Andy Ashton

Andy Ashton believes some of life's most valuable lessons are learned far beyond the classroom walls. With more than 26 years of teaching experience across the world, he has dedicated his career to helping young people develop confidence, resilience, curiosity, and a genuine connection with the natural world.

Andy began his outdoor learning journey in scouts, spending most of his spare time making fires and climbing trees. After gaining degrees in history and geography, he spent time in the workforce, learning what he didn't like doing.

Realizing teaching was his passion, he earned his teaching degree and travelled, lived, and taught in remote areas across Australia and the world. Living and volunteering in tsunami-ravaged Sri Lanka for six months was formative for him, and gave him a unique perspective on what it means to survive and rebuild in challenging situations.

Six years of teaching at Green School Bali meant coordinating and delivering Green Studies: a jungle education and nature-connection program. He and his students explored permaculture, ecology, traditional crafts, bushcraft, survival skills, and environmental stewardship through hands-on, place-based experiences that inspired both wonder and responsibility.

Andy has a particular passion for bushcraft, wilderness survival, and learning from the land. He has spent years exploring Australia's diverse landscapes and has lived and worked in Central Australia, including teaching at a local school in Yulara with all-Aboriginal students. He can't wait to get back on Country in this amazing area!

Through these experiences, along with extensive travel and teaching throughout the Northern Territory, he has developed a deep appreciation for Australian First Nations perspectives on caring for Country. He values opportunities to learn from Traditional Owners and believes these ways of knowing offer profound lessons in observation, reciprocity, sustainability, and belonging. Wherever appropriate, he enjoys helping young people engage respectfully with these perspectives while encouraging their own sense of connection to place.

His love of remote places and self-reliance also led him to become a reserve participant for the TV series Alone Australia, where he undertook intensive preparation in Arctic survival, bushcraft, foraging, shelter building, and resilience under extreme conditions. These experiences continue to shape the adventurous, practical learning opportunities he creates for young people.

Currently, Andy is in Melbourne, loving teaching Zookeeping and Permaculture Gardening to high school students.

Andy is excited to be joining the WorldWise Learning Adventures community and looks forward to sharing an unforgettable journey of adventure, discovery, and meaningful connection — with the land, with local communities, and with one another.