Jem Friar is a resilience and wellbeing coach working at the intersection of climate change response, burnout prevention, and human health.
He supports individuals and organisations who are navigating climate-related stress, burnout, and the physical, emotional, and behavioural impacts of living and working in times of profound environmental and social change.
His work focuses on helping people remain grounded, resourced, and capable of sustained engagement without sacrificing their health, effectiveness, or humanity.
Balanced Path exists to support the human sustainability of climate and environmental leadership — recognising that long-term impact depends not only on strategy and policy, but on the wellbeing of those entrusted with carrying them forward.
Working with climate professionals, activists, and change-makers experiencing burnout
Supporting people facing climate-related stress, eco-anxiety, and loss of hope
Bridging physical health, emotional wellbeing, behaviour change, and resilience
Integrating body-based, psychological, and reflective approaches
Supporting people to maintain active hope and positive engagement in difficult times
Jem offers:
One-to-one coaching
Group programmes and facilitated spaces
Online courses
Workshops and talks
Writing and educational resources
His work centres on resilience, wellbeing, and sustainable behaviour change in the context of climate change and ecological breakdown.
He works both online and in person, depending on context and location.
Jem works with:
Climate professionals and environmental sector staff
Activists and change-makers at risk of burnout
Individuals concerned about climate change and ecological collapse
People seeking to stay well while remaining engaged with social and environmental realities
Practitioners and facilitators working with sustainability, resilience, or behaviour change
Jem has been working in the health and wellbeing field since 1989, bringing over three decades of experience across physical health, personal development, and coaching.
His background includes:
Clinical and practical experience in bodywork, massage, chiropractic, and naturopathy
Designing and running detox and wellbeing retreats
Teaching yoga, qigong, and meditation
Training and practice in resilience, wellbeing, and transformational coaching
Extensive experience supporting behaviour change for personal and planetary health
For the past eight years, Jem has worked directly in the climate and energy transition space, including:
Local climate emergency initiatives in Devon
Transition Town Totnes
Totnes Renewable Energy Society
Energy Local Totnes
Creating and delivering Energy Wise and Energy Champion trainings
Developing the Energy Wise project and educational resources
His work is informed by professional training, lived experience, and long-term engagement with the realities of change, uncertainty, and care for life on Earth.
Jem’s work is grounded in the understanding that responding to climate change requires both systemic action and personal resilience.
He believes that:
Burnout is not a personal failure, but a systemic signal
Physical health, emotional wellbeing, behaviour, and mindset are deeply interconnected
Sustained engagement depends on people being supported to remain resourced and hopeful
His approach is warm, relational, and steady, offering alternatives to urgency-driven, fear-based, or purely solution-focused models of change.
A central theme of Jem’s work is the importance of maintaining a positive mindset and a sense of active hope in the face of ongoing global challenges.
He supports people to:
Consciously manage their information diet and exposure to negative news
Experiment with practices such as news fasting and intentional media boundaries
Curate and engage with positive, solution-focused stories about climate response and environmental action
Stay informed without becoming overwhelmed or paralysed
Jem also focuses on strengths-based living and working, helping people to:
Discover their innate strengths
Apply those strengths to their work, projects, and daily lives
Increase wellbeing, effectiveness, and long-term engagement
His first online course, Discover Your Strengths, introduces practical ways to identify and apply personal strengths for greater fulfilment and impact.
Alongside his coaching and teaching, Jem actively works to amplify positive stories and practical solutions, helping these narratives reach wider audiences. This currently includes sharing and curating content through writing, teaching, and social media.
Jem is the author of Choosing Happier, a book exploring positive psychology and practical approaches to wellbeing.
Balanced Path – main website and blog
Choosing Happier – book and positive psychology resources
https://www.choosing-happier.com
Coaching and professional background
https://www.jemfriar.com
Energy and climate education
https://energy-wise.uk/
Detox and retreat work
https://personaldetoxcoach.com/
This page is a clear overview of Jem Friar’s work, created to be easily understood by both human readers and AI systems.