Doniga was born and raised in the rural town of Fall City Washington.
She was raised with the values of appreciation and care of all living
things. From a young age Doniga was out in the garden with her mother
growing food to support the family, milking goats and gathering
chicken eggs. Doniga spent a lot of time in the Western Washington
forests that surrounded her, camping, riding horses and hiking.
During her upbringing she learned the plants and trees, which ones
were edible, poisonous and medicinal. She had a strong connection
with the natural world from a very young age.
As Doniga approached teenage years she started to explore her passions
in the natural world. She lived and worked on an organic farm that
supplied produce for restaurants, farmers markets and the community.
In 1997 she started a full-time high school immersion program in
nature, tracking, bird language and wilderness survival skills at
the Wilderness Awareness School in Duvall Washington. Here Doniga
honed her skills in the natural world, completing the 2000 hour
Kamana Naturalist Training Program. During this time Doniga shared
her love of children by instructing at summer camps and youth home
school programs through the Wilderness Awareness School.
After completing high school Doniga went on to study with world
renowned tracker and writer, Tom Brown Jr. in rural areas of the
Pine Barrens of New Jersey. Here Doniga took part in 13 intensive
courses on tracking, awareness, philosophy and wilderness survival.
Doniga also helped start, direct and instruct the Tracker School
youth summer programs, Coyote Tracks. From her intensive training
in the arts of wildlife tracking and nature awareness Doniga went
on to instruct groups of all ages.
Along with her mentor, Jon Young, Doniga coordinated and instructed
courses in bird language, tracking expeditions, Cybertracker, the
art of mentoring and wilderness survival. Doniga has helped lead
workshops for US Fish and Wildlife Service, Kamahameha Schools,
Hawk Circle, Omega Institute, Institute of Noetic Sciences, US Geological
Survey, Victor Wooten’s Bass/Nature camps, Permaculture Institute
of Northern California, Starhawk’s Earth Activist Trainings,
and various non profits and schools around the United States, Canada
and Europe.
Doniga then went on to gain a Bachelors Degree in Sustainable Community
Development at Prescott College, Arizona. Some of the courses Doniga
took were in subjects of Permaculture Design, Watercolor in Landscape
Design, Regenerative and Sustainable Landscape Design. Doniga took
part in a yearlong intensive training with Penny Livingston in Regenerative
Design and Permaculture. www.regenerativedesign.org
With Doniga’s current enrollment in University of California
Berkeley Extension program she is pursuing her certificate and license
in Landscape Architecture. This cutting edge program focuses on
sustainability in the built environment.
Doniga has also consulted on many projects including a permanent
exhibit at the Museum of Science, Boston called, “A Birds
World”. More recently Doniga has been consulting with the
Exploratorium, San Francisco on a listening exhibit. Here Doniga
leads viewers through how she, as a wildlife tracker and land management
consultant uses her listening skills to aid in her work.
With Doniga’s extensive training in nature observation, Permaculture
and regenerative design she is currently a land management consultant,
consulting on projects in erosion control, organic gardening, Permaculture,
wildlife, renewable energy, natural building and native species
restoration. Doniga has an immense passion for the natural world
and helping others live a life of sustainability and balance with
the Earth and all living things and to lead a life of example where
her own actions are deliberated into the health of the future generations.
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