Naturalists | 01.30.25
Dominique Juric
Nocs Naturalists
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Introduce yourself, your brand and how and where have you been spending your time these days?
Hi :) My name is Dominique Juric and I am originally from London Ontario but moved out west to Whistler almost 6 years ago. Earlier this year I made the move from the mountains to the coast, now living in beautiful Tofino BC on Vancouver Island. I am passionate about outdoor exploration and connection as well as creating community, which is where my brand/ passion project Natural Freedom flourished from.
Through Natural Freedom I partner with lots of amazing different brands and people to connect others with the outdoors through introductory level events and support with getting folks out into spaces that are typically considered intimidating. With my time as of late, I have honestly been loving these slower moments, reminding myself that I need to move at the same pace as nature does and slow things down after a really really busy summer. Enjoying little bits of sunshine whenever I can, literally dropping anything 'productive' to go have fun outside with my partner because the coast gets alot of rain so when there is sunshine, you have to maximize haha. We go on lots of fun outdoor ocean adventures together and with friends.
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We're curious, what was the inspiration behind the community you are creating: Natural Freedom?
I was just chatting about this the other day, reminding myself of the 'why' behind it all. Natural Freedom stemmed from a personal exploration desire... During Covid I found myself like many others 'trapped' having just my corporate job and no other creative outlet. Coming out of covid I had a craving to try new outdoor adventures like fly fishing and kept feeling so intimidated/felt there were too many barriers (mainly financially) to try new activities which ultimately, held me back.
After the first event 'Take a Hike' which my best friend Mirae helped me bring to life and was supported by Merrell, the event involved 20 women hiking on Blackcomb Mountain. I found myself craving more as the energy that day was magnetic and the feedback from attendees was phenomenal. The purpose remains simple from that day onwards: create spaces for people to explore their personal inner freedom through outdoor connection. There are so many barriers to the outdoors, finances etc and I aim to bridge that gap by offering fun, cool and affordable events with like-minded folks.
How do you find being outdoor in community changes your outlook on the world / mental health?
Being outdoors within a community of like-minded supportive people reminds me how simple life is. It reminds me to stay hopeful that what I always craved in my past whenever I might have felt 'alone' other people also felt. It reminds me that we all need each other. We need to be kind to one another and show celebration and love.
Whenever an event is in progress no matter the size, whether it be a small workshop or large event that took months to plan, I do my best to take a moment to really take it all in. Every event I am always on such a high and it's this wild come down after with soooo many emotions. The event that was really powerful for me this year was our 'For Rest' Guided Forest Therapy series which was led by Jess Leblanc of Emobodied Living. We had the most beautiful couple groups come together during the peak of summer to find stillness and practice grounding techniques. Everyone that was there needed to be there in some way or another and this reminded me of why spaces for people to gather is so important, it's good to be vulnerable and lean on each other.
Anyways, I could go on forever. This topic means alot to me mainly because Natural Freedom has given me so much purpose in this world and helped me with my own struggles and I am grateful to share spaces with others and I always aim to create safe spaces that are welcoming and encouraging and I hope that people can feel good and empowered after they leave an event.
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What would you say the most popular event has been for your community thus far?
Gosh it's hard to say, this community warms my heart so much through the loyalty and support. I'd say our 'Take a Skate' series from last year really created so much momentum for us as well as our fishing and hiking events. It seems like it's the thing people want the most and I plan on continuing these into 2025.
We just wrapped our second annual Yeehaw Half Marathon which is an unsanctioned race that took place for a second year in a row in Whistler BC. It's our biggest event in terms of attendees and hype. We had over 75 racers, 30+ volunteers, an apres and this race also included a supportive community through a 12-week training plan where we also offered group runs in different popular communities like Vancouver, Squamish, Whistler and Tofino.
How do you go about choosing and designing your offerings for your community?
This is a great question. It's very important to me to be intentional behind all offerings and events. I can sometimes get caught up in what I 'should' be doing, comparing myself/NF to other brands etc and have to bring myself back to this question and remember the purpose.
