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Writer's pictureBen Trewren

8 Days of Strength Based, Hands-On, Transformative Learning Experiences with Operation Flinders

I've just returned from my 5th 'exercise' volunteering with Operation Flinders. For the first time, this exercise afforded me the time and space to reflect on my involvement and think deeper about what we're trying to do to support young South Australian's who are currently marginalised and/or at risk within their communities.


The Operation Flinders Exercise


As a team leader, I have the pleasure of leading a team of 10 young people and 4 adults (including myself) on an 8-day bushwalking adventure (exercise) across Yankannina Station, on Adnyamathanha Land, in the Northern Flinders Ranges (think 50km-ish east of the Leigh Creek area).


The purpose of each exercise is to provide a supportive circuit breaker for at risk and marginalised young people and improve their lives through the promotion of positive behavioural change, attitudes and opportunities.


This is pursued through Operation Flinders core values which include Trust, Respect, Collaboration & Engagement, Integrity, Courage, Sustainability, Leadership and Fun.

'Leadership is not about being in charge. Leadership is taking care of those in your charge.'

Throughout the exercise, I have the opportunity to positively role model to the young people through challenging, reflecting, teaching and mentoring moments. We push young people outside their comfort zones, immersing them in different surroundings and the sense of the unknown, unpack and discuss alternative behaviours, pathways and opportunities. Ultimately, we look to provide a hands-on and transformative learning experience. What makes Operation Flinders?

The nature of the exercise and the adventure that it affords us all gives the adult team a unique opportunity to stand side by side with young people. It's a very different environment to their usual 'school' day. Through doing so, it allows us to build healthy relationships which enables conversations about future opportunities they want to pursue, how they can face up to life's challenges and develop into good citizens in in their community. Young people are also afforded opportunities to learn new skills in a range of areas, given time and space to better understand themselves and consider ways to positively re-engage in the world (school, sport, art, community etc.) around them.

Outcomes

Throughout the exercise, there is an overarching effort to empower each young person to discover and demonstrate their character strengths. To break this down further, we seek to develop each young person’s awareness, skills and mindset.

From an awareness perspective, this can include a can do attitude, being the best version of themselves, greater sense of cultural identity, impacts on positive attitudes and behaviours, reduced risk of offending, constructive emotions, connection to the environment and nature around them and consideration of the needs of others.


From a skills perspective, this can include life skills, personal accountability, emotional intelligence, respectful behaviours, appropriate risk taking, self regulation and awareness, diverse thinking, help seeking and teamwork.


From a mindset perspective, this can include increased confidence and value, planting positive seeds for their future, gratitude, hope for the future, open to changes, valuing self and others, resilience and re-engagement with the community.


There are then anticipated medium and long term outcomes that extend beyond the 8-day adventure (part of Operation Flinders Program Logic).

Seeking to Achieve these Outcomes


Throughout the exercise, we look to enable social, emotional and practical experiences for every young people.


Socially, this can include team building, showing them that imagination and laughter can lighten the load, modelling pro social behaviours, giving back knowledge and life lessons, being a friend and/or positive influence, being an example and encouraging other alternative ways to approach life and helping the young people see that their life can be different and that they have support and trusted people that are able to assist and support them.


Emotionally, this can include wilderness therapy 'walk and talk', trauma informed care, mentoring, inclusiveness, listening and understanding, questions and discussions, highlighting that they are in charge of their own lives, empowering agency to make their own choices, debriefing / revisiting, validation of participants to change their perception of their own self worth and highlighting their strengths and achievements.


Practically, this can include preparing and cooking meals, navigating across unmarked terrain, bushcraft activities, team building activities, story-telling, experiencing a remote location – removing of distractions and isolation generates a sense of family/calm and a need for cooperation, pack carrying all your belongings, using a bush toilet and sharing the load of team gear.


'The best classroom is roofed only by the sky.' - Margaret McMillan - (Bivy Bag Sleeping Set-Up)

Character Strengths - On the Ground


Something I've reflected on this past exercise is where do the opportunities for young people to discover their character strengths exist in the midst of the 8-day adventure?


