Nature has been the consistent theme in her life. She would consider herself a bush kid, spending her younger years building homes in the bush across from her house or among the trees in her school with friends. She looked forward to her school camps, excited to feel the crunching of leaves on bush walks and the wonder and excitement of the canoe trips. A memory that can instantly send her back in time, was horse riding on her friends property, where they were afforded the freedom to discover the world autonomously. They camped overnight in a cattle truck and woke up to the smell of animal poo, the feeling of independence, and feeling like pioneers. Her older sister took her on camping trips during school holidays which turned into overnight hikes, allowing the immersion of nature and their bond, to be even greater. She couldn’t get enough of that desire to be in nature, so despite being told by many that it wasn’t a great career path, she completed environmental studies at university in order to fulfil what she would consider a need. This led to a diverse range of roles, travelling all around Australia, a job in Canada and just before becoming a mother, working for a Tasmanian conservation organisation in a role that she absolutely loved. Outside of work, Nicole is always planning the next trip and if feeling glum, she can pinpoint it back to the fact that she hasn’t had her nature fix in a while. After becoming a mother and having a chronic illness for the past few years, she wanted to work in something she was passionate about but this time doing it for herself. She needed it to fit in with the unpredictability of her health and motherhood. As her son was about to start Kinder she was reading through a takayna / Tarkine book her sister gifted her, all of a sudden the idea dropped and that was the beginning of Wild by Nature Tasmania. The book is Nicole’s way of engaging children with nature when perhaps they can’t be in nature in that moment. To be reminded of how they felt in nature. To help in forming a connection with nature that encourages people to want to value it. When her son started Kinder, she begun creating what the activity book would entail and enlisted a local illustrator. The project allowed her to take her focus off her health and into her happy and healing place; nature.