Aaron's Nature Interpretation Blog

ENVS*3000

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Unit 10: Personal Ethics as an Interpreter

As this course comes to an end, I’ve found that with all of the concepts and material we have explored, I have developed my own personal ethics, beliefs, responsibilities, and approaches as I develop as a nature interpreter.

One strong belief that I bring to interpretation is that everyone should be entitled and encouraged to learn through nature interpretation. We as humans all share the same home, and to understand and appreciate our surroundings and the species we share it with, should be woven into human nature. I believe that through nature interpretation, we can strive to achieve this mindset. In order to do this, however, we as interpreters must consider the accessibility of our service. An important concept that was presented early in the course was the process of unpacking our invisible knapsacks. This involves recognizing the privileges you have by identifying what unearned assets or advantages you may have that others may not (Gallavan, 2005). Only once you have actively acknowledged these privileges as an interpreter, you may begin to understand how you can structure your program or service in a way that is accessible to all. Creating an inclusive and accessible program for all revolves around tackling barriers. Many individuals may find that socioeconomic barriers prevent them from experiencing interpretive programs. To truly be accessible, it is important to ensure that the service is free, or low in cost, in an area where many can access it if it is possible, or provide transportation to those wanting to attend (Beck et al., 2018). Another factor to consider is ethnicity and cultural barriers. Many of these issues arise from a general feeling of exclusion, whether it is a language barrier or lack of representation (Beck et al., 2018). It is crucial that interpreters reach out to minority groups to express a welcoming environment, as well as increase the diversity of staff.

As a nature interpreter, it is important to understand what your responsibilities are, so that you may be successful in translating your knowledge and passions to your audience. One key responsibility I identified with is to focus on enriching the experiences of your audience. This is one of the most important goals of interpretation and it can be met by using the myriad of techniques that we have explored throughout this course. It is important that interpreters strive to do this so that we can incite a sense of place in our audience by helping them to recognize the special characteristics of a place, potentially by providing historical and cultural significance (Beck et al., 2018).

As an environmental science major, I also find that it is my responsibility to improve the methods of communication from individuals with a science background to the general public. In the midst of climate change and issues of land and habitat degradation, it is now more important than ever to bridge the gap between what is known and what is done in the environmental science community. Nature interpretation involving environmental education and citizen science initiatives can aid in bridging this knowledge gap by improving community understanding and evoking compassion on these pressing issues (Merenlender et al., 2016).

There are many approaches and forms that nature interpretation can take. Within this class, we’ve experienced blog posting and podcasting and we learned about so many more. As an individual, the most suitable approaches are likely more hands-on than what we were able to experience in a distance education format. Providing hands-on experiences to an audience such as hikes or tours are especially appealing to me because it allows you to utilize the 5 senses to elicit an enriching experience for guests. In addition to this, you can enhance the experience and reach as many people as possible by using a media-driven approach. In fact, it is very often that interpreters will reach out beyond the first-hand experience via social media, blogs, newsletters etc., in order to reach even more people than the original experience involved (Beck et al., 2018). Though this may not be a traditional approach in the sense of nature interpretation, it is the way of the world now and if anything, opens even more doors for nature interpretation. Using social media not only allows you to reach a larger audience, but it can also incite a connection to those demographics that are often overlooked, including young adults or teens (Beck et al., 2018). By utilizing different media to gain interest and attention, rather than steering away from it we can broaden our audience demographic (Beck et al., 2018).

Throughout this course, I found that the “so what?” prompt helped me to connect what I had learned about nature interpretation and how this work can be so important when it is applied in the real world. In a world where there are seemingly overwhelming environmental concerns, it feels impossible at times to be able to voice these issues and translate knowledge and understanding to as many people as we can. I have learned throughout this course that nature interpretation in its many forms is a way to not only build awareness but appreciation through connecting with your audience. Interpretation is effective in connecting and providing benefits to an audience including education, recreation, and ultimately inspiration (Beck et al., 2018). Ultimately, I think the overarching answer to “so what?” lies within ourselves and the communities we make up. We have discovered within this course that traditional peoples and indigenous communities have found ways to connect to their lands and weave this mindset into their ways of life, whether it is through traditional folk music that reflects the sounds of nature (Gray et al., 2001), art or traditions. I believe that we can all learn something from this, and find our own ways to connect to nature. I believe after taking this course and discovering what nature interpretation has to offer, we all have the opportunity to become closer to our environment as humans and develop an appreciation and passion for conservation. Through interpretation, we may all be inspired to find our sense of place on earth and become motivated to make it a better place (Beck et al., 2018).

References 

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For a better world. Sagamore Venture.

Gallavan, N. P. (2005). Helping teachers unpack their “invisible knapsacks.” Multicultural Education, 13(1). Ares.

Gray, P. M., Krause, B., Atema, J., Payne, R., Krumhansl, C., & Baptista, L. (2001). Music of nature and the nature of music. Science, 291(5501). Ares.

Merenlender, A. M., Crall, A. W., Drill, S., Prysby, M., & Ballard, H. (2016). Evaluating environmental education, citizen science, and stewardship through naturalist programs. Conservation Biology, 30(6), 1255–1265. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.12737

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Hello,

Great post!

You make some great points regarding privilege and unpacking our invisible knapsacks. I think many of our ethics, beliefs, and reasonability’s are developed when we are young and when we do not truly understand the aspect of privilege. I think it would be beneficial to incorporate this more into the education system so that individuals are developing a better understanding of privilege when they are young to allow for their own personal ethics to develop to a greater standard. Being aware of the advantages or disadvantage of others around you should be used as a tool to better incorporate programs tailored to all.  

It is an important aspect to improve communication methods. Often communication methods are directed at a certain crowd which again plays a role with privilege. Creating ways to incorporate every individual and bring rise to important environmental issue is crucial. Environmental issues can sometimes be ignored by the government who are looking at improving the economy rather than protecting the environment. What we need to do it communicate better with the community to bring rise to the importance the environment holds. This goes to show you what types of ethics our government elected officials really have.  

Blogging and podcasting have become a large part of my life this last semester and has opened my eyes to the wonders they can bring. If the media is directed at the right crowd and does not use incorrect information, it is one of the best ways to inform communities. Especially those who cannot access environmental settings. Beck et al. (2018) tells us that sometimes the media mispresents the facts and provides the public with bias information to make an organization look good. This is why when I complete assignment, I am always cautious with my citations and worry about using secondary or tertiary sources because I really do not know if I can trust them.  

I love that you mentioned the “so what” part of the course. This course was so drastically different from others in university that I felt I learnt considerably more compared to other courses. It has shown us why all this matters. We are such advanced species that we need to create these types of questions to keep us going. To keep us wondering. The what’s next. It’s never ending and there’s always something to learn.

Aaron  

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World. SAGAMORE Publishing.

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Unit 10: Nature Interpretation's Role in Environmental Sustainability

This week, for our final post, we have been tasked with taking a look inward at ourselves as nature interpreters, and breaking down what our ethics, beliefs, responsibilities and approaches to interacting with the environment. I think this a really good way to finish off a great semester of nature interpretation blogging, as it gives us the opportunity to take another look at ourselves after learning so much.