In unpacking the 24 character strengths further, I wanted to share some thoughts on where I see opportunities for each of them to be discovered, practiced and demonstrated by each young person.


Creativity

The nature of the challenge of the exercise means that success can only be achieved through creativity. Bushwalking for 8 days in the wilderness requires out of the square thinking to maintain safety, motivation, fun, morale and achievement. The opportunity to adventure together facilitates thinking inclusive of untried, novel, problem-solving, artistic, practical and productive ways to conceptualize and do things.


Love

Both the time spent with and apart from others serves to reinforce within us all of the value of relationships and the importance of love. For many, the removal of the comforts from ‘home’, whether it be people or things serve as a reminder of what we take for granted. The exercise is a platform for which we can learn to love and appreciate through what we’re surrounded by, whether it be people (those supporting and encouraging me), equipment (the pack carrying all my gear), experiences (abseil 30m off a cliff), or environments (the changing beauty of the Flinders Ranges). The demands of the adventure together also unconsciously strengthens our ability to share, care and remain close with one another.


Leadership

Leadership is not about being the best, it’s about enabling and empowering others to all contribute their best. The success of the exercise is not dependant on individual champions, but collective leaders. It’s about facilitating experiences that embraces everybody’s value, ensuring that all tasks and challenges are completed, organising the team to maximise the opportunities and pushing the collective outside comfort zones to see what is possible. Through the hands-on, practical demands of the 8 days, leadership is best demonstrated through examples and actions, not just words.


'The standard you walk past is the standard you accept' - (Backpacks roadside and ready)
Curiosity

The Northern Flinders Ranges is a diverse, iconic, difficult, fascinating and breathtaking landscape. The significance of Adnyamathanha culture, biodiversity of flora and fauna, remnants of history, effects of climate change and beauty of what is seen and heard compels everyone to take an interest in the ongoing experience for the sake of the individual, team and broader community. Together, we’re afforded the chance to explore and discover what we’re surrounded by and immerse in as new, fascinating, thought provoking and reflective environment.


Fairness

The challenge of both living and thriving together over 8 days in a challenging environment ensures there is no room for inequity. Irrespective of your place within the team, there is a critical need to treat all people the same according to notions of fairness, respect and justice. Success can only be achieved when everyone is cared for, considered and valued as equals. As leaders, fairness is reinforced by not letting feelings bias decisions, affording everyone the opportunity to contribute and giving everyone a fair chance to feel accomplishment within the experience.


Judgment

There are endless decisions to be made, whether it be in regards to which way to navigate, how much water should be consumed, whether you step back off the ledge and abseil, when the team needs a push, how often the team breaks when walking and many more. Available to both young people and adults, the nature of the experience means that decisions are as much about being good or poor, more so than they are about being definitively right or wrong. There is the chance to practise, test and make amends, to turn poor decisions into good ones. Judgements are continually being examined, with the feedback often being instant, the consequences real and the outcomes emotive. These opportunities to make decisions encourage us all to consider perspectives, to think things through and examine factors from all sides. It encourages us to not jump to assumptions or make conclusions and to understand not just ourselves but those around us. Better still, time and space affords us the chance to change our mind or re-evaluate our decisions in light of new evidence or team feedback.


Spirituality

Through the opportunity to be in nature, with the extensive availability of both time and space, provides everyone with the opportunity to question and explore their beliefs, higher purpose and meaning within the universe. A pinnacle experience is the ascent to the summit of Yankaninna’s highest peak, Mt Rose. Collaboratively, it’s a philosophical chance to push beyond the realms of perceived reality, discuss thoughts and listen to the views of others. The setting provides every individual the chance to investigate where one fits within the larger scheme of life within the view of the surrounding Flinders Ranges, and how their spirituality can shape their own conduct, release themselves from past burdens and provide comfort for their future.


Humor

If the adventure isn’t fun, it isn’t worth doing. While the exercise is both physically challenging and mentally demanding, it doesn’t mean that there isn’t an opportunity to smile and/or laugh. There is always humour in a shared experience, if the team allows it. Humour must be respected and considered, but with the right attitude and moment in time, a joke told, an action undertaken or a mistake appreciated... there is always positive and enjoyable humour to be absorbed.


