TW: Violence against women and girls, abuse and trauma

About Evie Muir (she/they)

Evie is a nature writer and the founder of Peaks of Colour - a Peak District-based nature-for-healing community group, by and for people of colour. Having worked in the Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) sector for over 10 years, specialising in Black and queer survivors' intersectional experiences of gendered and racialised trauma, Evie left the sector when they became burnt out, disenfranchised, and disillusioned. Evie's work now sits at the intersections of gendered, racial, and land justice, and they seek to nurture survivors' joy, rest, hope, and imagination as abolitionist praxis. Advocating for the decolonisation of the outdoors, Evie is interested in the ways nature can forge a landscape of healing and justice outside of carceral feminist models. As a Northern freelance writer, Evie is passionate about the liberating form of writing as healing and resistance. Evie's debut book, Radical Rest, explores Black and Abolitionist Feminist approaches to activist burnout, published by Elliot & Thompson in 2024.

Summary

In this episode, we explore Evie's debut book, Radical Rest: Notes on Burnout, Healing and Hopeful Futures, and their grassroots work as Peaks of Colour. We discuss the intersections of joy, rest, and trauma in social justice movements, specifically land justice. Evie emphasizes the importance of prioritizing radical rest and collective care to avoid burnout and ensure sustainability of social justice movements. We discuss the systemic nature of burnout and poor mental health outcomes, and the importance of trauma-informed practice. We explore the liberating, nourishing and resourcing practice of nature writing, nature-based therapies, and gathering in community in the outdoors.

Follow Evie

IG: @xeviemuir | @peaksofcolour

https://eviemuir.com/about

https://www.peaksofcolour.org/

Credits

Photo of Evie by Morgan Barfield

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