My ethics and beliefs as a nature interpreter have definitely changed over the course of this semester, as while I always considered the environment as something we need to protect, this semester has instilled a sense of duty in me. Having learned about all the different ways we interpret nature and how it provides us with so many impactful and nostalgic memories, I now understand how valuable these experiences I’ve had outdoors are as well as the importance of securing the opportunity for future generations to have the same. Being a biology major with an anthropology minor, I interact with both conservation and humanitarian issues in the subject matter of my classes on an almost daily basis, which I also feel has shaped my sense of environmental ethics. Ethical issues involving conservation can often be quite tricky, as conflicts between human well-being and environmental well-being often arise. When looking into these issues, I often try to consider both perspectives such that harm to nature is minimized and benefits to humans are maximized. These can be tricky issues to navigate but placing a focus on protecting the environment over the long term should always be a main priority.

In terms of our responsibilities as nature interpreters, I think our main goal should be to project such ethics and beliefs while educating others on the value of the environment. Similar to the way this class helped me realize the worth of the memories I have in nature, acting as an interpreter allows one to start others down the same path. I will touch on methods that can be utilized to do so in the paragraphs to come, but I think that acting as a nature interpreter allows one to advocate for a critical piece of our Earth that otherwise lacks a voice. Anyone can go out into nature and experience its beauty, but it is the responsibility of nature interpreters to encourage others to do so, or to bring some of that beauty to those that can’t.

One of the most important things this course has provided me is exposure to the wide array of nature interpretation methods. Starting off in week one looking at past experiences allowed my interest in these topics to blossom throughout the semester, as our initial blogpost established why nature interpretation is so important for me. Going forward into the weeks that followed, I felt the desire to get others to start interpreting the same way the first blog prompt had pushed me. This first post also introduced me to the concept of one’s sense of place, which helped shape my understanding of why we appreciate specific environments, and it gave my feelings of nostalgia more legitimacy in the scope of the course.

An important method of nature interpretation touched on in the earlier blog posts was photography and art, and I found the various means of bringing the beauty of natural spaces to others quite compelling. Ever since I thought deeper about how pictures can act as a way to interpret nature, I have taken more photos of my natural surroundings and will continue to do so, such that I can save more snapshots of different places and seasons. Furthermore, thinking about these methods allowed me to appreciate art depicting nature more, as I could better understand how various mediums can extend the act of nature interpretation to those unable to reach a given location, and even inspire them to get out and interpret for themselves.

Another important method of nature interpretation that I didn’t realize would be so impactful was the making of my group’s first podcast. I had never considered that a podcast would provide an effective means to inspire others to get outside and interpret nature, but I found myself considering going out and birdwatching after making an episode about said topic. Furthermore, the subject matter of my group’s podcast got me to take a deep dive into birds as a whole, and while this episode was aimed at young children, even I found myself surprised and appreciative of some of the bird calls that I hear so commonly but had never pinned to a specific species. The act of making the podcast itself was quite informative, and I can now see how such a medium would be effective in bringing certain aspects of nature interpretation to others.

The last method of nature interpretation I found extremely interesting was music. While I had always considered human-made music inspired by nature to fall under this category, I had never considered that the sounds of nature themselves would also be considered a form of music. I have always listened to nature sounds while I study and work (I’m even doing so right now), but I had never thought about how these tracks could be considered forms of music produced by the environment. I found this quite compelling, as it allowed me to further conceptualize how auditory information can impact how one interprets a space.

Overall, I think the course’s use of a multitude of nature interpretation methods made me much better at doing so over the course of the semester, and the knowledge I gained both improved my appreciation of the environment around me while pushing me to help others understand the same concepts. Whether direct or indirect, nature interpretation provides us with the toolset to both appreciate the outdoors and gain a sense of environmental ethics, which act as essential lessons for the future that, hopefully, we can teach others as well.

I look forward to reading everyone else’s final posts :)

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Hello,

Great post!

The ethics between environmental issues and humanitarian issues can be very difficult to pursue. I find that many laws and regulations that are made are a product of individuals who are uninformed about the subject. This often leads to laws and regulations being made that only benefits the economy. It can become a major ethics debate. For example, the 1995 Groundfish Stock Status Report for Newfoundland was intended to provide the public with scientific knowledge regarding fish stocks and represent a final consensus of current fish stocks (Hutchings et al., 1997). However, the report neglects already published research indicating that stock declines were due to overfishing. Instead, the report shifts the blame to ecosystem and environmental changes. By neglecting obvious scientific proven data, the report fails to represent a consensus from the scientific community providing the public with a biased view for reasoning towards the stock declines. Government officials are clearly neglecting environmental ethics to pursue unjustified solutions.

I am in the same vote as you. Starting off the course I had no idea what to expect and after the first blog post it really gave me a sense of understanding. Opening my eyes up to just the beginning. Nature interpretation can take so many different angles as long as you can find the connection both within yourself and with others it becomes such a useful tool.

You mention how the podcast has been impactful in your progress and this is a perfect example. I as well was impacted by my podcast. Honestly, I have never listened to podcasts before but through the process of making the first podcast I was intrigued to actually listen to other podcasts. I started listening to one called unbelievable and the amount of information I have picked up on it insane.  

Just overall the importance of nature interpretation that you talked about at the end of you blog post is important. I have gained such an inspiration for nature after taking this class and it has made me look twice at my own ethics both in nature and just in general. Its inspiring to see the environment from a different lens and gain the toolset to further educate others.  

Aaron

Hutchings, J. A., Walters, C., & Haedrich, R. L. (1997). Is scientific inquiry incompatible with Government Information Control? Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 54(5), 1198–1210. https://doi.org/10.1139/f97-051 

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Unit 10: Nature Interpretation's Role in Environmental Sustainability

Hello Everyone,

Welcome to my last blog post I have had a wonderful time completing these and learning about nature interpretation and I hope you all feel the same.

I have grown immensely throughout my university career going through ups and downs, rights and wrongs, great times, and sad times. If I look at it from a larger picture, I ask myself how I stand up against my fellow undergrads. Am I better than them? Are they smarter than me? Who’s going to get the better job? I can guarantee most individuals maybe not all will think of these questions at one point or another. Not in a way that they want others to fail but rather in comparison. I do not want anyone else to fail but I also do not want to be at the bottom. Everyone is striving for superiority including myself. However, this concept is needed to create a competitive atmosphere that drives the thought in your mind to push yourself to your limits. To make something worth remembering. To be the change. Studies have shown that individuals have a high desire for status even if that means the downfall for others (Anderson & Hildreth, 2016). 

Regarding my own ethics, beliefs, and reasonability’s they have all been developing since I could walk and talk. I was raised in a catholic home and went to a catholic school. Learning about the bible, the sacrifice, the joy, the consequences. Thinking about those experiences my ethics are solely based on my beliefs. Beck et al. (2018) on page 91/92 puts its perfectly explaining the idea of “constructivist”. We build new knowledge, values and beliefs based on our early constructs of knowledge and values that we gain in early development (Beck et al., 2018). We all learn in different ways meaning that the construction of every person is different and therefore constitutes a different ethics system. Beck et al. (2018) on page 110 explains that in all presentations a variety of learning styles is key to success. Meaning if an individual is not given the right opportunity to absorb knowledge through their learning style, then they cannot grasp the importance of the content which will directly affect their ethics and beliefs.  

Now I have not really answered the question yet because to me the most important ethic to follow is common respect. No one is above you and no one is below you. Being smarter or having a higher paying job does not make you any better than your neighbour or friend. Yet our lives are consumed and controlled by this notion. Beck et al. (2018) on page 101 says that interpretation is a visitor’s experience. The ultimate goal is to get the visitor to respect what they are seeing, smelling, or hearing. If I can provide you with respect that makes you feel like you are important than learning from me is easy. Not only do others deserve your respect but nature does to. In the article by Rodenburg (2019) they mention a story about a killdeer where the students protected the bird and watched it raise its young. This exact same story happens to me every summer at my job. There are hundreds of killdeers around my workplace and whenever I see them nesting in a driveway where they could get hit, I always set up pylons and check up on them every day. It’s as simple as respecting another human being. Rodenburg (2019) further goes on about ways in which we can get children excited about nature allowing them to make a discovery even though you already know about. Respecting that this is a new experience for them is crucial to their development and their future ethics.         

