our pathWAY toWARDS cultural REVITALISATION
About usLearn about our journey here
EST 2012
About Us
We are an initiative supporting alternative education pathways and local cultural revitalisation through biologically aligned, evidence-based learning for children, families, communities, and educators.
We offer nature-based programs, storytelling, adventure and culture programs, and online training for those wanting to bring this work to their own communities, fostering deep connection and a culture of belonging rooted in place.
Reweaving connection through culturally-rich learning pathways for local cultural revitalisation.
Are you with us?
Our Story
NEW EARTH DREAMING BEGINS
Having recently home-birthed child two and three, Erica begins homeschooling her first son. Embarks on a deep dive into connection-led parenting, education, learning, human development and child psychology.
PAUL BEGINS NATURE-CONNECTED COMMUNITY BUILDING
Paul arrives in Bundjalung / Yoocum Yoocum Country / Byron Shire, NSW. Starts Back Out Loud to inspire the voices of young people to be heard. Runs and hosts community workshops supporting environmental practices. Initiates a nationwide campaign called Nude Your Food on plastic re-education. Runs school programs and starts crafting stories to encourage local nature-connection.
LUMINOUS YOUTH HOSTS PIONEERS TO INSPIRE YOUNG
Erica calls on local and visiting people living their passion to hold workshops for the homeschooling community. Sound healing, Hawaiian dance, sand art, circus, balance, drum making and more. Establishes loyal following and attendance of homeschool community.
LOVE AT THE CENTRE
Erica & Paul rise in love and co-create inspiring workshops together. They hold events supporting fundraising for local community groups and continue to build events and programs for the homeschooling.
GLOBAL LEADERS & MUMMA’S CONNECT & INSPIRE
Erica interviews homeschooling mothers and pioneering family educators spreading the word about connection being the basis of healthy relationship. Spreads via video platforms.
LOVE BRINGS IN NEW LUMINOUS CHILD
Erica & Paul welcome Laodesia earth-side. She joins the three homeschooled young ones to make a family of six.
EXPANSION INTO LOCAL FESTIVALS AND CONNECTION-LED PARENTING SEMINARS
Paul and Erica are invited to speak at festivals, and hold events for families interested in learning about connection-led parenting.
COMMUNITY LEADERS CONNECT IN WITH THE YOUTH
Community leaders and village-professionals join programs for older homeschoolers. Indigenous leaders, musicians, bee keepers, theatre directors, permaculturalists and more inspire heart-centred learning.
EXPANDED OFFERINGS MEET ALL AGES OF CHILDHOOD
New guides trained and join weekly programs. Programs grow to meet the interests of families with young ones aged from 4-16year olds.
FOREST RESTORATION PROGRAM BEGINS
Luminous Community plants hundreds of trees together beginning local reforestation program. Bringing restoration work into the emerging culture.
10 YEAR SUMMER SOLSTICE CELEBRATION
10 years of service celebrated! A puppet show put on by the youth, a ritual, storytelling, and more are part of the celebration with over 120 local community members, representing over 80 families attending.
SOULFUL PARENT/CHILD PROGRAMS RUNNING REGULARLY
Nest of Tales is established for child/parent to attend together. Intergenerational storytelling is amplified through an intimate container of connection.
COMING SOON
Online programs to support families, home educators and mentors/guides wanting to start or grow their own programs in their local community.
INTUITION LEADS TO NATURE-BASED CULTURES
Paul follows his intuition. Leaves corporate Learning and Development career behind. Follows a life-long whisper of supporting children “less-fortunate” than himself. Ventures to the Himalayan mountains many times. Encounters nature-based culture and discovers those “less-fortunate” were much richer in relationship & happiness. Experienced glistening eyes and loving hearts beyond what he saw in the western world.
CEREMONIAL AWAKENING OF LUMINOUS FUTURES
Erica attends a dawn ceremony with global indigenous elders at Uplift Festival where the words ‘Luminous Youth’ arrive in her consciousness. After the recent death of a young family friend, she is called to action at this ceremony.
PAUL FACILITATES HIS FIRST LUMINOUS YOUTH EXPERIENCE
Paul attends Luminous Youth with his giant strawberry outfit to host a workshop encouraging a reduction in plastic use and dancing to have a great time!
LOCAL COMMUNITY RECOGNISES POSITIVE CONTRIBUTIONS
Luminous Youth invited to attend and host youth workshops at local festivals – including Uplift Festival, Byron Hinterland Seed Savers and Mullum Community Gardens.
LOCAL FAMILYS WOVEN INTO THE CULTURE
Seasonal family events bring families together to undertake nature-based soulful experiences. Story begins to become central to the re-weaving of healthy culture.
HUB IS BUILT & WEEKLY PROGRAMS BEGIN
The Luminous Room is built with prayers from the community in the walls. Youth fire and performance, and weekly events for homeschoolers grow in size and demand.
THE COMMUNITY GROWS AS THE CULTURE DEEPENS
Weekly homeschool programs grow in days and size. Providing homeschoolers with connection based experiential programs. Community grows. Luminous Room hosts numerous family evening events showcasing youth creativity.
PARENTING SESSIONS EXPAND
Erica returns to supporting mothers and fathers with learning opportunities for their young people through one-to-one sessions. Focuses on developing life-centric learning opportunities that work within unique family-structures.
THE MINIBUS ADVENTURES BEGIN
Old Mate Lumen the mini-bus joins the Luminous Youth family and becomes the daily adventure mobile. Takes homeschoolers on adventures to wondrous places on the daily.
CULTURAL REVITALISATION PROGRAMS BEGIN
Story and ritual evenings, camps and extended offerings bring parents/child together to experience connection-culture and the revitalisation of intergenerational story-telling.
