Author Archives

Traveler, seeker, environmental scientist, father of three, tree hugger, thrill seeker, simple pleasure fiend, music lover...

• Digging for Italian Roots – an Ancestral Pilgrimage

  By Dave Santillo on May 11, 2018 • ( 2 )

  

  Humans have a fundamental need to feel connections, and a deep yearning to understand our place in the big picture. We seek connections because that’s what connects us with ‘us.’  Learning about our ancestry can provide unique insight into who… Read More ›

• Photo Gallery from 2017 Venture Outside Adventure Camp for Teens with Type 1 Diabetes

  By Dave Santillo on August 22, 2017 • ( 1 )

  

  July 15 to July 29, 2017, Venture Outside partnered with the Clara Barton Center for Diabetes Education to hold its second annual Adventure Camp for Teens with Type 1 Diabetes. At this camp, we share what making it to the… Read More ›

• Mixing Business and Pleasure in a Tropical Paradise: Permaculture and Conservation in the Guna Yala Islands of Panama

  By Dave Santillo on March 3, 2017 • ( 4 )

  

  Fresh from a morning of paddling, strolling around palm-fringed beaches, and snorkeling on surrounding coral reef, our group of 11 sea kayakers sat under a cane shelter on the edge of a large white sand beach on an island in… Read More ›

• By Dave Santillo on March 3, 2017 • ( 1 )

  This is shared with Puma Diaries by Ilene Price, who helped guide part of a recent Venture Outside trip to Panama. Please check out more of Ilenes posts! My last trip of the season in Guna Yala came as a… Read More ›

• Traveler, A Poem by Jenna Santillo

  By Dave Santillo on November 30, 2016 • ( 0 )

  

  Traveler, What calls you out into the night? What wakes you from your slumber and brings you to this silent road? What greets you with each step as the weight of your wandering feet falls towards the earth, making contact with that… Read More ›

• Selfish Metaphors in Nature

  By Dave Santillo on November 28, 2016 • ( 2 )

  

  “You can notice clouds floating by…but you are not those clouds.”   Ken Wilber A true Witness to nature views without imposing themselves onto a majestic scene, an earthly event, or a mysterious place.  It’s the mark of an accomplished spiritual… Read More ›

• Ten Ways to Wake Up Your Nature Awareness

  By Dave Santillo on April 7, 2016 • ( 0 )

  

  We live on a remarkable planet that manifests its brilliance through nature, yet modern life constantly creates barriers and distractions that numb us to this glory. Waking up one’s nature awareness is a process of sharpening all of our senses… Read More ›

• Watching Energy in Ice:  Nature’s Version of “Frozen”

  By Dave Santillo on January 15, 2016 • ( 9 )

  A winter walk taps into engaging energies of renewal, focus, and just plain wonder! ________________________________________________________________ Today, as I often do, I went for a walk in the nature of the preserve next door. I can, if I choose, walk the… Read More ›

• Singing, The Most Affordable Drug, by Ellie Osborn

  By Dave Santillo on December 23, 2015 • ( 1 )

  

  Almost every culture believes in the power of music to heal both physically and psychologically. Ancient and modern scientific research confirms these beliefs and we now can show evidence of changes in the brain when listening to Mozart or the… Read More ›

• Outside Antidotes to the Winter Blues by Kara Douglas

  By Dave Santillo on December 23, 2015 • ( 0 )

  

  As a yoga teacher and naturalist, one of the most important questions I ask my students every winter is, “How often are you spending time outside?” For those of us who enjoy hibernation, long winter hours of darkness aren’t so… Read More ›