I believe that it is my responsibility to inform others to the best of my knowledge my interests and thoughts. Through this I am hoping that others will be in intrigued by my teachings to become interested in the subject. I am an environmental science student and so environmental issues are a big part of the concerns that I believe in. Approaching the question of my ethics and how they can be interconnected with my beliefs and responsibilities can be difficult to express. I want to approach the problem like Rodenburg. By building age-appropriate environmental education. Due to this I believe that another very important ethic to follow is integrity. Integrity is such an important aspect to follow. Simply being honest even when no one is looking is truly what brings you closer to a higher being. Beck et al. (2018) on page 458 explains that visitors who are served with thoughtful, meaningful, creative interpretation benefits the individual, the community, organizations, society and most importantly the integrity of the planet. By simply being an honest human, it reflects to much light onto others and shows the world how much you care about a subject. It creates wonders for other people to want to follow in your footsteps.  

Now as I mentioned earlier in this week’s blog post, I am catholic and was raised to believe in the holy bible. I do not necessarily believe in everything that is spoken in the bible or even God for that matter. However, it is still my belief that there is a greater being and to reach that greater being you just need to believe. You could be good or bad, but everyone will one day reach that greater being. For some it may take longer because they do not see the way but for others that are in the right place it happens when the time is right. Individuals with strong ethics are closer to reaching this greater being than individuals lacking strong ethics. In a way it is my responsibility to try and help others try and reach their potential. I cannot make them believe in anything but helping them be a better person by educating them on environmental issues, having common respect for others and having integrity for our planet is crucial to reaching internal and external peace.

What are your thoughts? Are your ethics, beliefs, responsibilities similar to what I have talked about?  

Thank you everyone for listening!

Aaron

Anderson, C., & Hildreth, J. D. (2016). Striving for superiority: The human desire for status. IRLE Working Paper No. 115-16. https://irle.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Striving-for-superiority.pdf

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World. SAGAMORE Publishing.

Rodenburg, J. (2019, June 17). Why environmental educators shouldn't give up hope. CLEARING. Retrieved March 20, 2023, from https://clearingmagazine.org/archives/14300

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Unit 9 - Nature is COOL!

Okay, I'm going to be 100% candid with you guys - this post intimidated me. I mean, after 3.75 years of an environmental science degree, I feel like I have learned so many insanely cool facts about nature that it's almost impossible to key in on one specifically. That's why I figured I'd use this space as a way to highlight a few of the times throughout my undergrad that I've sat back and thought "wow... nature is COOL!".

One of the most fascinating courses I've taken here at the university is Apiculture and Honey Bee Biology. Throughout the entire semester, I found myself continuously amazed at how complex and intricate honeybees are as a species. For one, they're kind of feminist icons. All working bees are female, and males truly only carry the biological role of reproduction. This means that all the sweet, sweet honey you see in grocery stores is created entirely by girl power!

Another really cool fact about bees is their communication skills. Bees are able to communicate SO MUCH information, entirely through dancing. If a foraging bee finds a huge field filled to the brim with pollen, they can make their way back to the hive and perform a dance to the rest of their colony indicating the direction, distance, and fruitfulness of the patch! This is especially incredible to me given the fact that I can barely make it to work without my GPS directing me the entire way!

Last semester, I took Forest Health and Disease - a course entirely based on fungal pathogens in forests, and man oh man was I pleasantly surprised by the content. I originally took it as a way to fill a restricted elective, but I ended up finding such a deep appreciation for fungal fruiting bodies. Every Thursday morning, we would take a walk in a different woodlot in Guelph and check out all of the various fungal pathogens visible to the human eye. This (understandably) filled my camera roll - check out some of highlights above.

This opened my eyes to how diverse the natural world is if you know what to look for, and how complex and integrated every organism is. Where someone may look and see deadwood, I can now see the fruiting bodies of different wood rotters, tell you if it prefers cellulose or lignin, and how long (ish) it's been infecting the deadwood for... cool, right?

I also found it fascinating how different fungal species can look. Whether they're dense, white, and round, or yellow, small, and slimy, they are all under the same taxonomic kingdom. This level of diversity is so wildly huge, it absolutely never fails to amaze me!

I'm curious to know - have any of you had any course content here at the university that has made you stop and say "wow, nature is so cool!"? If you have, drop it below! I'm always looking to expand my running list!

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Hello,

Great post!

I really enjoyed reading your some of your most inspiring experiences.

I am also an environmental science student in my last semester and the amount of knowledge and interesting facts we have learned is crazy to think about sometimes.

Just like you it’s hard to narrow it down to just a few. One topic that made me stop and say “wow, nature is so cool” was when I was taking ENVS*4350 Forest Ecology. We learnt that in certain ecosystems where there are large trees, pockets of soil can form in the forest canopy. This creates an aerial ecosystem. The soil is made of feces, falling debris such as leaves, barks, ferns, and others that fall onto large enough branches to hold onto the debris and create an ecosystem. Nadkarni (1994) mentions that the soil on the ground is 10 to 100 times greater in density. However, since the soil in the canopy is such a small environment it can have an invertebrate density 10 times greater than the forest floor. Lastly the soil in the canopy has a high organic content and small mineral component due to fine particles being carried there from wind, rain, and fog.

Another interesting topic I learnt about was island biogeography in GEOG*3110. Basically, it explains how species richness changes based on island size and distance from shore. It also accounts for immigration and extinction. However, there are other problems such as edge effects and the rescue effect. It’s a lot to understand but really interesting no doubt.  

Aaron

Nadkarni, N.M. (1994). Diversity of Species and Interactions in the Upper Tree Canopy of Forest Ecosystems. Amer. Zool., 34. 70-78.

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Unit 09: Sense-Making of Nature Interpretation

“Fire is the devils only friend” is one of the lines in Don McLean’s song American Pie. First off, I love this song. Secondly, I think that line is partially wrong. Fire is the devil’s favourite friend. His other friend being humans. Humans do the work for the devil. By this I am referring to the fire suppression paradox. The fire suppression paradox is explained in the following:

The fire suppression paradox can be a good thing if it is used properly. For example, we supress fires that are in national and provincial parks for the safety of its visitors. Another example is supressing fires around farmland. Farmers cannot risk the loss of their crops. They need the crops to have an income and survive. However, with the fire suppression paradox in mind will this result in a build-up of uncontrolled fires that will have a larger affect in the future then letting fires take their natural course. On the other hand, many people also think that we should never interfere with fires. What are your thoughts on the use of fire suppression? When should we use it? When not?   

Furthermore, the fire suppression paradox depends on forest type. It was found that fine fuels (twigs, branches, needles, grasses) determine the intensity of the flaming front. However, fine fuels only increase in abundance every 25 years. The problem is that levels of fine fuels in stands versus downed stands were very similar. Meaning as forest age they are not becoming more flammable. Instead, forests are maintained by fire. Forests that have an open canopy allows for more seeds and species to germinate and survive on the forest floor. This results in more grazing which creates more surface fuels leading to surface fires. While closed canopy forests that have little understory vegetation and more prone to creating latter fuels which allows for fires to climb trees. However, this can vary depending on the different age canopy classes. As a result of this the fire suppression can only be used in open forests. Would other forest types differ?