Appreciation of Beauty & Excellence

Without doubt, a team cannot go through 8 days together in the Flinders Ranges without appreciating beauty, excellence, and/or contribution. Whether it be the weather evolving around them, the actions of individuals for the betterment of the team, the flora and fauna as it reveals itself or the rewards of good decisions - there is joy and celebration to be found daily. The question is whether the team is courageous enough to recognise the beauty & excellence to each other.


‘The wild never judges. It simply asks you what you’re made of’ - Bear Grylls
Gratitude

Daily, there will be team members undertaking a variety actions to help the team. Some will do so through leadership directions, others on the back of one’s own initiative. While these actions, decisions and contributions build the team, success is achieved when others are aware of and thankful for the good things that happen. Gratitude isn’t just thinking about these positive actions, but also taking time to express thanks and recognise the contributions of others. Gratitude is also demonstrated through an appreciation for those who have indirectly supported the team, for the circumstances the team finds themselves in and the surroundings the team is able to experience.


Honesty

Honesty is demonstrated through the need to take responsibility for our collective feelings and actions, to be vulnerable and most importantly to create spaces that are both physically and psychologically safe - honesty is the backbone to this. Living and adventuring together for 8 straight days means that to successfully co-exist, we all need to be prepared to call things as we see them and speak the truth with and about each other. Because there is nowhere to hide, it encourages everyone to authentically be themselves and act in a sincere way - we can’t expect anything more and shouldn't accept anything less. Everyone in the team, but especially the young people are fantastic at spotting the crap - dishonesty is eventually exposed.


Kindness

Everyday together on the exercise presents very real and practical opportunities to help each other out, to undertake favours for each other and to undertake good deeds for the team. Kindness is about building people up, helping them, taking care of them - whether be through setting up camp, walking through creeks, cooking meals or bracing for wild weather… Acts and words of kindness are critical to the confidence and morale of each individual and the team’s collective success on the exercise.


Prudence

In a tough and sometimes unforgiving environment, remaining prudent ensures that the team manages their perceived and actual risks. From the big picture perspective, prudence ensures the team embraces caution in their decision making. At the individual level, prudence can translate to not saying or doing things that might immediately negatively affect the team and be later regretted.


Forgiveness

We’re not perfect, no one is and so it is inevitable that across the exercise, we’re all going to make mistakes and/or do the wrong thing. While we can’t expect perfection, we can expect forgiveness. Forgiveness is about accepting that we won’t always get it right, and when we don’t, we should be afforded the opportunity to ask for a second (or third, fourth, fifth…) chance to make amends. The sooner the team can all recognise the value of forgiveness in growing together, the better the experience can become for everyone.


Perseverance

My number one piece of advice on the exercise is ‘be comfortable with the uncomfortable’. Perseverance is the ability to take yourself outside your comfort zone, to immerse yourself in circumstances that aren’t normal or natural, to continue with a plan in spite of obstacles and ultimately, to finish what we set out to achieve. Ultimately perseverance is what delivers the greatest reward, as we work towards achieving our goals and expectations, through putting in our best efforts, it facilitates the authentic emotion of success.


Bravery

Bravery is both the demonstration of physical and mental strength, where team members are able to front up to threats, challenges, difficulty, or pain. Across the exercise, the threats of changing weather, the challenges of spending so much time together, the difficulty of sleeping outside and the pain of walking many kilometres (just to name a few examples) ensure that bravery can continually be both practiced, tested and displayed. At a deeper level, bravery can also be showcased through speaking up for what’s right even if there’s opposition, or better still, acting on convictions even if they’re unpopular. These forms of bravery are often the most confronting but most rewarding.

