About the WildNet network

Connecting
people.
Strengthening our connection to nature.

WildNet is a network of wilderness schools and people who share knowledge about nature. We come together to deepen our connection to nature, share experience and find shared solutions to the challenges of running courses.

Find wilderness schools and courses that suit you. If you offer courses yourself, the network offers a place to exchange ideas and find support for your work.

A group following animal tracks in the forest
Nick helps two children make fire by friction Children and adults gathered around a campfire

Our mission

Helping others
connect to nature.

We want to see a society where a connection to nature has a natural place in everyday life.

A society where children explore the world around them with curiosity, adults learn new things outdoors, and people share their knowledge and experience.

Nature and wilderness schools make room for this. People observe, experiment, ask questions and learn together: tracking animals, working with natural materials, travelling through the wilderness or gathering around a campfire.

Through our network, we strengthen this work: we help people discover courses, share experience and use common tools to organise their work.

The idea behind WildNet

Shared challenges.
Shared solutions.

We do not have to solve all these challenges on our own.

Finding the right place to start

People looking for a nature or wilderness course often have questions: What is available? What is right for me? And who is active nearby?

WildNet makes this range of courses easier to explore and helps people get to know the educators behind them. A wish to spend more time outdoors can become a clear next step.

More time for outdoor work

Running a wilderness school or offering courses independently involves a lot of work alongside teaching: publishing courses, reaching participants, processing registrations, preparing invoices and answering questions.

Shared infrastructure gives access to tools and opportunities that would take a great deal of effort for one school to build on its own. New and small schools can benefit just as much as established teams. This leaves more time and resources for good educational work, while each school can keep its own focus and ways of working.

Our story

From a directory
to a growing network.

WildNet builds on an idea that has long brought the wilderness education community together: helping people discover the places where a connection to nature is nurtured and shared.

An important foundation for today’s WildNet was the European Wilderness Schools Portal, created by Kirsten Segler (Article on wilderness education referring to the portal in the socialnet encyclopedia).

Wildnisschule Chiemgau describes the transition from the former portal to today’s network of wilderness schools in its article on the history of the wilderness network. The goal was to grow the portal for wilderness schools and related providers into a broad network that supports a deeper connection to nature. The ANU regional association for Lower Saxony and Bremen also features WildNet in its network directory.

  1. The idea takes shape

    Nick develops the idea for a wider platform and starts talking with wilderness schools.

  2. Development begins

    Nick and Felix build an initial prototype, then decide to create their own technical foundation.

  3. Building on what came before

    Nick takes over the European Wilderness Schools Portal, previously run by Kirsten Segler.

  4. WildNet goes online

    WildNet launches with an interactive map of wilderness schools. Visitors can explore schools and find out who shares knowledge about nature nearby.

  5. The course finder arrives

    Courses join schools on a shared map. Visitors can search by place, date and topic, while schools publish and manage their own courses.

  6. Booking tools simplify course admin

    The course directory grows into booking and admin software for members. Registrations, payments, invoices and participant lists come together, and bookings can be embedded on a school’s own website.

  7. The forum opens new spaces

    A shared forum creates space for questions, exchanging experience and making connections. Public topic groups and private groups for courses, teams and alumni help people stay connected beyond individual events.

  8. Local meetups bring the network together

    Wilderness schools meet in person at regional gatherings. They share experiences from their work, coordinate and plan projects such as Wilderness Days. This is how collaboration grows locally, too.

What we do

What we make
possible together.

Our mission takes shape when people find courses, everyday work gets easier and new connections grow.

01Discover courses
Our school and course finder helps people explore and find the right activities. From first experiences in nature and family camps to traditional skills and in-depth training, it brings the range of schools into view.
Explore courses
02Make admin easier
Our booking and admin tools support registrations, invoices, payments and participant lists. Bookings can also be embedded on a school’s own website, so its own presence stays at the centre.
Explore the booking system
03Bring people together
Forums, groups and regional meetups create connections beyond one school or course. People can share experience, ask questions and develop ideas together.
Visit the forum
04Experience nature locally
Shared activities such as Wilderness Days bring schools and people interested in nature together. In Leipzig, five wilderness schools joined forces to organise the first Open Wilderness Day in 2024, with support from WildNet. Read about it from Wildnisschule Vier Fährten.