The use of fire is more ancient than one may have thought. Aboriginal cultures in western Washington have used fire for more than one thing. First off, they used fires to creates the perfect foraging lands for elk and deer (Norton, 1979). However, more interestingly is that they used fire to create starch and fibre (Norton, 1979). Most starches and fibres cannot survive fires. However, Bracken is a fern that dies back in the fall and when fire does occur the root system is not harmed by fire (Norton, 1979). The root systems can then be used as a flour substitute in cakes and breads (Norton, 1979). It was a major part of aboriginal cultures in western Washingtons dietary needs. Aboriginal cultures learned how to both create fires and supress them when needed. If we can control fires, I believe that we can still use the fire suppression paradox, but we need to still consider forest type and duration of the fires to prevent the build-up of fuels. What are your thoughts?

Aaron

Norton, H. H. (1979). Evidence for Bracken Fern as a food for Aboriginal peoples of Western Washington. Economic Botany, 33(4), 384–396. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02858334

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Unit 07: Nature Interpretation through Musi

Hi Everyone, 

I am sure like a lot of you, I really enjoy music and it is a part of my daily life. I have music playing all the time; when I am driving, working out, studying, or cleaning. 

I have never given much thought to acknowledging where music is in nature. The music of nature and the nature of music article made an interesting point that people that live in urban settings do not hear the “soundscape” of nature (Gray et al., 2001). I believe this to be very relatable as I live in Brampton…. In past blog posts, I have talked about my adventures traveling and summers at the cottage. During these times I was more in tune with the “soundscape” around me. When I am in tropical places, I enjoy the rhythm of the waves breaking, the birds chirping and at night, the frogs would croak so in sync. It would also be calming to hear the rainfall at times. Similar sounds would be heard at the cottage. The birds chirping, the waves breaking on the shore after the boats pass, the frogs at night, or the crackle of the campfire. As mentioned in the music of nature and the nature of music article examining the voice of a single creature out of context does not have a purpose (Gray et al., 2001). It is important to examine and study the soundscape together and not piece by piece. The article described it as an orchestra, which I really like (Gray et al., 2001). You could also put it this way, you would listen to the drums, then the guitar, and then the vocals all separately. When pulling it apart like that the sounds lose their purpose but when played all together can make something beautiful.

I find nature in music very often. Have you ever heard a song start off with waves crashing and birds chirping? Or songs that describe the nice weather, palm trees, and beach? I think it is easier to find nature in music because there is so much music. Also, as mentioned in the textbook, music reaches a greater number of people (Beck et al., 2018). This means individuals that live in urban areas or areas that lack a natural soundscape (Gray et al., 2001) can appreciate nature found in music. 

A song that immediately takes me back to a natural landscape would be American Pie by Don McLean. It reminds me of late nights at the cottage sitting by the campfire with my family. It has become a tradition to play this song at least once by the campfire. When I hear this song in a different context it brings back memories of my family and me sitting by the campfire. 

I really enjoyed sharing this week. 

I look forward to reading your blog posts!

Makayla

Beck, L, Cable, Ted T., Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting Natural & Cultural Heritage. Sagamore-Venture Publishing. 2018

Gray, P. M., Krause, B., Atema, J., Payne, R., Krumhansl, C., & Baptista, L. (2001). The Music of Nature and the Nature of Music. Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science), 291(5501), 52–54. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.10.1126/SCIENCE.1056960

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Hey Makayla,

I enjoyed reading your thoughts on this week’s blog.

As you mentioned the “soundscape” of nature is such a diverse aspect. No two soundscapes are the same. You could drive 2 minutes down the road and witness a brand-new soundscape. That’s the wonder that is offered by nature. Gray et al. (2001) discusses the many forms of music in nature. I interpreted the article as talking about how every species communicates through music, sounds, vibrations that make up their language. This has a direct effect on every soundscape we encounter.  Whether you’re in the city of way up north something is going to catch your eye, or I guess your ear.  

On the other hand, you mention that you think it easier to find nature in music. I disagree with this. I can walk outside and basically anywhere on earth and hear something. I can interpret this sound however I please and that’s music to me. The difference is that music if formed from nature. Past events, sounds, animals, popular figures and so on. Music stole its sounds from nature. Natures music is just there. It’s not stolen it’s always been present. People are hearing the music in nature all day every day. Sometimes there just not looking for it but subconsciously it’s there.

Lastly great choice in songs. American Pie is a classic. It is one of my favourites. I’m in the same vote. Except when hear this song it reminds me of my friends and the memories, I have made with them exploring nature.    

Aaron

Gray, P. M., Krause, B., Atema, J., Payne, R., Krumhansl, C. & Baptista, L. (2001). The music of nature and the nature of music. Science, 291(5501), pp. 52-54. DOI: 10.1126/science.10.1126/SCIENCE.1056960

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Nature Interpretation through Music

Hello Everyone,

I thought this was an interesting topic to read about. Music plays a role in many of our lives and it’s interesting to see it from a different perspective. Music is all around us in every possible crack and crevice. I use music to get away from the daily hustle and bustle. It clears my mind and just lets me relax. Now to think where music is in nature the answer is its everywhere. Whether you’re in the boreal forest listening to sparrows, warblers, chickadees, and others chirping along to the rustling of wind in the Sahara Desert to the middle of the Pacific Ocean where humpback whales produce sounds to communicate. We cannot escape it. Gray et al. (2001) discusses the many forms of music used by different species and how everyone has their own sort of way of showing it. Some are obvious like humans and birds but others such as whales are difficult to interpret. Gray et al. (2001) mentioned that the song structure used by whales is similar to ABA form which is also used in many differing songs by humans. We also have other forms such as AABA, ABAB, AAB and others. Furthermore gray et al. (2001) talks about a universal music that is waiting to be discovered. Imagine if we could discover this universal music. It would open so many possibilities. What would be the first thing you would do if there was a universal music?

Now let’s talk about where nature is in music. Mallarach (2012) mentions on page 130 that folk singing performances may offer the community with new strengthened meanings with links to the surrounding nature. The music is being performed to specifically connect individuals with nature. The nature is the reason the songs were made in the first place. Mallarach (2012) further goes to explains on page 130 that specific messages can be placed within songs to better communicate to the audience. These folk songs and many other songs from around the globe are created to show meaning and to remember the beauty and sacrifice that the land and nature has gone through. Songs hold scaredness. The ways these songs communicate towards the audience changes people views. Different instruments, vocals, pitches, and other music terms presented can alter a song and change where meaning is placed. In what ways can different instruments, forms, rhythm, and others alter that way a song is perceived? 

I live in a small town in the country so really any songs related to country music bring me back to natural landscapes. I just imagine the times where I was working outdoors, helping my parents, or going on a road trip. It was always country music. Blake Shelton, Jason Aldean, Tim McGraw, and many others. They just have a certain vibe that makes me feel at home. Driving down the road windows down country music blaring basking in the sunshine just admiring the open landscape, different crops, and the beauty all around me. What are your favourite types of music?  

Aaron         

Gray, P. M., Krause, B., Atema, J., Payne, R., Krumhansl, C. & Baptista, L. (2001). The music of nature and the nature of music. Science, 291(5501), pp. 52-54. DOI: 10.1126/science.10.1126/SCIENCE.1056960

Mallarach, Josep-Maria (ed.). Spiritual Values of Protected Areas of Europe: Workshop Proceedings. Bonn, Germany: Federal Agency for Nature Conservation, 2012. 170 pp. ISBN: 978-3-89624-057-6.

