Humans, animals and land within shared ecological systems.
A Relational Ecology.
“ Respect for others involves acknowledging their distinctness and difference, and not trying to reduce or assimilate them to the human sphere .”
— Val Plumwood
Terra Anima is a land-centred organism informed by the idea of relational ecology, which considers how land, animals, and humans exist within ecological systems.
Land, animals and the natural world are recognised as living co-participants with their own interests, integrity, histories, and trajectories. Human presence is embedded within this ecology, but does not determine it.
The work moves between practice and philosophical inquiry, considering aspects that involve engagement with land and animals, exploring how human involvement can occur without expectation.
Terra Anima is committed to sustained inquiry, developing understanding through ecological factors.
The term ‘Relational Ecology’ was first coined by Jennifer Putney (2013) in the context of human–animal relationships and psychological well-being. It is used here in an evolving sense to explore relations between humans, animals, and land, recognising connection without erasing difference.
ETHOS
LAND + ANIMALS _01
The relationship between land and animals is shaped by soil, vegetation, seasons, weather, and movement with the well-being of living systems in mind.
The approach remains adaptive and responsive, recognising uncertainty and the human role within complex ecologies.
Animals follow their own trajectories as autonomous beings. Land is understood as a living system with it’s own complex needs.
The focus is on working with what already exists. Patterns form through repetition and continuity. Change is slow and responsibility sits in sustained attention rather than intervention.
This work sits alongside established ecological and conservation practice.
Terra Anima is currently seeking a land-based partnership. If you are a landowner, estate, or conservation organisation open to a long-term approach to land, we welcome a conversation.
SPACE _02
Land and place are observed through continuity, so the land remains primary, rather than responsive to human schedules or demands. Human presence is secondary and contingent, shaped by the land, allowing a natural unfolding through seasons.
Space held in this way is not organised around activity. Activity is determined by the land, not by human schedules or intent. People spend time on the land as part of it.
WRITING & RESEARCH_03
Writing lives and develops alongside work with the land, a way of staying in connection and capturing lived experience.
It moves towards a clearer articulation of how humans, animals, and land co-exist within the ecosystem, and where existing approaches fail to hold that complexity.
It draws on anthrozoology (with a focus on equids), ecology, ethology, and philosophy.
Open to collaboration.
COACHING _04
Coaching takes place on the land, sitting with nature and shaped by what develops, sometimes in the presence of horses and other animals.
Sessions are one-to-one or in small groups. The work draws on ecopsychology and centres on reflection, and what arises through time spent on the land.
This is non-clinical work and follows clear ethical boundaries. When animals are present, their involvement is not directed. They are free to move away at any point.
It may suit those looking for a slower, more reflective way of working, with an interest in land, ecology, and the place of humans within it.
Claire Martin (MNCIP) is a dual-qualified, registered, and insured coach with over 500 hours of continuing professional development.
Free Living
Our herd live a life as close as possible to what is natural within the constraints of domestic reality.
ABOUT
Claire Martin (MNCIP) is an anthrozoologist, land-based practitioner, and writer. Her work focuses on how humans, animals, and land exist within shared ecological systems.
She is currently completing an MA in Anthrozoology at the University of Exeter. Her work draws on ecopsychology, ethology, ecology, and mythology, and develops through engagement with land and animals.
With a lifelong connection to horses, she is now primarily interested in observing free-living herds. Her focus is on multispecies systems, animal agency, and the implications of human presence within them.
Alongside her academic and land-based work, Claire holds two qualifications in Equine-Facilitated Learning, maintains supervision and ongoing professional development, and holds an advanced certificate in Conservation Grazing (Lantra).
She is also the founding director of Mill Co., a London-based creative workspace company.
tērra animá is a continually evolving body of work.
We are actively seeking our next land-based holding. If you are a landowner, estate, or conservation organisation open to a long-term relational approach to land, we'd welcome a conversation.
