Authentic Adventure
Recently I was at a school preparing for a camp information session for a group of Year 9 girls. During lunchtime, I walked into the classroom and discovered several girls clustered around laptops playing Minecraft. They couldn’t wait to show me the “world” they had created – complete with sprawling forests, wild rivers, pristine waterfalls, a diverse array of animals, and boats for transportation. Their enthusiasm was infectious as they proudly displayed all the features of their virtual world and described the exciting adventures their characters would experience!
The irony wasn’t lost on anyone when they closed their laptops and settled in for the information session about their upcoming Year 9 camp with Outward Bound Australia. While they had constructed an incredible world of digital adventure, they were about to embark on a genuine, authentic adventure in the real Australian wilderness!
If we look around us, we can see that young people today increasingly experience life through their screens. Their relationships form, develop, and sometimes end through phones and social media. They access music via extensive digital libraries, attend classes online, carry the latest news and information in their pockets, and often wrap their entire self-identity in this interconnected digital environment. It’s deeply concerning to observe how, following the COVID pandemic, growing numbers of young people are refusing to attend school and struggling more than ever with significant mental health challenges that affect both their personal wellbeing and their relationships with family and friends. Jonathan Haidt highlights this problem perfectly in his acclaimed book, “The Anxious Generation,” noting: “This is the great irony of social media [and the online world]: the more you immerse yourself in it, the more lonely and depressed you become.”
Given this widespread mental health crisis among our youth, it is essential that they engage in unstructured play, embrace calculated risks, explore natural environments, discover moments of awe and wonder, and participate in authentic adventures. This is where Outward Bound comes in – we help young people disconnect to be able to reconnect.
When we describe something as “authentic,” we mean it’s real; something that is genuine, or actual – not artificial or imitative. For many young people, the line between virtual and physical worlds is often blurred. What makes Outward Bound such an effective educational approach is that through the authenticity of our programs, participants naturally attribute greater value to their experiences, which helps them connect more meaningfully with the concepts being taught.
Consider this example: when teaching students about effective communication, what could be more authentic than placing two students in a canoe and challenging them to coordinate paddling and steering in a straight line? This requires patience, listening skills, trial and error, and most importantly, effective communication with your partner. These valuable life-skills stay with young people long after they finish their Outward Bound program.
Hand-in hand with the authentic nature of Outward Bound is the sense of adventure that comes with participating in a program, this real-life adventure often becomes the highlight for our participants. Kurt Hahn, who co-founded Outward Bound, expressed this powerfully when he said: “Without the instinct for adventure, any civilisation, however enlightened; any state, however well-ordered, will wilt and wither.”
For us, authentic adventure represents a fundamental cornerstone of every Outward Bound program. We believe young people need to take more risks, demonstrate greater boldness, and engage in experiences where outcomes aren’t predetermined. We deliberately incorporate this sense of authentic adventure into our program design and staff training. Our journeys take us into beautiful, remote natural settings where we use various adventure activities as metaphors for learning and our exceptional group leaders integrate the essential elements of authentic education into their teaching.
They bridge the divide between student and teacher, dismantling traditional hierarchies. They create learning environments that feel both enjoyable and safe. They remain alert to the educational opportunities surrounding them, staying open to unexpected possibilities. And perhaps most importantly, they remain genuine – they simply be their authentic selves.
As increasing numbers of young people retreat into digital worlds, providing opportunities for authentic adventure experiences in the physical world becomes absolutely crucial. Outward Bound offers them an escape from the pressures of structured, urban, and digitally overwhelming lives. Instead, they step into open spaces where life simplifies, natural environments expand around them, and new experiences and adventures flourish.