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Unit 6

In this week's blog we were asked to unpack a quote. The quote is, “There is no peculiar merit in ancient things, but there is merit in integrity, and integrity entails the keeping together of the parts of any whole, and if these parts are scattered throughout time, then the maintenance of integrity entails a knowledge, a memory, of ancient things. …. To think, feel or act as though the past is done with, is equivalent to believing that a railway station through which our train has just passed, only existed for as long as our train was in it.” I think that this quote is very interesting and highlights the fact that it is not necessarily the objects themselves that are meaningful but the stories that go with ancient things that make them meaningful. Also when the quote says, “integrity entails the keeping together of the parts of any whole, and if these parts are scattered throughout time, then the maintenance of integrity entails a knowledge, a memory of ancient things”. I think this is highlighting the fact that it is the memory of things that is important, because without the pieces of our past how are we to learn and grow from our experiences and our history. The quote goes on to say that, “to think, feel or act as though the past is done with, is equivalent to believing that a railway station through which our train has just passed, only existed for as long as our train was in it”. I think that this part of the quote is bringing to light the fact that something that has happened in the past never fully disappears. There is always some trace of an event. It is past events that build our world, our culture, our beliefs etc…. Even things long long ago that we have no memory likely have some impact on how people live life today. Learning about history is not just for trivial purposes. Learning about history is what shapes our futures.

History can also be a very important part of nature interpretation. In the textbook it says, “Interpreters are able to help people see how history relates to their own lives by telling exciting, enriching and entertaining educational stories in interpretive programs” (Beck et al., 2018). I really agree with this because I think it can be difficult for people to see the value in history and how it has shaped us today. I think interpreters can play a really important role in helping people see this. Thet textbook goes on to talk about how it is also important to interpret history to remember not only happy stories but also terrible tragic ones (Beck et al., 2018). Stories that talk about things like discrimination and ethnic conflict (Beck et al., 2018). Although it may be hard to reflect on these events, it is important to learn from them so that we do not repeat the past and we grow (Beck et al., 2018).

References:

Beck, L., Cable, T.T., & Knudson, D.M (2018). Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritagefor a Better World (1st ed). Sagamore Venture.

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Hello,

Great post! I enjoyed hearing your view of the quote.

I agree with you that the objects are not necessarily meaningful but rather the stories that go along with them. These stories provide us with history and an idea of what has occurred in the past. Without the stories then the objects have no meaning. Without meaning they would be forgotten. Stories keep alive the meaning in objects and event that have occurred that individuals thought to be special and wanted other to know about.

Furthermore, you talk about integrity and how we learned from the past. I also agree with this. Stories are kept alive because people want them to be kept alive because they are used as tool of what not to do and what to do. Everything that we learn in school was once just an idea or thought. People kept those ideas alive because they provided us with knowledge.   

As well you go on to talk about the last part of the quote which I somewhat agree with you. We may not remember what has happened in the past and all past events may have left behind some sort of affect. The problem is we only remember the events that provided people with a story to tell. Everything else is forgotten and its affects dwindle with time.  

Beck et al. (2018) mentions that interpretation should sometimes be “shocking, moving and provide a cathartic experience”. Like your points made by Beck that sometimes terrible sad stories need to be told to better understand what has gone on in the past. Revolving around the same idea stories need to be shocking and moving to the listener whether that be a happy or sad story. Whatever attracts the eye is what should be told.

Aaron

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World. SAGAMORE Publishing.

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Unit 6 Bonus Activity

Hello,

The following three pieces of writing I have provided talk about snow and the effects of albedo on climate change. I have provided a primary, secondary, and tertiary source. The primary source by Essery (2013) uses three commonly used methods to calculate albedo. The secondary source by Thackeray and Fletcher (2016) uses recent research regarding snow cover and albedo to discuss four main topics. The tertiary source is a BBC article by Kinver (2019) talking about ice loss in the arctic and how that affects albedo.

To start the article by Kinver (2019) is directed at a larger population. It explains what albedo is in simply terms and then goes on to explain how that is affecting climate change. Very few stats are included but it does reference quotes from professionals. It only intrigues the reader if they are concerned about climate change which restricts the audience. 

While the article by Thackeray and Fletcher (2016) and Essery (2013) are more directed at the scientific community and a smaller population. Both articles are peer-reviewed and use more scientific terms that the normal individual might not fully understand. Thackeray and Fletcher (2016) are focussed on snow albedo feedback (SAF) and further talks about four main topics. While Essery (2013) performed actual tests on albedo using three different models that can be difficult to understand without background knowledge. Everyone who reads these articles are already aware of snow albedo and climate change and want to further educate themselves or have chosen a career in this field and so the information needs to be more scientifically related.

All three articles are informational but take vastly different approaches to the problem. Kinver (2019) article is simply for the average person to understand how albedo is affecting climate change. Thackeray and Fletcher (2016) further explain the effects of SAF on the energy budget and found that SAF is a weak climate feedback globally, but SAF is strongest between the transition months from winter to spring. Essery (2013) explains that the three methods they used are drastically different but still produced similar results for spatial and temporal variation in albedo.    

The similarities are that they all talk about the effects of albedo but in completely different ways. You could write a report using the scientific article but not the BBC article. The scientific articles also provide way more information but with different approaches to the problem. Overall, each piece of writing tells the story differently. The authors want to get their point across but also engage the intended audience. The BBC article works for people who are uneducated on what albedo is. Even though it seems like such a minor thing it can still have drastic affects and informing the people gets the idea in their head with the purpose that they might further research it. The other two articles inform the audience on how to measure albedo and the affects albedo has on the earth. These two articles work by expanding our current knowledge on snow and albedo. It may spark an individual’s mind with hopes that they pursue a scientific career and further expand the research.

Aaron  

References

Essery, R. (2013). Large-scale simulations of snow albedo masking by forests. Geophysical Research Letters, 40(20), 5521–5525. https://doi.org/10.1002/grl.51008

Kinver, M. (2019, November 11). Ice loss causing Arctic to reflect less heat. BBC News. Retrieved February 15, 2023, from https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-50381328

Thackeray, C. W., & Fletcher, C. G. (2016). Snow albedo feedback. Progress in Physical Geography: Earth and Environment, 40(3), 392–408. https://doi.org/10.1177/0309133315620999

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Nature Interpretation through History

The first thing I thought of after reading this quote was Schrodinger’s cat. They both entail similar ideas. Schrodinger cat explains that a cat is place in a box and after 1 hour it is either killed or left alive (50/50 chance). However, since we cannot see inside the box the cat is both alive and dead. The same idea applies to this quote. Ancient things and their history are only kept alive if we chose to keep them alive. If we fail to pass forward the knowledge and the memory, then history if forgotten. If we do not know what has happened in the past, then it is both alive and dead. It could have happened, but it also could have never happened. Details may have changed as we pass it through generations and the story may be completely different. Are there any other ideas that you can think of that can relate back to this quote and or Schrodinger’s cat.  

There is often struggle with today’s idea of integrity. Beck et al. (2018) mentions that interpreters should always tell the truth, but the problem is “What is the truth”. We are often put in positions to believe information coming from unreliable sources including various media outlets. They make their message feel important but, are filled with misconceptions. Beck et al. (2018) indicates that primary sources are preferred over secondary and tertiary sources, but primary sources can still sometime be unreliable if results are biased or inaccurate.

