About Me and WOLF

One sentence Summary: Zuzu brings together a background in biochemistry research and a passion for mindful nature connection to guide others toward human flourishing.

More info please email wolf[dot]here[dot]info[at]gmail[dot]com

Short version:

Zuzu is a biochemist with over a decade of experience in basic research and medical devices. Along the way, Zuzu rediscovered the healing power of nature and mindful walks outdoors. Now, Zuzu is training with the International Nature and Forest Therapy Alliance (INFTA) to become a certified forest therapy guide (expected September 2025), with a vision to share nature’s restorative benefits through the forest therapy framework.

Zuzu founded “Walk of Life (WOLF)” to promote forest immersion and nature-based activities for stress reduction, personal enrichment, and community connection.

Zuzu offers forest immersion walk in the SouthWest Metropolitan region of Twin Cities, Minnesota.

More info please email wolf[dot]here[dot]info[at]gmail[dot]com

Long Version:

During the pandemic of 2020, I rediscovered that I cannot flourish without being in nature. At the time, I was writing my dissertation, staring at a computer for many hours each day. The trees outside my window and the birds perched on their branches carried me through one of the most isolating periods of my life.

Reconnecting with nature in adulthood awakened long-forgotten memories from my childhood. When I was in elementary school, I spent most of my free time outdoors, roaming without purpose. The wind rustling through the leaves was my lullaby at nap time. I would ride my bike through creaking bamboo forests and imagine the stalks were having conversations (I grew up in a tropical region where bamboo forests are common). Small creeks, alive with tadpoles and frogs, were my playmates. My parents worked long hours, and my older sibling was more drawn to computer games than to watching ants with me. I spent much of my time in solitude, where Nature became my foster companion.

Fast forward to 2024: after months of research into the evidence-based benefits of being in nature, I stumbled upon forest therapy. This practice, which grew out of the Japanese tradition of shinrin-yoku (“forest bathing”), invites people into a series of sensory and mindful activities that restore well-being. As a researcher, I loved that forest therapy has a strong scientific foundation…so much so that I enrolled in training to become a certified forest therapy guide.

Through this journey, I studied the theoretical framework of forest therapy, developed a sit-spot practice to deepen my stillness in nature, and designed sensory-based activities to share with others. Even short moments in wooded area of parks (sometimes just ten minutes) helped my body release tension, sharpened my attention span, and lifted my mood. I found myself reconnecting with the present moment, no longer caught in racing thoughts about the world’s problems or my endless to-do list. After each walk, I felt more grounded, with greater access to my inner resources for self-regulation. While people soothe themselves in many different ways, I believe forest immersion offers a valuable and accessible tool for decompressing in a modern world that demands so much of us. As part of my practicum, I also guided small groups on three-hour forest immersion walks, and the responses I received were profoundly moving.

Participants, including friends, family, and community members I hardly knew, described feeling calmer, lighter, and relieved from daily stress. What surprised me most was how connected everyone felt after the walk, despite barely knowing one another at the start. Without forced conversation or social pressure, a quiet sense of belonging emerged.

I can only attribute this shared calm and connectedness to the wisdom of nature itself: its diversity in harmony, its communication without words, and its unconditional acceptance of whoever we are when we enter the forest.

I founded Walks of Life (WOLF) to promote forest therapy and nature-based activities that invite healing and connection. My vision is that people from all walks of life are welcome to experience the restorative power of the forest. No matter where you are on your journey, you are invited to step into nature and reconnect with yourself. The name also carries a special meaning: WOLF reflects not only the organization’s purpose but also the wolf itself, an animal with a deep legacy in Minnesota and rich cultural, historical, and mythological significance. Traditionally, the wolf symbolizes intuitive intelligence, strength, teamwork, and loyalty…qualities I deeply admire and aspire to embody in my community work.

I set up this webpage with three goals in mind:

• Make it easier for people to find me and forest therapy information (I have been asked five times in the last two days how to go on Forest Therapy Walk with me. So I figure it is time to set up a blog now so people can find me!)
• share musings and nature journaling with friends and family
• share scientific research on nature exposure on human health.

Next time you find yourself overwhelmed, I invite you to step outside, even for just a few minutes, and let the forest, a tree, or even the sound of the wind remind you that you belong to something greater. Nature is always ready to meet us where we are.

If you are interested in experiencing Forest Therapy Walk, please reach out to me at wolf[dot]here[dot]info[at]gmail.com. I am happy to schedule a time to walk you through the details.

Q&A

Question: Why does the email address look weird?

Answer: I intentionally format of my WOLF email on this page so that it prevents robots which scrub emails addresses on webpages for mass spam. I want to receive email from real people, not robots.

Please replace [dot] with . and [at] with @ when you email me.

Question: Why do you use “Forest Therapy” and “Forest Immersion” in your article?

Answer: I am a guide for people to experience the healing power of nature. In another words, forest is “the therapist”; whereas I am not a licensed therapist. I am a scientist by training and really gotten interested in sensory-based and mindful activities as stress management strategies. So…I use word “therapy” very cautiously. I am still debating whether I want to call my walk a Forest Therapy Walk or Forest Immersion Walk. Anyhow, the Forest Therapy is an emerging field of research, and the members of the community are still streamlining new language to label the guided forest interaction framework, so it is a work in progress. I do believe larger clinical trials and basic research will inform the public and the medical community how the “therapeutic effects” of nature works. In fact, there are many on-going research project about it. I attended the 2nd International Conference on Forest Therapy at Vancouver, British Columbia to understand the newest research from social science, epidemiology, political science, education, psychology and result from Forest Therapy practitioners.

_{P.S. These are my own words with the assistance of ChatGTP in checking grammar and flow.}