In this episode of the Outdoor Education Podcast, Rob Carmichael is joined by Martin Foakes, Chair of the Board for OFFSEAS, a fast-growing community of outdoor educators across Asia.

Martin shares how his love for being outdoors started in childhood, and how that passion evolved into a career in schools, expedition leadership, and ultimately regional governance. Together, Rob and Martin explore what good leadership looks like in outdoor education: leading with humility, listening well, and creating a culture where people feel safe enough to share both successes and failures.

They also dig into how OFFSEAS has grown from a small roundtable into a major regional forum, the challenge of building sustainable systems beyond a single “passionate champion,” and why teaching risk management (not removing risk) may be one of the most important skills we can give young people.

Key ideas

• Leadership that listens (and doesn’t “boss people around”)
• Building sustainable outdoor programs that outlast individuals
• OFFSEAS: growth, community, and collaboration across schools + providers
• Risk, resilience, and responsibility: “I’ve got you” in the outdoors
• Why belonging matters, and how culture shapes the way we handle adversity

What does it take to build an outdoor culture where everyone belongs — not because they fit in, but because the outdoors makes room for all of us?

In this episode, Rob Carmichael sits down with Yuen Li Chan, founder of Nomad Adventure and one of Southeast Asia’s pioneers of outdoor and adventure education. Together, they explore what it means to lead with courage, care, and conviction, even when there’s no roadmap to follow.

From learning to climb on the limestone walls of Malaysia to opening the country’s first climbing gym, Yuen Li’s story is one of passion meeting purpose. She shares how fax machines, first ascents, failed assessments, and unexpected mentors shaped her leadership. And she reflects on why the outdoors became her place of belonging as a woman, a queer person, and a young Malaysian forging a new path in an emerging industry.

Rob and Yuen Li dive deep into why outdoor learning matters — not because it removes risk, but because it teaches us how to understand it. They talk about building teams that challenge us, creating cultures where care is a skill, and why a child’s smile in a rapid can be as transformational as any summit.

Whether you’re an educator, guide, leader, or lifelong adventurer, this conversation is an invitation to step into discomfort, listen deeply, and rediscover the small moments of wonder that keep us human.

Key ideas:
🧭 Fearless leadership: making values-driven decisions when no playbook exists
🧗 Belonging in the outdoors: gender, identity, and the “great equalizer.”
🌊 Risk competency vs. risk elimination: why adventure requires responsibility
🤝 Building culture: caring as the foundation of professionalism
🌱 Wonder in the small things: transformation through incremental moments

What happens when we stop seeing nature as “out there” and start recognizing it as part of who we are?
In this episode, Rob Carmichael sits down with Kenny Peavy, Outdoor Learning Specialist at Green School Bali, to explore the roots of regenerative education, an approach that connects learners with themselves, with others, and with the living world around them.

From childhood days chasing creek water to cycling thousands of kilometers on a bamboo bike, Kenny’s journey is a reminder that education begins by stepping outside. He shares stories from decades in the field, from teaching algebra students how to ride a bike to watching eighth graders teach second graders the “bee waggle dance.”

Together, Rob and Kenny unpack what it means to create schools that heal, connect, and regenerate.
Whether you’re an educator, parent, or lifelong learner, this conversation is an invitation to rediscover curiosity — one muddy footprint at a time.

Key ideas:
🌿 Regenerative education: connection with self, others, and nature
🚲 Learning through play, risk, and persistence
🐝 Teaching empathy through bees and cross-grade collaboration
🏕 Nearby nature and rewilding urban learners
📚 “Every school should have a field guide to its own campus.”

Description:

In this episode, Rob Carmichael talks with Canadian educator and podcaster Kevin O’Shea, whose two decades in Asia have been devoted to helping children rediscover their natural curiosity. From cicada-chasing mornings in Japan to monkey-guarding gardens in Malaysia, Kevin shares how small, everyday encounters with nature can transform learning, wellbeing, and wonder.

Discover how to start your own school garden, balance curriculum with curiosity, and why being authentic, passionate, and starting small might just be the key to lasting outdoor education.

🎧 Topics:

• Overcoming “nature is dirty” mindsets
• School gardens and monkey visitors
• Unstructured play as real learning
• Storytelling, podcasting, and advocacy
• How to integrate nature into any classroom

In this episode, Rob sits down with maker-educator and sustainability innovator Gus Merckel, whose global journey, from Mexico to Germany to Thailand,has shaped a powerful approach to experiential learning.

Together, they explore how hands-on making, reclaimed materials, circular design, and outdoor learning can reconnect students with the real world and spark authentic curiosity.

Gus shares stories from the field and how outdoor learning helps students feel the impact of environmental change

Whether you're in design, outdoor ed, sustainability, or simply passionate about learning that matters, this episode will leave you inspired to rethink how young people learn — and what they can create when given the chance.

https://www.youtube.com/gusmerckel

Host Rob Carmichael sits down with Dr. Nevin Harper—outdoor educator, therapist, and co-author of Kids These Days—to explore how real growth happens through connection, challenge, and time outside. Neven traces his path from a northern Canadian childhood to wilderness guiding and clinical counseling, and unpacks big ideas from the new book: why risk ≠ hazard, how our modern “safety trap” and over-diagnosis can backfire, and why belonging, mastery, independence, and generosity (the Circle of Courage) are essential for youth development.

They also tackle hot topics like cell-phone bans, pandemic aftershocks, and the role of discomfort, play, and nature in building resilient young people. Practical takeaways for teachers, counselors, and parents included—plus simple ways to bring therapeutic, nature-based practices into everyday life.

Learn more about Nevin Harper: https://www.nevinharper.com/ and discover his new book https://www.kidsthesedaysbook.com/.

In this episode, Rob speaks with Pete Tupper, founder of Imagine — a network of outdoor learning and adventure companies operating across China, Japan, and Taiwan.

From ski slopes to startup offices, Pete shares how Imagine grew from a simple idea into a platform for outdoor education across Asia. Together, we explore the power of imagination in education, what it takes to lead outdoor programs across borders, and what outdoor entrepreneurship looks like.

Authentic, reflective, and full of practical insights for educators and entrepreneurs alike. Together, they explore:

• 🌿 Why outdoor education gives young people the space to imagine again
• 🌏 The challenge of adapting programs across different cultures and climates
• 💼 The transition from instructor to entrepreneur — and how to keep your passion alive
• ⚡ Why outdoor educators are “safe from AI” — and why the human connection to nature still matters

If you believe in learning through challenge, creativity, and connection, this conversation will inspire you to rethink how imagination and action can shape the future of outdoor learning.

🎧 Follow and share The Outdoor Education Podcast to help grow the global community of educators and adventurers taking learning outside.

Ressources:

https://www.imagine-asia.net/

https://open.spotify.com/episode/1X3JMHGU2w4QcRfUyIj8gS?si=982e5196c218406e