Somatic Environmental and Social Activism
21st July 2025
Caring passionately about the environment or social justice issues can result in feelings of anger, fear, distrust, impatience, despair or hopelessness. Here we suggest the potential for supporting activism through somatic - propreoceptive self care routine developed from the Chinese art of Tai Chi. The aim of this approach is to offer a method of rolling out a simplified programme of support at scale to the widest population possible.
It is suggested that self care amongst volunteers and activists has a positive effect in both personal wellbeing and sustaining activism (Transition Town Totnes 2025 and Prentice 2003). Undertaking self care through somatic awareness practice may also enhance inter personal relationships and an enhanced connection with nature (Branham 2024).
The suggested methodology has evolved from traditional indigenous Chinese teaching specifically relating to Qigong and Tai Ch. This original approach includes simple interoceptive practice relating to posture, breathing and walking. This approach is intended as a self care exercise routine and makes no claim to offer a therapeutic intervention.
Information is offered in the form of open access documents in order to facilitate further development and academic study.
Please reference these documents by citing; Hunt D (2025) Somatic Environmental and Social Activism; David Hunt Tai Chi, www.embodiedtaichi.org
Reference
Branham L (2024) Embodied earth kinship: interoceptive awareness and relational attachment personal factors predict nature connectedness in a structural model of nature connection; Front. Psychol. 15:1400655. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1400655 , https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1400655/full , accessed 22nd July 2025
Prentice Hilary (2003) COSMIC WALK: AWAKENING THE ECOLOGICAL SELF: Psychotherapy and Politics International, 1(1) 32–46, 2003, Whurr Publishers Ltd. , https://ojs.aut.ac.nz/psychotherapy-politics-international/article/view/94 , accessed 1st July 2025
Transition Town Totnes (2025) Inner Transition; https://www.transitiontowntotnes.org/project-groups/inner-transition , accessed 1st July 2025, Doc; TTT