'Adventuring into the unknown territory takes us out of our comfort zone and into the learning zone.'
Teamwork

The saying ‘teamwork makes the dream work’ couldn’t be more relevant on Yankaninna Station. It’s a tough landscape, and mixed with the limited resources being carried means that as a team, we have to be able to lean on each other to simply get through the 8 days. Everyone is asked to pull their weight, to work well as collective individuals to benefit the team - whether it be setting up and packing down camp, keeping an eye out to ensure everyone is fed and hydrated, getting both people and gear through unstable terrain and much more. Where I see teamwork really taking effect is when there are tangible actions and words that suggest that young people have each other’s back, that they believe in each other’s abilities, but also take collective responsibility for their place in the team. Completing the exercise is only possible when everyone pitches in and does their fair share of the 'lifting'.


Social Intelligence

Maintaining psychological and physical safety and being aware of the feelings and emotions of others is critical to the wellbeing and success of the team. Social intelligence is about discovering what to do to fit into and contribute in different social situations (which can vary significantly across the 8 days) as well as understanding what makes other people tick to maximise their interests, motivation and purpose throughout the exercise. It goes without saying that social intelligence is best achieved through an ability to absorb and listen as much as anything else.


Zest

The challenge of the exercise is tough and naturally, it’s hard to be upbeat and positive about the experience, even in the midst of the stunning Flinders Ranges. Those who are able to convey their zest, by approaching the day with excitement and energy contribute a significant amount to team morale. When zest is being displayed, it benefits the approach to many other strengths as it increases collective and individual motivation, encouragement and optimism. It allows people to feel alive and present. It reminds the team that the best experiences are not lived half-heartedly, nor should tasks be only half completed. Zest is about embracing the adventure and making the absolute most of what may be, for many, a once in a lifetime experience.


Love of Learning

By embracing the challenge of the exercise, there are endless opportunities to explore your curiosity and learn about yourself, others and the surrounding environment. Young people are offered the chance to learn through self-discovery, in collaboration with each other and through guidance from all the adults they interact with. Whether it be new skills such as campfire cooking, curiosity about the flora and fauna, an understanding of the Adnyamathanha people and their connection to place, the experience of abseiling down a rock wall or observing the weather as it changes... The exercise celebrates the importance of the opportunity to learn and grow through the experience.


'Nature can provide clarity in one’s life that cannot be found anywhere else.' - Henry David Thoreau
Self-Regulation

24 hours a day, for 8 days with a diversity of other people in an unfamiliar outdoor environment is challenging even at the best of times. It demands a lot from the body, mind and soul. The opportunity to develop and test how one can regulate their feelings, emotions and actions with disciple and control is hugely transformative. Self regulation is practiced not just through how you look after yourself, but how you convey yourself to those around you. As adults, we play a critical role in supporting the young people through this journey of learning about themselves and better understanding their emotions.


Perspective

When there is so much going on, the ability to see the bigger picture isn't easy but it is important. Grabbing the opportunity to do the small things with purpose ensures that the big things can thrive. Perspective throughout an exercise recognises and honours the value of the end of goal in the midst of the independent challenges from day to day. Perspective is also demonstrated through each team members ability to step back from the chaos to provide advice and support to others, while also discovering and sharing ways of looking at the circumstances of the exercise that make sense to both yourself and others.


Humility

A well lead exercise should result in many opportunities for everyone in the team to achieve their goals, overcome their fears and succeed in challenges faced. While recognition and validation are both warranted, humility is best shared through each person's ability to let their accomplishments speak for themselves and to absorb the authenticity of their efforts. The pinnacle of humility it to resist the urge to boast about your own efforts, while simultaneously looking to celebrate the success and achievements of others. It about ensuring that successes doesn't highlight the struggles of others, or that opportunities don't reinforce the deprivation of others. Humility is best displayed when being paid forward, recognising the contributions of those around you, and embracing the progress of the team.


Hope

Hope is having the optimism to believe in and better still, anticipate the value and opportunity of the experience. The chance to adventure through the Flinders Ranges for 8 days is a once in a lifetime opportunity. When embraced, the uniqueness of the exercise, in an unfamiliar environment and with unexpected opportunities can facilitate the time and space to generate hope for a new sense of direction and purpose. Hope is the means for which a young person begins to positively believe that their future can be very different to their past.


'Life isn’t meant to be safe, it’s meant to be explored.'

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