behind the name
Why "Adventures with Wildheart"?
This name means a lot to me. Here, let me break it down :')
First - where did the name "Wildheart" come from?
Wildheart has a backstory - it's been my alias for the past 12 years, ever since Grade 6 when my friend introduced me to Warriors, the book series about cats (it's one of my two favourite book series!!). Their website had a name generator, and I think that when I put in my own actual information, my Warrior name came out as "Mousepath" - and not gonna lie, I was pretty disappointed with it.
So I *literally* went over every single possible name they could generate. I got a piece of legal-sized paper and quite literally, wrote out all of the options for the first and second half of the name (there were only 26 of each, because I figured out that it was generated from the first letter of whatever word you put down). I came across the combination "Wildheart", which was technically for people whose names started with "C", and was born somewhere starting with "N" - but as soon as I saw it, I knew it hit. I loved the name so much I took it on as my own.
I loved it because for me, Wildheart signifies a special kind of energy. It's really hard to explain! But I feel that it captures a certain kind of courage, vulnerability, openness and fun while retaining a valiant, friendly, goofy, and gruffy kindness. It also has a nature-y feel to it, which is what I would always want to be grounded by. I like juxtaposing it in a "wild heart, warm soul" way, where the outward warmth and genuinity has a spontaneous energy that drives it.
I've been using this alias online for as long as I remember. If you see a "Wildheart888" on a certain platform - it might be me!! 😝
((the 8's are just because that's my favourite number LOOOL))
I seeeee. Why "adventures" then?
Adventures, because to me, everything can be an adventure.
Happy things, sad things, big things, small things. When I look at my daily life, not only the fun things but even the mundane things, the tasks, the challenges, as adventures - it all becomes brighter for me. Going somewhere for an errand? Make it an adventure! Planning an event? Why not make it an adventure! Starting a new project (an academic or a workplace project totally counts too!!)? Learning something new? Trying something you're unsure of and stepping outside your comfort zone? Adventure tiiime ^~^
Life is just so much more full when it's an adventure :)
'Adventure' to me has an exciting feel to it, where you can literally make it as much as you want. While you may not know what will happen on the adventure, it's always still *your* adventure and you own it.
Play some music alongside, look at the sky and the trees while you walk, use your favourite pen while you write notes, notice things you would've taken for granted otherwise. It's all part of it 🐾
((And we can't forget that stumbles and tumbles are also part of adventuring!! Deciding to be brave enough to keep going, though, is also a core component of an adventure 😌))
Now for the "with" part:
For the longest time, I was going to name this "Wildheart's Adventures" because yeah -
they're my thoughts, creations, etc. But then, I thought about it.
At its core, this is not just about me. It's about everyone I connect with and empower. It's about all of you, ultimately. You're all with me along this journey, you're joining me and because of that, it has to be adventures *with* me :')
(((not to mention that without the apostrophe, 'wildheartsadventures.com' would
also look like 'wildheart-sad-ventures', and that was definitely not ideal. :P)))
...and thus, Adventures with Wildheart was born :'D
So...to recap -
Adventures with Wildheart really is about you joining me as I learn, as I grow, as I try to find where my wild heart fits in this world.
♥
knowledge, skill, and value-transfer for a world that cares
okay so what about this??? what do these words mean??
knowledge-transfer
Knowledge transfer, also known as knowledge exchange, knowledge translation and/or knowledge mobilization, is (in my words) the process of communicating knowledge - usually research knowledge - to people who would benefit from the knowledge and use it. It is making knowledge accessible, understandable, and actionable.
Most people don't just go and read scientific articles. Even if they do - research journals are hard to understand and hard to access and navigate. But they contain so much knowledge that would be very useful and important to get to their target audience. This is where knowledge mobilization comes in.
They share, or 'transfer', the knowledge to the right people in the right format and at the right time such that the information can actually be used beneficially!
For examples - videos, animations, workshops, conferences, brochures, infographics, presentations, articles, publications, websites, social media posts, podcasts - anything can be a kind of knowledge mobilization! It depends on what kind of knowledge, the audience, and why the knowledge-to-action gap (why people don't put what is known into actual practice) exists.
skill-transfer
Yes, skill-transfer is a word I made up.
It's essentially the same as knowledge-transfer (honestly I think knowledge-transfer technically would encompass it) except more specific to skills :)
For me, there are different kinds of skills I want to 'transfer'. First, I feel like there are many skills are are being lost as modernization increases. For example, cooking skills are being lost as fast-food and food delivery gain popularity, and as we get more and more disconnected with our food. Food-skills are a big part in food literacy, and having them can mean a difference in the actual lifestyle of an individual.
Then there are skills that are more attributed to hobbies, such as photography, music, art and sewing (although sewing is another skill that is more and more lost, which I hope to revive (even if a teeny bit)). I'm still very much so a beginner in all of those skills, so it's definitely a learn-with-me-too space!
For me though, I don't plan on just 'teaching' these skills as "lessons", per se. Experiential learning is a big thing for me, so I try to incorporate it in what I do as well.
That means more subtle and implicit learning - for example, guitar chords shown beside my music! It's little yet intentional details like that, that make it easier for people to learn and reduce the barriers to start :)
The skills that I hope to transfer are those that have made my life more meaningful, and ones I hope do the same for others as well.
value-transfer
LOL yepp, value-transfer is another word that I made up :)
It's along the same lines of knowledge-transfer and skill-transfer, but this time -- it's values.
Honestly speaking, this is the biggest goal out of the three.
To me, values are what underpin humanity and influence our attitudes, behaviours, mindsets and decisions.
I started a list of my ten core values literally 5 years ago. Today, it looks something like this:
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Happiness
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Love & Friendship
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Open-mindedness
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Genuinity
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Trust & Confidence
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Determination & Perseverance
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Kindness
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Integrity
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Humility
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Fun
Sustainability is also top value of mine - although hahha I dunno why, to me it's a separate category in a way. 🌿
Value-transfer to me is about inspiring, encouraging, and empowering those values. It's about creating and building meaningful experiences, thoughts, relationships and character. It's about education, but not the academic kind. It's about how to become people who can take care of the world - with its people, animals, plants and systems.