventurer inside everyone. It is rare to find work that aligns so closely with what you care about.
I am a certified forest therapy guide through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy (ANFT), an international certification body that trains guides worldwide. I hold a Wilderness First Aid certification through the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) and serve on the board of Cascadia Forest Therapy. I guide mostly in Western Washington, though the practice travels well. Beyond forests, I've guided in deserts, coastlines, wherever nature has something to offer.
"I've been on three walks now. Each one is different. The forest is different, I'm different. It's the simplest thing I do for myself and somehow the most useful."
— QUINN K., SEATTLE