"Being in embodied kinship with nature is the direct path to being at home and feeling that we belong."
Roots of Belonging offers a safe space for mixed, dual heritage, and multicultural people of colour in the outdoors. We first discovered them through our new partnership with OUTO (Opening Up The Outdoors), and after connecting with the good folk there, we provided a donation towards travel for Roots of Belonging's Lake District weekend in May, as well as some good ol’ goodie bags for everyone on the trip.
To keep the vibes high, we wanted to further spotlight their epic community work by asking them some questions about their group, what inspires them to get out there, and why it’s so important to have an inclusive space where folks feel that they belong. So we’re stoked to share with you that chat with Roots of Belonging founder, Isabella McDonnell.
Can you give us an intro to Roots of Belonging? What’s it all about? What inspired you to create the group?
"We host interdisciplinary outdoor events for mixed, dual heritage and multicultural people of colour to deepen nature connection and their belonging in the UK outdoors. We believe that being in embodied kinship with nature is the direct path to being at home and feeling that we belong. I identify as a mixed, multicultural and multilingual person of colour. My story of belonging spans five countries and five languages, so my identity was never easy to communicate to people who asked me, “Where are you from?”
"After having transformative experiences in nature, I found being outdoors healing for my mental health and I now see nature connection as the direct path towards true, interspecies belonging. I wanted to find spaces where I could spend more time outdoors in community — to hike, climb, camp, surf, swim, and run together — with people who had similar lived experiences.
"Launching Roots of Belonging was about creating a safe space to replant ourselves in the universe together, as mixed, dual heritage and multicultural people of colour. The truth is that we belong in the outdoors because we are already part of nature, but so many barriers exist preventing us from remembering and deeply feeling this truth. Nature-allied practices help us to remember this."
Tell us about your Lake District adventure weekend and what inspires you to get out there?
"We're so excited to have the opportunity to explore some of the wonderful national parks that the UK has to offer. For us, the wild landscapes of the Lake District are truly special and give us the space to explore cultural rootedness in mountains, lakes, tarns, and valleys, which were all shaped by ancient glaciers. The Lake District is a landscape of depth and peacefulness - things that we hardly get to explore in daily life, particularly marginalised people who experience ongoing disadvantages and barriers.
"In the same way that the area has inspired generations of poets and writers, whose works are deeply rooted in the landscape, we wanted the chance to explore what it might feel like to be rooted in this place as mixed and multicultural hikers of colour."
Roots of Belonging is all about building a diverse, inclusive and equitable community. Tell us more about this, why is the focus on belonging?
"Belonging is an existential issue that uniquely touches all of us. Our sense of home and belonging—especially for mixed, dual heritage and multicultural people of colour—is threatened on a global scale. In our world built for 'othering', we believe home-building must be a collective, imaginative act rooted in nature."
"There is an exciting movement happening towards increased inclusivity in the outdoors, thanks to the tireless work of many grassroots groups, and organisations like All the Elements CIC and Opening Up The Outdoors."
"Research shows that mixed and multicultural POC are more likely to face negative mental health outcomes and feel like they don't belong where they live. They are more likely to rely on urban areas to find their communities, even though living in urban areas exacerbates mental health outcomes. Being in nature has shown clear mental health benefits. We therefore see the outdoors as the third place: where we can replant ourselves in the universe, together in community."
Have you felt a shift in the inclusivity of outdoor spaces?
"There is an exciting movement happening towards increased inclusivity in the outdoors, thanks to the tireless work of many grassroots groups, and organisations like All the Elements CIC and Opening Up The Outdoors, and countless others. But, there's a huge amount of work that is still to be done, one example being the importance of increasing disability access outdoors. It's important that we all continue to learn from each other and are willing to deeply listen to how others uniquely experience the world. The fact is that many still experience exclusion and unbelonging in the outdoors, and it's not a quick fix or with clear solutions."
You recently took part in OUTO’s changemaker programme. Tell us about your work with them. What did the programme provide for your community?
"It was a privilege to be a part of the second cohort of OUTO's changemaker programme. I feel like I've been included in an energising and supportive network of others who care deeply about increasing diversity, equity and inclusion in the outdoors in a meaningful sense, and that's because they are coming to the work with their unique lived experiences.
"The programme provided me with a network of supporters and friends, practical know-how to help me launch and maintain my grassroots organisation and an ongoing source of knowledge and opportunities to connect and access more resources that brought my community project into reality. Being a part of these kinds of programmes is so important as it reminds you you're not alone - many others are also doing this vital work."
What do you think people and brands could be doing to make the outdoor space more inclusive?
"I think people and brands can support grassroots groups already making the outdoors more inclusive by sharing their work, providing them with resources, sending opportunities their way, taking the time to learn from them and listening to their unique lived experience."
What’s your favourite way to find meaningful escapism? How do you find joy in the outdoors?
"As much as I love climbing, exploring, hiking and swimming, my deepest joy is mostly found in slowing down and practising forest bathing (shinrin yoku). As a forest bathing practitioner, I find the practice endlessly enriching and it helps me to see all the connections around me; how we are enmeshed in the web of life around us in the outdoors.
"When you feel as emotionally connected to the earthworms as you do to kestrels and wildflowers, there's little else that can bring you more joy!"
"Nature never asks you where you're from, or expects you to be anyone other than who you are. It's a space of total acceptance and belonging."
What’s been the main pull to getting you outside? Have you always felt it?
"For me, growing up as a mixed person, being in the outdoors and feeling connected to nature was where I felt safest. Nature never asks you where you're from, or expects you to be anyone other than who you are. It's a space of total acceptance and belonging."
What’s next for Roots of Belonging?
"In the short term, we're hoping to be able to take our community members out to the national parks at least twice a year! We're also looking forward to collaborating with other mixed, multicultural POC practitioners who are working towards greater interspecies empathy and solidarity; exploring ways that we might see other non-human beings as our neighbours and whose stories of unbelonging might be similar to our own."
Photography by Hannah Shaw
Roam slow, roam far. Find freedom on the trails, the coffee stops, shared miles and sunsets. You’re sure in for some stunner views, good vibes, and future stories to tell. Why not share your adventures with us?