So, when trying to unpack this we need to ask ourselves where are we getting this information from? Is the knowledge and the memory from a reliable source or is it just made-up using fake messages that seem important. It’s difficult to evaluate this situation. Beck et al. (2018) talks about the genres that are perceived with authenticity and they include: commodities, goods, services, experiences, and transformations. If these genres are used to evaluate the authenticity of our knowledge and memories, they are more believable and trustworthy than without them.

Furthermore Beck et al. (2018) talks about techniques for effective writing including sentence length, replacing difficult words with easy words, using verbs over nouns and adjectives, an active voice, positive words, and others. We can access the integrity of our knowledge and memories using these techniques. If our knowledge and memories utilize these techniques, then individuals are more enticed to read or listen further on. The way we write and interpret play a vital role for the listeners and readers. We want to make their experience enjoyable but at the same time provide important information. In the video with Chief Historian Robert Sutton, he indicates that within historical parks they are trying to expand the stories that they tell. Providing background on all events that occurred in the parks. It provides the visitors with a better experience and better educate them. But to what level are these stories true? What information is there that will make us believe that these stories happened? Either way it opens the parks to a wider variety of people through informing from different aspects. Have you ever experienced any of these stories or similar stories that Robert Sutton talks about?

Aaron

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World. SAGAMORE Publishing.

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Life and Interpretation

Like most of you I have been struggling with coming up with a topic for this blog post without a specific prompt. I have been looking at life recently as many of us have as we approach the end of the school year with many of us graduating and looking into what we want to do for our careers.

This course has challenged me with multiple ideas of nature, science, interpretation, and the ways nature can be expressed but also the limitations that come from it. I have never seen myself in an interpretation role but I see through the ideas so far how it can be applied to many aspects of different careers. I’ve been thinking of careers as an environmental technician or consultant type jobs. I also am exploring options completely outside the environmental field which is interesting as I have spent 4 years doing this to potentially leave it completely.

As I think about my potential options, I can relate the topics we have are exploring to many different aspects of life. Starting with recognizing privilege I can see how this applies to every aspect of life as we can use this to help humble ourselves and approach different situations with different mindsets as we all are coming from different walks of life. Finding are sense of place can be used to help guide our careers and path as feeling in place we can make decisions for ourselves and be at peace with them. This also helps us recognize where we want to be in life and spend are days. Appreciating art including all the arts forces us to look at life from a different perspective but also allows us to connect more deeply with areas in life through a different appreciation. Risk vs reward is big one to consider in this idea of life choices. Do we choose that job for the money or for the enjoyment? Is it a risk to leave my current employment for a new one that may or may not be more enjoyable? What is the right choice? How much are willing to risk for something new and leave are comfortable state? All these questions, thoughts, choices can relate to our course topics and the topics can be used in the outcomes of what we do to better ourselves and better our careers.

Well even after thinking through all these points I am left with nothing better than were I started. I think about these tools we have learned but I have no application for them yet. What am I going to do after school I have no idea, I’m sure ill figure it out eventually but we’ll see when that time comes.

Now a question for the readers, How do you see yourself applying the different concepts of interpretation in your life or careers, either in a direct interpretation job or something that is outside of that scope?

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Hello,

Great post!

Considering all the aspects of interpretation that we have been taught and have developed over the past 5 weeks it gives myself and I’m sure many others a new view on our job outlooks. It really depends on the career one wants to pursue and how our interpretation skills will be applied.

I am in a similar position as you as my last co-op employers has offered me a job this summer and there is potential that this job could lead into a permanent job. However, it is more related to agriculture rather than my degree which is environmental science. This job involves the breeding of asparagus hybrids. We are creating new hybrids that are desirable to others with hopes that they purchase high quantities of seed.

I could use my interpretation skills to develop a presentation that shows the differences in hybrids and how the new hybrids will produce higher yields and greater quantities without affecting quality. Using the idea of privilege to put myself in their shoes and understanding that this is people entire income for the year and therefore needs to be successful. I need to prove to them that our hybrids will not fail. It’s also like the risk versus reward that you mentioned. Do the buyers want to risk their current stock for a better hybrid. I need to show them that we have done the extensive research to prove our hybrids will not fail.

Lastly, I want to mention that Wals et al. (2014) talks about science education (SC), environmental education (EE), and citizen science (CS). Incorporating these ideas into our jobs can provide the intended audience with more information and helps to include them. This way we show the audience everything that we have, and they can make an educated decision.

Aaron

Wals, A. E., Brody, M., Dillon, J., & Stevenson, R. B. (2014). Convergence between science and environmental education. Science, 344(6184), 583–584. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1250515

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Unit 05: Nature Interpretation through Science

Hey everyone,

This week’s readings were quite interesting to me. I like the idea that it’s a free week to write about whatever we want. I personally want to focus on the idea that nature interpretation can be whatever we want. We do not need to be experts in our field to give a good presentation and to provide information to others. What we need to have is a strong plan for what we want to do and be interested in the material. If we show interest, it helps the group be more engaged with the material.

I thought the video of Kitty and Jenny was interesting to watch. They did not know all the specifics such as the names of all the species around them but instead looked at it in a different way. Providing us with an experience that was informational. They took what they enjoyed and explained the different signs that insects and animals are all around us even if we do not see them.

This is a great approach to the problem because for myself, in the past all the courses I have taken and nature walks I have been on have revolved around the interpreter explaining what each tree was, its scientific name and information regarding why it was here and some other cool facts. Looking at the smaller details might even be the first step for many, it allows us to engage with the material without knowing much. Kitty and Jenny even provided information and where to get biodiversity sheets so that you can explore by yourself and learn from that perspective.

Now I want to talk about our blog posts. Obviously, we need to answer the questions we are given but sometimes we need to take these from a different perspective to help us grasp a better understanding of the topic. Instead of talking about the first thing that pops into your mind take some time to think and wonder how I can take this question and relate it to a specific age group or talk about ideas that I would normally not think of.

Looking at the article by Wals et al. (2014) they talked about the different ways to incorporate science education (SC), environmental education (EE), and citizen science (CS). This is another interesting view of using these three to become a better interpreter. If we can incorporate ways that allow for skills and knowledge to be taught but at the same time understanding the causes behinds what we are learning and then adding in ways to involve the community, it opens access for all individuals. Merenlender et al. (2016) further indicates that the primary barrier to leaning about CS is their need for work and career advancement. If we can create a plan or outline that uses SC, EE, and CS not only are we leaning about all aspects of a specific topic, but we are also giving the public information that is easily accessible. The end point is to view nature interpretation as an opportunity to view nature from every perspective and to allow for community engagement. It will never be perfect but if you can change one person’s point of view then it’s worth it. The larger the population size that we can reach the better and that means incorporating a wide variety of programs tailored to different groups.

Aaron  

Merenlender, A. M., Crall, A. W., Drill, S., Prysby, M., & Ballard, H. (2016). Evaluating Environmental Education, citizen science, and stewardship through naturalist programs. Conservation Biology, 30(6), 1255–1265. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.12737

Wals, A. E., Brody, M., Dillon, J., & Stevenson, R. B. (2014). Convergence between science and environmental education. Science, 344(6184), 583–584. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1250515

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Nature Interpretation through Art

I believe everyone is entitled to interpret nature through art. Whether it is through the action of creating art oneself, or appreciating the interpretive eye of another, everyone benefits when beauty is captured. As Interpreters, one of our main objectives is to inspire in others a love and appreciation for the natural world. We have previously discussed verbal instruction and other teaching methods to achieve this goal, but I believe self expression through visual art can be just as effective. When we create nature-related art that can be externally appreciated and considered, we are inherently using this medium to achieve our goals. As stated by Beck et al. in Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritage For a Better World; “Interpretation should instill in people the ability, and the desire, to sense the beauty in their surroundings– to provide spiritual uplift and to encourage resource preservation” (Beck et al., 2018). If one can use knowledge and language to spread a sense of wonder and beauty in their surroundings, why not a paintbrush?

