Dr Les Higgins is a deeply nature connected person. He has experienced the life-enhancing power of nature directly and extensively, mainly through bushwalking, trekking and gardening. An enthusiastic and experienced bushwalker, he is a life member of the Yarrawood Bushwalking Club, which he helped establish in 1982. Keen to share his great love of nature with others. he has co-led over 30 introductory and advanced courses in bushwalking and camping. The bushwalking guidebook he co-authored, A Day in the Bush, was published in 2000. A revised edition is still in print. He has also led numerous treks in Nepal and India.
Les has a background in education, psychology and health promotion. Before retiring, he was an associate professor at the University of Sydney. Intrigued by his observation that people (including himself) benefit in all sorts of ways from connecting with nature, he has devoted his retirement to discovering what science had to say about the matter. After more than 20 years of reading, thinking and writing, he finds himself on a mission. That mission is to spread the message that connecting with nature is one of the best ways of caring for ourselves, others and the natural environment. As well as his book, Connect with Nature, Les shares this message through his blog, Our Green Genes, and a podcast series, Connecting with Nature.