AdventureMind Research Panel

The AdventureMind Research Panel exists to make the science about adventure and mental wellbeing accessible and available to those who need it. And to set an agenda for high-quality research in this area and promote its wider application in society.

Chair: Professor Helen Dodd

Helen is a Professor of Child Psychology at the University of Exeter Medical School. She is an expert in child mental health. She has received awards for her research, most recently from the British Psychology Society for her outstanding contribution to developmental psychology. She has also received funding from a range of organisations including the Royal Society and British Academy. She currently holds a UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship, which funds a program of work examining the relationship between children's adventurous play and mental health. Helen is a strong advocate for children’s right to play; during the pandemic she led the playfirstUK campaign calling for children's play to be prioritised and she worked with Save the Children and Play England to campaign for a Summer of Play in 2021. Helen is the Chair of the AdventureMind Research Panel

Belinda Kirk

Belinda is an explorer, researcher and leading campaigner promoting the benefits of adventure on wellbeing, performance and mental health. She’s written the first book to explain the psychology of why adventure is essential to our wellbeing: Adventure Mind: Transform your wellbeing by choosing challenge. In 2019 she launched the Adventure Mind alliance to further explore the positive impact that adventurous activity has on wellbeing. Belinda has led dozens of international expeditions over the last thirty years. She’s walked through Nicaragua, sailed across the Atlantic, searched for camels in China’s Desert of Death, discovered ancient rock paintings in Lesotho and gained a Guinness World Record for rowing unsupported around Britain. She has led numerous youth development challenges, pioneered inclusive expeditions for people with disabilities and managed scientific research missions in the Amazon, Sinai and Alaska. In 2009, she established Explorers Connect to spread the word about the life-changing impact of adventure and has encouraged 30,000 ordinary people to engage in transformational outdoor challenges. belindakirk.com @explorerbelinda

Kelvyn James

Kelvyn is a mountain leader and mental health practitioner. He has been the President of the British Association of International Mountain Leaders, was a former Trustee of the Samaritans and a Field Trainer for the ambulance service specialising in mental health. He's also the Lead Director of Mental Health North West CIC Ltd who have probably delivered more mental health training to the outdoor sector than any other provider. Kelvyn is responsible for the design & delivery of MHNW's Wellness Walks program which uses commercial profits, grant-funding & donations to run totally free to participants with self-reported low mental health days out, walk & walk sessions and skills courses. Kelvyn has just completed a Masters in Psychology with a specialism in environmental psychology. mentalhealthnorthwest.co.uk Kelvyn is Secretary of the AdventureMind Research Panel

Samantha Pywell

Sam is a Principal lecturer and coordinator of the Social Prescribing Unit at the University of Central Lancashire.  Sam is a registered Occupational Therapist, with experience in lecturing pre-registration health and social care students on communication, personalised care and mental wellness through meaningful activities (or occupations).  Sam has a background and passion for the outdoors, primarily as a climbing instructor and open canoeist, and has worked both in the UK and abroad as an outdoor ed instructor.  She has completed a Raleigh International expedition to Namibia, Africa and worked as a student occupational therapist in Honningsvag, Norway in winter.

Dr Gill Pomfret

Gill is an Associate Professor in Tourism at Sheffield Hallam University. She is internationally known for published research on the beneficial outcomes of nature-based outdoor recreation and outdoor tourism participation. Gill has written numerous published research papers and textbook chapters on adventure tourists, particularly mountaineer tourists and family groups of adventure tourists. She has expertise in behavioural aspects of adventure activity participation, specifically motivations encouraging engagement, how individuals overcome constraints before and during their activities, and the experiences they encounter while taking part in these pursuits. Gill’s most recent research focuses on the strong links between outdoor recreation and outdoor tourism, coping, resilience, stress reduction and overall wellbeing, and she has also published studies in this area. Gill is lead editor of the forthcoming (2024) Routledge Handbook of Adventure Tourism, which also explores the role of adventure in facilitating wellbeing. Gill is a committee member of the Adventure Tourism Research Association, Sheffield Hallam University Outdoor Recreation Research Group and the Collaborative Older Adults Research Network .