Author, Naturalist,
Rewilding Facilitator
About Vanessa
Vanessa Chakour is an author, herbalist, naturalist, boxing coach, and land steward whose work fosters intimacy with inner and outer wilds. Her multidisciplinary approach blends writing, plant medicine, movement, and ecological restoration, rooted in decades of study and land‑based practice across the Northeastern U.S., Costa Rica, and Scotland. Her books Awakening Artemis and Earthly Bodies reflect this integration, exploring personal and ecological healing through kinship with the more‑than‑human world. She has collaborated with organizations such as Project Coyote and the Jaguar Rescue Center, and her writing has appeared in Orion, Terrain, Psyche/Aeon, Yes! Magazine, Beyond with Jane Ratcliffe, and Psychology Today.
Vanessa’s work is shaped by her own long journey of rewilding the self. After early trauma and physical challenges—including chronic asthma and a serious car accident—Vanessa rebuilt her strength through disciplined training, creative expression, and reconnection to Earth. Boxing became a central part of this process. She trained as a professional fighter at Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn and spent more than fifteen years coaching others. Now based in Western Massachusetts, Vanessa weaves these threads together in HEX Boxing Club. A boutique boxing club within a private membership association centering women and gender‑expansive individuals, HEX teaches boxing as both a healing practice and a disciplined craft, offering pro‑level skills alongside herbalism, meditation, and creative arts. It is a space for integrated training and healing for inner and outer wilds. Learn more here.
Earthly Bodies: Embracing Animal Nature
"In this triumphant and vibrant interweaving of memoir and natural history, Vanessa Chakour grapples with fear and loss, and finds glory in the natural world--including in her own strong, soft body. This is a book that inspires joy and courage. I loved it.” ~ Sy Montgomery, bestselling author of How to Be A Good Creature and The Soul of An Octopus
"Somewhere between a field guide about wild animals and an intimate memoir about a woman’s journey toward wildness and truth, Vanessa Chakour’s Earthly Bodies will make you think deeply about the relationship between your internal and external environments, and the way that each are threatened by modern life. I left this book feeling much more attuned to animal life—my own included." ~ Erica Berry author of Wolfish
Wild Voices Collective
Wild Voices Collective is a new project recently founded and launched by Vanessa. We invite you to listen to our latest podcast and subscribe to our online magazine.
AWAKENING ARTEMIS
Combining Vanessa’s story of healing with practical plant-based knowledge, Awakening Artemis is rooted in the belief that healing happens through reclaiming an intuitive connection to ourselves, to the natural world, and to our own “inner wild.”
“An eloquent exploration of the deep, life-giving bonds between plants and people. Vanessa Chakour’s engaging and insightful reflections show us how the generosity of plants can heal us and make us whole.” –David George Haskell, author of Pulitzer finalist The Forest Unseen and Burroughs medalist The Songs of Trees
Testimonials
