DR JADE ADAMS-WHITE Founder of The Jadeite Project
Psychologist Dr Jade teaches the importance of moments over mileage in Mother Nature’s classroom
DR JADE Adams-White hated her first camp. As a young army cadet, she pitched a tent one freezing December night. “I just wanted to go home,” she told The Great Outdoors. Yet the 34-year-old psychologist from Liverpool recalls the “freeness” of waking up outdoors that she “couldn’t help but learn to love.” In her twenties, she climbed her first mountain and “loved the vastness of space, sense of achievement and awe.” Finding things difficult during the pandemic, Jade turned to the hills. Once restrictions eased, she scrambled Helvellyn solo and, elated on the descent, determined to share that feeling with as many people as possible.
With a PhD gained investigating decision-making in critical environments with the Royal Navy and an holistic approach to psychology – “much like nature, everything is interconnected” – she founded The Jadeite Project. A self-confessed tree-hugger, Jade believes any time outside – scaling a mountain, meditating or simply weeding the garden – is good for the spirit. She teaches students
at the secondary school where she is a mental health practitioner to appreciate the moments over minutes or mileage.
“Five young people in a class of 30 will have a diagnosable mental health issue and support is sometimes hard to come by,” Jade explains. But the benefits of being outdoors aren’t always made clear.
“As a female from the global majority, representation – and making sure the outdoors is seen as accessible by young people – is important to me.” There is work to do to eradicate the perceived criteria of entry – fitness levels and financial barriers, to name but two – so that all people feel safe and welcome to explore in ways that are right for them, she states.
Jade educates her following on the Biophilia Hypothesis (which posits an innate tendency to seek connections with nature in humans) and empirical research suggesting the benefits of nature on anxiety, mood and stress. “However, mental health is personal and complex,” she adds, suggesting it’s beneficial to look at mental health as a continuum
in which you should seek professional help when needed.
Jade personally benefits from nature’s “attention restorative properties”, which offer a stillness of mind that allows her to “close the door on day-to-day distractions, notifications, screens and to-do lists.”
That’s why she also runs guided walks through The Jadeite Project. On these walks, “nature holds the space to speak without fear of judgement” so others can connect to nature, improve mindset and appreciate their body. Since becoming a mother, Jade practises her teachings as her priorities and perception of self shift. Stepping back from the highest peaks and seeing the world through her daughter’s eyes as she takes her first steps into the outdoors – a space Jade is determined to keep open and accessible to the younger generation through her work – has reinvigorated Jade’s own “childlike wonder”.