La Salamandre began as a simple fanzine when Julien Perrot was just 11 years old. " The goal was to reconnect people with the living world, with plants, birds, trees, insects, and all the life I could observe as a kid ".
Forty-two years later, La Salamandre is an independent, non-profit publishing house that produces various content to learn about, discover, and love nature. It publishes 3 magazines: the Salamandre magazine for adults, La Petite Salamandre for ages 4-7, and La Salamandre Junior for ages 8-12.
You'll find all sorts of practical sections to observe animals, use wild plants, news about nature, in-depth features on a particular animal, plant, or natural habitat, comics, and investigations. The children's magazines also offer games, puzzles, activities, recipes, and quizzes.
La Salamandre also publishes about a dozen books each year, including field guides and essays, and offers an online nature documentary platform, Salamandre TV. Julien Perrot also runs a YouTube channel, La Minute Nature.
So why encourage people to engage with nature? First, it has the virtue of providing us with positive energy. " It benefits our mental health, calms our blood pressure, and releases a cocktail of hormones that relax us. It also helps us slow down in a world that is moving faster and faster ", explains Julien Perrot.
" It’s also about reminding people that nature is all around them and that they can access it. It's about taking care of oneself and giving oneself the strength and resources to engage later ".
Engaging with nature also raises awareness of the interdependent relationships we all have with the entire living world.
" We try with great joy to share our love for the living world. And to do it, which is very important today, in a truly positive way. Because we need beauty, light, hope, and stories that motivate us to change the world ", concludes Julien Perrot.