What we believe in

Our shared values.

For us, a connection to nature begins with paying attention. It also shapes how we treat each other and take responsibility for our actions.

Respect nature
Care and respect for the world around us are the foundation of our work.
Make room for diversity
Everyone should feel welcome and respected, regardless of origin, gender, religion or sexual orientation.
Stand up for our values
We stand for democratic principles. Dehumanising views and discriminatory behaviour have no place here.
Share knowledge with care
We value different experiences and perspectives, and respect the origins of the knowledge we pass on.
Learn together
We welcome questions, listen to each other and remain learners ourselves. Feedback helps us improve our work.
Support independence
Schools bring their own focus and ways of working. Shared solutions should support this diversity.

The wilderness schools in our network have set out their shared understanding in a statement of principles. It guides our collaboration and leaves room to grow.

Read our principles

Improving quality together

What makes good wilderness and nature education? The network brings together practical teaching experience and feedback from participants. Reviews and evaluations help people choose suitable courses and help schools improve their work.

We want to build on this by developing shared quality criteria together, giving people guidance when choosing courses and supporting schools in their work.

Operations and technical development

Nick and Felix.

Nick and Felix look after connections across the network, day-to-day operations and technical development. Our shared infrastructure grows with the experience, ideas and needs of our members.

Nick De Rijke

Nick De Rijke

Co-founder · Wilderness education and community

Nick’s path into wilderness education began as a participant at wilderness camps. After training as a nature and wilderness educator, he went on to lead programmes himself. In 2013 and 2014, he spent a year living in the wilderness of North America.

Nick founded the wilderness school “Stay Wild – Natur verbindet” in 2015. He completed a degree in education at the University of Würzburg in 2021. Today, he combines hands-on experience with educational expertise, working with children, families and groups.

Through his school, “Stay Wild – Natur verbindet”, Nick shares knowledge about nature and traditional skills. He leads a wide range of courses and group activities, helping children and adults experience nature for themselves and develop practical skills. He also works with other schools, initiatives and organisations.

A few glimpses of this work appear in articles about “A different kind of Father’s Day” in 2018 and the jointly organised “Day of Adventure” in Kreuzwertheim.

At WildNet, Nick talks with course providers about what they need, helps schools get started and connects people who want to learn from one another or build something together.

Nick De Rijke’s story at “Stay Wild – Natur verbindet”
Felix Fritz

Felix Fritz

Co-founder · Technology

Felix has worked as a software developer in finance for ten years. In his free time, he loves hiking and climbing in the mountains or riding his road bike. At WildNet, he brings his professional experience together with his enthusiasm for nature and leads the technical development. Since working with Nick on the first prototype in 2020, he has built the foundation the platform runs on today.

His work ranges from the course finder to everything behind a booking: registrations, payments, participant management and all the details that need to come together day to day.

Felix also stays in direct contact with the people who use WildNet. Their questions and feedback help him make processes clearer and improve the platform.

Together with Nick, he turns the needs of schools and course providers into tools for everyone who shares knowledge about nature.

Questions about the network or the platform? Get in touch

Growing together

WildNet develops
through the network.

Many developments at WildNet start with the everyday experience of running courses: a school has an idea, a team encounters a problem, and others recognise similar challenges. By sharing their experiences, they develop solutions that benefit the whole network.

Different schools need different things, and not every request can be addressed at once. That is why we want to bring different perspectives together, discuss priorities openly and explain the reasoning behind decisions.

The network brings together experience, needs and ideas. Day-to-day operations and technical development are handled by Fritz & De Rijke GbR. Membership fees and income from services make it possible to provide and improve shared tools over the long term.

Our goal is to build a lasting foundation for nature education, exchange and collaboration.

A group talking in front of two tipis at the edge of the forest

You’re invited

Find your place
in WildNet.

Would you like to learn something new outdoors or get to know a wilderness school? Explore the courses and meet the people behind them.

Do you share knowledge about nature? Bring your experience, connect with others and help shape the network.

Explore courses Join the network

Have an idea? Get in touch Many things at WildNet began with a conversation.