Gerdi with João Perre Viana on the benefits of walking in Nature
I first came across João Perre Viana on Linkedin when we both responded to a post that spoke to us. I think he may even have liked my comment.
Always curious to know who is interacting in some way with the same content I am, I checked out his profile and was immediately intrigued.
On his profile João describes himself as the founder and pioneer of Walking Mentorship. Combining walking in nature with individual and Group Mentoring it is a tool to inspire and motivate individual change and impact organizations from within.
João considers himself a citizen of the world, as he was born in Portugal, finished high school in the U.S., and completed his MBA in Belgium in 2003.
His first senior management appointment took him to Central Asia (Kazakhstan), then to Eastern Europe (Ukraine) and finally Africa (Angola and Mozambique).
Throughout his personal and professional life, he has acquired extensive experience as a business mentor in multinationals, accelerators, incubators, and corporate programmes.
In 2014, he launched the Walking Mentorship, an innovative project 20 years in the making. Walking Mentorship consists of a philosophy of self-development with a methodology based on different mentoring formats, connecting walking, and direct contact with nature.
João is an advisory board member in different organizations. He is a guest lecturer at EADA Business School in Barcelona, Lviv Business School in Ukraine, and Católica Porto Business School in Portugal.
And he is a member of the International Network of Mentoring Researchers, a member of the EMCC (European Mentoring & Coaching Council), and an Associate Mentor of the International Mentor Network.
Bringing 15+ years of mentoring experience at the international level, João has a strong focus on Change Management, Business Transformation, and Personal Development.
Focussing on Walking Mentorship together with his business partner and fellow mentor Nuno Santos Fernandes my guest offers a guided self-development, body- and mindfulness experience with customized mentoring formats, Outdoor and Online.
They connect mentoring and walking in direct contact with nature. Letting one’s self-awareness become the most impactful, eye- and heart-opening facilitator for personal breakthroughs, attention shifts, and purpose alignment.
As they put it: “It is indeed a program for sceptics, an experience that cannot be sold, only achieved.”
João now lives among the vineyards of Portugal where — during COVID — he has taken his mentees on virtual mentored walks.
He told me in an earlier conversation that he’s been doing it so much now that the people he runs into along the way no longer look up wondering why he’s walking around with obvious headphones while out and about.
