,Clare Finlator

Co Founder, Vision holder, Manager, Forest Alchemist, Qigong teacher.

For the past 24 years I have been investigating the nature of reality, and following a path of inner transformation, whilst also thoroughly questioning the underlying social and economic structures that underpin the ecological degradation and perpetuation of violence on our planet.

My excitement lies in finding the balance between the path of meditation (inner transformation) and of conscious action in the world, and in the recognition that really there is no inner and outer, and its all the same thing.

This journey has led me to travel and learn with many different teachers and to undertake much research in the fields of spirituality, ecology, consciousness, alternative economies, social business, systemic change, permaculture, agroforestry, food and health.

In earlier days I  worked as an administrator in the arts, as a yoga teacher, massage therapist, and event organiser, and also have extensive experience in group work, and counselling.

Since 2008 I am a keen practitioner of Taoist Energy Arts, and am a qualified instructor in Qigong and Taoist Breathing techniques.

From an early age I have loved of forests, and believe that planting trees is the solution to most of the world’s practical problems.

I have been actively supporting a community reforestation project in Ecuador for many years, and in 2012 I founded Earthlife, with the intention of creating a funding and support vehicle for regenerative and community led reforestation projects. In 2019 I started Earthlife Goods Ltd – a company with the mission to help community-based forest stewardship by helping develop and sell high quality products from the forest.

The seeds for Monte da Vida were sown in 2008 when I met Servan and we felt a shared vision emerge to create a space for meditation and transformation,  that would be supportive for our own practise and for that of others.  A place for living harmoniously with nature, discovering our right relationship with the land and with other collaborators.

Since arriving on the land in south-west Portugal in 2013, I am continually grateful for this opportunity to live my passions and to have the space to discover new ones. We have faced many challenges, internal and external, and had many opportunities to learn and to grow.

I love the fluid and constantly changing life I lead here, the wide range of activities I find myself involved with, and the ever-deepening relationship with the land, the trees, the plants, and all life seen and unseen.

In 2018 I began developing the “Forest Alchemy” range of vibrational essences, made in collaboration with the trees at Monte da Vida, and wild aromatic plant distillations. In 2022 I qualified as a Flower Essence practitioner with a Diploma in “Quantum Botanicals” from the School of Natural Medicine, UK. 

I enjoy gardening, foraging, and making healthy food.

You can read more about my journey here:

http://planetofpossibilities.com/clare/