After the first event in 2022, we did 23 in 2023 and 27 so far in 2024. I typically am always thinking a few events ahead now that I have been doing this for a couple years and know that we have created some solid series. It feels organic to know what to offer. I also love meeting new people for this reason because I love collaboration and find some of the best events came together from other events and meeting people during that time.
I have landed on deciding events based on our base values which are introductory level events to connect people with the outdoors but I also think it's so important to offer some educational based workshops like car maintenance and finance support. So to sum this up I basically am open to trying LOTS of new things but just want to make sure it's in alignment with the project and I am not doing something just to do it.
The community is mainly based in Vancouver and with my recent move to the Island and working a full-time job it has been a challenge this year to balance the events in multiple locations so a goal for 2025 is more events in multiple places with other people there hosting for me :)
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What's been a surprising element or teaching that has come for you since starting Natural Freedom? Any grand lessons or simple treasures?
TRUST YOUR GUT. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. DAY DREAM. BE KIND TO EVERYONE.
This is a great question which I reflect on a lot. Everything about starting and continuing this project has come organically and I would say my biggest teaching is a reminder to trust myself and my strengths. I never in my life would have imagined I'd be planning and hosting over 27 different events in a year but suddenly I am here doing this as a passion project and it's reminded me that when you truly believe in something you can bring it to life, the only person that needs to trust the process is YOU. Once you have that you can bring any vision to life, we are our greatest teachers and setbacks and we cannot fear failure, it's better to try and fail and learn then never try at all. So don't wait for the right time, just start now, you won't regret it!
You are based in such a beautiful piece of the world. Can you tell us what drew you to Vancouver Island? Any favorite spots?
Thank you! I completely agree and it's still so surreal I get to call Tofino home. If you're reading this and you have never heard of Tofino I recommend you visit because it's heaven. Tofino is a small district on Vancouver Island, off Canada's west coast surrounded by beautiful beaches and old growth forests.
I moved here earlier this year as my partner lives here and It has been so special to find myself in this new slow coastal town. I love walking North Chesterman beach or the Tonquin Trails every morning with the dogs. My favourite place on the water around Tofino has been going around the beautiful calm inlets in the sunshine and practicing my boating, birding and fishing skills haha.
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How else do you spend your time outside the club and work?
Surrounded by friends and daydreaming on Natural Freedom. At the moment Natural Freedom is just a project I focus on the side of my full time marketing job so I use a lot of down time daydreaming and brainstorming events, products and business ideas in my spare time. I also love running to help with mental peace and I am also learning to surf and I love fishing. Basically anything that involves focusing on simple elements to mother nature.
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We're stoked that Nocs are in your toolkit. In what situations do you find yourself grabbing your Nocs? How are they helping your craft?
My partner has his own business called Tofino Ocean Adventures which involves private custom charters from fishing to whale watching and I love to join on the boat any chance I get (if you visit Tofino you should call him to book a private charter and explore the area).
As of late, now that I am an amateur birder I have my NOCS standard issue around my neck at all times. My field tube is always in my tote bag for the day to day moments. We get a lot of cool migratory birds here and with how much time we spend on the beach I love being able to whip my NOCS out to identify and listen to birds then add it to my life list on the Merlin ID app.
Anything on the Natural Freedom calendar that you're looking forward to? We'd love to stay in touch! Where can we find you these upcoming months?
Yes. This is a fun time for me, after hosting 45+ events in 2 years and learning soooo much in that time I want to go into 2025 with a stronger plan so i'm using the fall and winter to daydream and plan for next year. Aside from that we're hosting a foraging event this weekend, indoor climbing event, potentially a clay workshop and then hopefully a splitboarding/ski touring backcountry event this winter. I also have been working on a custom clothing line which is SO exciting.
If you're reading this and you want to partner together in any capacity please don't hesitate to reach out, it lights me up.
You can find us on socials @bynaturalfreedom and email is dominique@bynaturalfreedom.com