STORY & PERFORMANCE EVENINGS BRING YOUTH CREATIVITY TO THE FOREFRONT
Ode to Story is birthed. A community storytelling and performance evening, showcasing local young homeschoolers. Sells out on the 3 events held.
THE LUMINOUS HIVE CONNECTS THE COMMUNITY
Internal communication hive established allowing deeper community building. Fosters more expansive relationship building amongst the community.
GUIDING CONNECTION
Our Approach
How we see people
Humans are not born as empty vessels needing to be filled with information. We are born aimed and directed at contributing to creation ongoing in our own unique way. We all have gifts wishing to be expressed.
We see all people as a part of the living cosmos and an important part of the Earths dream. A being with his/ her own story to unfold to contribute to the bigger story of humanity.
A story woven into their being by the soul of the earth upon the time of conception or maybe birth. This story being their genius and their purpose of being here. It is their ecological niche within the dream of the earth that contributes to a flourishing earth future. It doesn't have to be grandoise or wondrous, but it does have to be unique and be delivered within the unique context of the collective society that person finds themselves within.
In our modern world where technological advancement is leaving a great uncertainty as to what the future will look like we all need an increased focus on forming greater connections with our purpose, for our own wellbeing and that of the animate Earth.
We are not here to be whatever we want to be, we are here to be what we are meant to be.
How we guide parents & adults
Our own experience and that of those who we have supported, tells us each one of us born with an innate ability to connect into the wisdom of something beyond the physical realm. Each one of us has an ability to deeply listen and to know the next step in our journey towards becoming more whole.
We hold a space to support this unfolding in parents and adults. With the support of self-enquiry, conversation, contemplation, deep imagination, dream tending and the lead guide of all - Nature outside of ourselves - we support adults to see the threads of connectivity and synchronicities within their own actions and those of their family.
We support them to dig deeper into the underlying causes of occurrences, the roots that need nourishing and the mycelial network that branches from these roots.
In our relating we aim to give as little answers as possible but instead offer personal stories, questions, reflections and different angles to approach a situation or challenge, so the people can find the answers themselves and feel empowered and accountable for their decisions.
How we guide young people
We focus on building strong relationships with young people whereby trust and safety is established.
They firstly must understand our intention is to support them in knowing themselves, others and Earth - not to teach them "our way" or the information we have accumulated along our own journey.
In our relating we aim to give as little answers as possible but instead offer personal and folk tale stories, questions, reflections and different angles to approach a situation or challenge, so the young people can find the answers themselves and feel empowered and accountable for their decisions.
We trust all young people will make good decisions if held, supported and trusted to do so. Often time, patience and willingness to listen are pivotal.
We find playful games that are movement based and creative expression as powerful tools to uncover dynamics within individual or group perspectives, that then allow discussions to draw out the wisdom and learnings.
We sit in circle, listen to each other, reflect regularly and ensure every ones perspective is valid in creating our collective intelligence.
Meet Us
Guides
A passionate collective of culture contributors working within family and educational contexts to regenerate a luminous culture.
ERICA CREBAR
Erica is a mother to four children, and has been parenting and home-educating for 21 years. She is the founder of Luminous Youth and Familial Wisdom.
As a visionary leader in alternative education and pioneering thinker in placing the family in the centre of cultural regeneration she lives between the worlds, deeply listening to the whispers of the Earth.
Having studied and explored education alternatives through experiential practice with each of her own unique children, she carries a deep seated understanding about finding adaptive ways to support the learning of young ones whilst holding the home as a place of powerful connection and relationship.
PAUL CREBAR
Paul is a father to four, and the Co-Director of Luminous Youth. He is a wanderer, storyteller, musician, storm-bringer, energy weaver and a holder of mysterious "green cocoons" that create safe, exploration and nature-connection based spaces for learning to unfold for young and old.
He has been offering inspiration-focused workshops for young people here in the Byron Shire for the past 11 years. He's been a coach of people big and small for over 20 years in a range of activities including emotional intelligence, circus, nature-connection, yoga, sports, group facilitation and much more.
He is passionate about reshaping the way we raise children through active modelling and the way we "educate" them. He's inspired to co-create a village-focused place-based culture that serves our own unique expression within the collective, and enhances the well-being and health of humans and the other-than-human beings we share Earth with.
BRITTANY JANE LAIDLAW
Brittany Jane Laidlaw is a Somatic Ecologist, Rewilding Mentor, and Storyteller with over 11 years of experience leading embodied nature-connection programs. Britt is currently completing a pioneering PhD in eco-somatics where her research explores ways of relating to and restoring living ecologies through the body. She has worked closely with the Peek Whuurrung Maara people to bring this knowledge into academia, and has received numerous awards for her unique leadership in socio-ecological regeneration, including the inaugural Westpac Future Leaders Award, and Prime Minister's Endeavour Award. Today, Britt offers various programs guiding people through The EARTHED Framework, an experiential map for conversing with the body, soul, and nature, based on her PhD research. Prior to this, Britt was the Co-Founder of Wildsong, a nature mentoring program for children and families where she shared ancestral skills, stories, music and movement as a catalyst for holistic well-being and cultural repair.
MICHAEL ROSE
Michael Rose is the father of two daughters and two sons, aged between 22-12.
Having raised his children with Aware Parenting and home-education he has helped many parents to apply these methods. He has worked as a counsellor, a Montessori teacher and a Psychologist researching and serving community mental health. He has supported camps within in the mythopoetic mens movement alongside Robert Bly, Martin Prechtel, Michael Meade and Malidoma Somé. Further to this he has designed, built and cared for local ecological gardens and taught Tai Chi for two decades. He stands for cultivating soulful life and rebuilding thriving wisdom communities.