In fact, I would argue that art is one of the most subtle, gentle ways of sharing an idea. Through this medium, people are able to consider a visual display of your thoughts in their own time, in their own way. It doesn’t have to be a particularly prominent piece of art to be powerful, either. I remember a time I went to a gallery in central Ontario, and I was struck by a purple painting of a forest in the winter. I just loved the imagery of the purple snow, and I stared at it for a long time. That painting didn’t impart me with a set of facts, or a piece of knowledge, or a history lesson. But it was beautiful. In some small way, its existence reaffirmed the love I have for the winter forest. In some small way, art reaffirms the beauty of the world.

Beauty is everywhere in nature, and every person on this earth is better off for knowing it is there. Creativity is a wonderful way to share its abundance. I will always enjoy seeing other people’s interpretations of the world around them, and I will always enjoy the act of interpreting it myself. I love to draw, and in my mind there is nothing more peaceful than sitting somewhere with my sketchbook and drawing a flower, or maybe a frog, or maybe a little hummingbird. The beauty of nature isn’t always in the most obvious places, either; sometimes it is found on the glittery back of a tiny beetle, or the complex underside of a wild mushroom. These little moments and processes all have their place in our world, and artists are able to capture them accordingly. “Interpreters gladly accept the thesis that beauty is in the hard-to-perceive order of the universe. Visitors may share similar preferences if given a chance to understand" (Beck et al., 2018). The natural world is magical. With the use of art, we can help others understand. 

Work Cited

Beck, L., Cable, T.T., Knudson, D.M. 2018. Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritage For a Better World. Sagamore Venture.

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Hello,

Great post! I really enjoyed reading it.

I agree with you, nature interpretation can be accomplished in so many ways and often art is overlooked. By using different methods of art such as music, dance, visual arts, and others we can instill an idea into individual’s minds that they might not often see in the natural world. It gives us a chance to focus in on specific aspects and beauties that not everyone has the privilege to experience in person.

That’s a really cool experience that you shared about the purple painting of a forest. I have experienced my sister’s artwork which involved painting a mural for our town tobacco museum of hay bales in a farmer’s field. This artwork provides visitors with the experience of what it’s like to live in my hometown. It represents our culture and who we are and how the town and county got started.  

Taking the time to learn these skills is crucial if you want to pursue a career in art but even if you pursue an environmental related job those opportunities are still available. Every national park should have an area where their artwork can be displayed to show what the park provides and the experiences that are just around the corner. As Beck et al. (2018) mentions that "the beauty of human integrity commemorated in events of the past and the beauty of the intricacies of nature give rise to hope, and these are the tools of the interpreter.” Art is just one of these intricacies of nature that allows us to see natures from another point of view which overall helps ourselves better interpret nature and art. Did the painting of a purple forest represent a different view of art or nature for yourself? Did the painting provide you with any other tools that would be useful in interpretation?

Aaron

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World. SAGAMORE Publishing.

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Unit 04: Nature Interpretation through Art and Planning for “All” Scenarios

Hey Everyone,

Interpreting nature through art is a difficult task to do. Beck et al. (2018) talks about interpretive theater and how many parks offer this way of representing nature. By engaging with the public in a different way that speaks to them. Theater can better explain the wonders within their park. By using bright colour, good actors, relating it back to topics of interest or scientific topics such as climate change people become intrigued by the show. An example was provided by Beck in which he explains that a New York company received a three-year grant to focus on the complexity of climate change (Beck et al., 2018). Other ways include music and dance. This is a way to touch people emotions by seeing the beauty from within. As well visual arts are used in art museums to manage tensions and confusions (Beck et al., 2018).  

I personally lack these skills in art as I never really focused much on it throughout my education however my sister is an artist currently working in visuals art and she has explained some of the techniques she uses and there is so much more to it then I ever knew. Its complexity and ways of representing certain aspects and focussing on certain areas of her paintings is interesting when someone can explain it to you. Furthermore, Beck et al. (2018) talked about Maslow’s concept of basic needs and growth needs. I already have my basic needs taken care of and would like to focus on my growth needs specifically self-actualization. Maslow says that self-actualization is “moments of highest happiness”. To achieve this, I believe I need to focus my on the art of interpretation and how to represent it in a way that speaks to as many people as possible.  

I would interpret “the gift of beauty” through my senses. As we talked about in last week’s blog post I have the privilege to have all five of my senses all of which work very well. As well in my week two blog post I learnt that I am a tactile and visual learner. I interpret beauty through experiences and by seeing nature take place. When I go on nature walks or to protected areas walking around and asking questions helps me understand what it is I am experiencing. Everyone interprets “the gift of beauty” differently and as talked about in Beck et al. (2018) if you have a better understanding of unique features such as knowing where to see rare birds or knowing about geological features you will interpret its beauty differently than from someone who lacks these skills. I believe I still have much to learn but seeing how landscapes form, how crops grow, the progression of life intrigues me. Using my senses to experience these wonders and ask questions and to look for answers allows myself to interpret the beauty of nature around me. Beck et al. (2018) mentions the Lakota phrase, mitakuye oyasin meaning “all things connected". This phrase shows us that beauty is all around and connected it’s just a matter of deciphering what that beauty means to you and how you interpret it.

Aaron

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World. SAGAMORE Publishing.

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Recognizing Privilege

Privilege is defined as a unique advantage or power held by a specific individual or group. You may be privileged depending on a variety of factors, including your race, gender, sexual orientation, ability, religion, wealth, and class. It is also evident that privilege is prevalent within nature interpretation. For me personally, I never knew I had the privilege in regards to nature interpretation growing up, but I have realized over the years that I was in fact privileged.

Growing up, I never really enjoyed being outside or in the natural world. I've always loved being home and taking advantage of the comforts of my surroundings. I was never in the mood to be outside, and I would do all in my power to stay inside. However, I am very appreciative to my parents for influencing my perspective and encouraging a connection with nature in me from an early age. My parents have always tried their best to get us out in the nature, like going for really long trips to other cities just for their known parks and trails. Some of these rides would take up to 6 hours, but to my parents it was worth it because it would allow us to the see the beautiful nature that exists within our area. Every evening my mother would takes us for a walk (and still does to this day), to different trails and parks in our neighbourhood to have a glimpse of the nature and relax. My grandparents would also take me and my siblings for walks in our area, and they would show use medicinal herbs along the trails, explaining the benefit of each one. Because I've never really liked nature, as I've already mentioned, I've always found all of this to be uninteresting. When these kinds of events arose, I would always view them as something "to get over with."

It has occurred to me as I've gotten older and more time has passed that having my parents' aid in allowing me to interact with nature is just a blessing. It is a gift to be able to maintain the same nature connections with my parents and grandparents that I did when I was younger. As a young adult, these advantages have been really helpful to me. All of those dreaded lengthy journeys to distant trails, parks, and beaches have significantly altered how I view nature and the natural world. My love of biology, which is obviously related to my love of nature, has led to my current degree. I'm hoping that other individuals are also able to understand or recognize their privileges. It is sometimes difficult for some to understand that they are privileged to some degree for the simplest things, like even going out to the grocery store safely. Understanding every possible event in one's life, trying to comprehend how it might affect them positively or negatively, and determining whether it is a privilege are all essential. Overall, privilege does play into nature interpretation, as explained in this post.

