Ecotherapy – How Nature is Inherently Healing
By November 16, 2021Luke’s love for surfing and the native coastal land of New Zealand lead him to understand the important role bees play as environmental indicators and was the founding catalyst for ACTIVIST. Gabrielle’s time in New York City working as a senior Art Director at Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar led to a slowdown, and the pursuit of new interests outside of the fast-paced world of fashion publications. Gabrielle’s love for radiant health, natural healing therapies and food from the earth was a central driver for the development of ACTIVIST.
Based between California and New Zealand, we’ve built a natural and transparent company as an extension of our lifestyle. ACTIVIST is a family owned and operated company. Our involvement is far-reaching: from establishing relationships with our bee-keepers (we even go surfing together) to product innovation, while building direct relationships with customers and global retailers. We believe it’s important that New Zealand and its resources are represented authentically on a global scale, rather than sold off to international companies to be rebranded and diluted. If that means building a slower growing, sustainable business, that’s cool with us. Thank you for following our story.


Ecotherapy is a nature-based therapy practice that enforces that just being in nature can heal us. This can mean going for a hike, taking a swim or surf, smelling flowers in the garden, etc. According to various studies, Ecotherapy has been proven to:
• Lift depression • Release stress and anxiety • Stimulate the senses • Improve sleep • Reduce pain • Diminish mental fatigue • Counter isolation • Lessen eating disorder symptoms • Strengthen the immune system • Enhance mental and physical recuperation from surgery • Lessen post-traumatic stress

Here are some easy ways to bring nature even closer:
Embrace a tree
Find it hold you strongly, like wrapping your arms around your mother and feeling the unconditional love.
Swim in the ocean
It can wash away your negativity and relax your nervous system, by calming anxiety and stress in mere minutes.
Take off your shoes
Feeling the earth barefoot is “essential for proper functioning of immune systems, circulation, synchronization of biorhythms and other physiological processes”