Gabrielle Gelderman is a hospital and social movement chaplain. She was raised on Treaty 6 territory in amiswaciwaskahikan / Edmonton, AB, Canada and now lives with her wife outside of San Diego on unceded Kumeyaay territory. Gabrielle spent much of her twenties working around Western Canada as a trip guide, park interpreter, and environmental educator. Her love of the land also led her in 2017 to become a co-founder and organizer with Climate Justice Edmonton, a grassroots organization working for environmental, economic, and racial justice. Eventually, Gabrielle decided to return to school to become a chaplain.

In 2021, she completed her second CPE unit and graduated with her MTS, writing her thesis on group healing and climate grief in young climate organizers. Since then, Gabrielle has offered 1:1 spiritual direction and facilitated drop-in grief circles on the topic of climate and political grief. In addition to her formal CPE chaplaincy training and her Master of Theological Studies, Gabrielle has training in the contemplative Christian tradition through The Living School, in the embodied healing tradition through Somatic Experiencing, and in movement chaplaincy through the Faith Matters Network. She is excited about the emerging field of environmental chaplaincy and thrilled to support and learn from others doing similar work. You can learn more about Gabrielle’s work on her website, or on her Instagram at @theclimatechaplain.