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Hey Fatima,

Great post!

I loved how your view of nature and privilege somewhat changed throughout your life and that road has led you towards your biology degree. Many of us do not realize it at the time but a lot of what we are taught by our parents and grandparents as we grow up play a significant role in how we chose our future. It’s almost like your parents and grandparents were helping you unpack your invisible knapsack. They were providing you with insight that you did not even know you found interesting until you got older. Did anyone else guide you towards your biology degree?

Many of us in this course probably had the privilege to explore nature whether they wanted to or not. The problem with privilege is that it’s not available to everyone. Many times, people that are a part of the minority groups do not calculate that the risk is worth the reward. Everyone accesses risks differently based on their experience. To me it seems like some individuals view nature as a risk or an unimportant area of study. Those people calculate that exploring nature is not worth their time and that the reward that they could receive is not worth it. However, I believe that this is because they did not have the privilege to see nature from a different perspective. Beck et al. (2018) explains that we must know our audience to properly interpret nature. We need to remove barrier to allow for easier access to nature, staff need to be diverse to reduce fears, transportation needs to be available, multiple languages must be available and others. We need to provide the opportunity to those that did not have the privilege. Do you think that sometimes our minds play a role as a barrier to nature interpretation?

Aaron

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World. SAGAMORE Publishing.

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Unit 03: Risk versus Reward in Interpretation

I would define privilege as having the opportunity to participate or be a part of an event or activity that is limited to yourself or a specific group of people. Privilege provides specific people with an advantage. Privilege is not earned it is given because of who you are.

I would consider myself privileged as I am a white heterosexual male that was born to a white upper middle-class family. I have been given the opportunity to attend university because of that. As well I was a lifeguard similar to what was talked about in Unit 3 on courselink my parents gave me all the opportunities to become a lifeguard. Thinking back, I considered myself to have earned that ability to lifeguard and teach swimming lessons however after completing this week’s readings I see now that I was privileged to have that opportunity.

Nature interpretation should be assessable to all individuals no matter who they are. The problem is that it simply is not. Exploring nature is simply limited to those that can afford to go to parks and protected areas and if you cannot go by yourself due to a disability many times your just out of luck. Visitor’s centers can be set up and they can have unique experiences that interpret nature from videos or projections, they can account for different learning styles and include nature walks. However, these opportunities are only provided to a particular group of people. The people who want to be there because they are intrigued or have past experiences.

The reading by Gallavan (2005) was a very interesting view of privilege and helped me understand what unpacking your invisible knapsack meant. It shows us that everyone will have a different view until taught otherwise. Until you are put in the shoes of someone else you do not realize the difference in privilege that you may or may not have. By taking this viewpoint it shows us the role that privilege takes in nature interpretation is different for every individual. Some people might be given the opportunity to have a cottage and see nature that way while other might live near the ocean. Then on the other hand some might have never been given that opportunity. Then when it comes to talking about this topic certain individuals have an advantage over others due to their privilege. What other exercises can explain the role of privilege?

To solve this issue Beck et al. (2018) (pg 133-134) explains that the individuals that are not given the privilege to visit and participate in interpretive programs are minority groups or individuals with disabilities. Beck explains that this is due to economic barriers, cultural barriers, communication barriers, lack of knowledge and fear. If we want equality, then these barriers need to be dismantled and outreach programs need to be inclusive to all instead of projected towards the privileged. Programs need to be inclusive towards all age groups and tailored specifically to include everyone no matter their race, religion, wealth, and others. How can we accommodate every group of people?

Overall, the problem of privilege will always be present in society no matter how much we talk about it and provide resources to reduce it. It’s kind of like how the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, the privileged stays privileged and the non-privileged stay non-privileged.   

Aaron

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World. SAGAMORE Publishing.      

Gallavan, Nancy P. "Helping teachers unpack their 'invisible knapsacks'." Multicultural Education, vol. 13, no. 1, fall 2005, p. 36. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A137921591/AONE?u=guel77241&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=9fe2f151. Accessed 23 Jan. 2023

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My role as an interpreter

An environmental interpreter involves educating individuals about their surrounding environment. Through education, people can develop a different outlook on their personal relationship with it. With a better understanding of the importance of the environment, society will become more likely to alter their habits to lower their impact. Therefore, an ideal interpreter uses their knowledge to help people make these connections. They do so in a way that will cater to everyone’s learning capabilities. 

Teaching in different outdoor environments can be a great way for people to not only learn but also experience natures beauty in the moment. Building these personal connections will make people feel more inclined to protect the valuable resources that they are admiring. Places like national parks are a great place for an environmental interpreter to host education programs because it will demonstrate all the environment has to offer. An example of an amazing national park in Ontario is Bruce Peninsula National Park. There is lots of hiking trails with plenty of areas to take in nature and wildlife. This provides a great environment to build connections with the teachings and surrounding nature. 

The skills needed to be an interpreter is organizational skills, education and passion. Thorough planning should go into every educational program in order to get the desired information across to everyone in a way they can learn. When it comes to talking about more scientific concepts, an interpreter should organize how they plan on presenting such information to their audience in order to give them a good learning experience. Having vast knowledge of the natural world is vital for an interpreter. Education in the topic will allow the correct and current information on the environment to be portrayed to the visitors. Along with this comes passion. This is a very important trait because when an interpreter has a love and genuine interest in the environment and it’s preservation, that will come across to your audience. This will have a greater impact on the presentation of information and keep everyone engaged. 

As a kid, I remember going on educational field trips to places like the Kortright Centre in Vaughan. At this centre, we would go on hikes through the trails of the conservation area. As we were walking, the guide would educate us on the area and the importance of its preservation. The interpreter would run activity games as we were making our way through to make it more engaging for us kids. Engaging in these games were a great way to apply some of what we learned in a fun way. This is a great example of how the interpreter altered her teaching to help a younger crowd understand the natural world. When you are young, it is hard to understand these concepts and appreciate the teachings. Now that I am older and understand a lot more, I have a greater appreciation for these experiences. I learn better through hands on experiences, therefore, I get more from this approach then sitting in a classroom setting, receiving the same information. 

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Hey Amanda,

Great post!

I definitely agree with you catering to individuals is crucial to being a good interpreter. Maybe even before a nature walk or tour were to take place the guide could ask the group to do a learning style quiz beforehand. This could help the guide tailor the nature walk/tour to the learning style of the group so that the information can reach as many people as possible. I also learn better through experiences. In national and provincial parks, I feel like it is easier to inform through experiences because everything is right in front of you. However, for individuals that are auditory learners it is important that the guide is knowledgeable enough to explain what they are seeing on nature walks.

Organizational skills, education and passion are very important if you want to pursue an interpretation role in the future. These skills can be applied through thematic interpretation which provides a focus on the main message, provides structure and meaning, is relevant to the audience and enjoyable to the audience (Beck et al., 2018). As a guide incorporating these skills into different theories presented by Beck et al. (2018) will result better engagement and overall, a better learning experience.  

It sounds like you had a great time going on field trips as a kid. The experiences you are had are similar to the stages of flow learning that Beck et al. (2018) talks about with the purpose of awakening enthusiasm, focus attention, direct experience, and sharing inspiration. It is also important that with these stages that the experience is tailored to the specific age group and the right questions are being asked to allow for the most engagement.

Is there any specific role/job involving interpretation that interests you? Would you change anything from your experience at the Kortright Centre in Vaughan to reach more audiences?

Aaron   

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World. SAGAMORE Publishing.