Emily's Nature Blog

[dralh]

Disclaimer

This blog was created for __________, University of Guelph. 

The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of the University of Guelph. 

The University of Guelph is not responsible for the accuracy of any of the information supplied by this blog.

[arenvs3000w22]

Final Blog Post

It’s hard to believe that this blog post is the last of the semester. I’ve really liked working in this format and reading the insights of my peers in this course. Many of you have had really unique and inspiring experiences with nature! It’s motivating to be reminded of the scope of opportunities that are waiting to be explored.

One belief that I’ve developed throughout the semester is that everyone deserves access to nature. I believe that nature interpreters are in an ideal position to bring nature to people with barriers that prevent them from exploring outside. Everyone has the ability to appreciate the connections between culture and landscape in some capacity, but not everyone has the opportunity to do so. As a nature interpreter, I have a responsibility to tailor programming that focuses on including those whose access to nature is limited. Nature is a place where everyone belongs. As the textbook mentions, there are strategic ways to integrate programs for disabled and non-disabled people, providing unity rather than separation (Beck et al., p. 141, 2018). There are also non-traditional ways to increase access. Virtual resources can be appealing as they are generally less costly and can be viewed anytime. They also tend to have the option to be translated into other languages, slowed down, made louder, transcribed, or paused. A skilled nature interpreter should be able to provide a sense of immersion through virtual programs, recognizing that the reach of their interpretation will extend to a much more diverse audience. Virtual resources have the capacity to plant the seed of nature appreciation as effectively as other types of programs.

Another belief I have fostered is that quality interpreters don’t shy away from ‘humanness.’ The most effective teachers and interpreters I have engaged with have sought to build a connection with their audience. They don’t adopt an air of superiority, but instead they humbly share their knowledge and admit when they are unsure of something. Rather than robotically regurgitating information, these individuals strive to incorporate anecdotes and unique perspectives. Vulnerability is a key attribute of good interpretation. I find that I feel far more comfortable asking questions to someone who has made it clear that they are my friend. Since the goal of interpretation is to inspire a passion for conservation and regeneration, it’s imperative to allow your audience to feel comfortable and safe enough to engage with the concepts you share.

As an interpreter, I have a responsibility to the next generation. I find purpose in stewarding the Earth even if it won’t benefit me during my lifetime. I strongly believe that the decisions I make today should support the best interests of the future. I won’t be here forever, so as an extension of this responsibility, I should strive to prepare the next generation to serve their descendants. Acting sustainably makes me feel good, because I feel like I am doing my small part to protect nature. I want to pass this feeling on to others, too. It is critical to recognize that you can make a difference on an individual level, and that your choices do affect nature and people. This course has led me to learn about citizen science projects and the ways in which they bring people of all ages and education levels together in working towards a common goal: conservation. It can be really encouraging to know that you can do something good right where you are. 

And, even if my interpretive efforts do not cause my audience members to become instant stewards, I can still rest easy knowing that experiencing nature benefits creativity and health in the short and long term (Louv & Suzuki, 2012).

For me, the most suitable approaches to nature interpretation are at the intersection of art and nature. I find art to be such a rich way to interpret nature that extends beyond what words alone can accomplish. Whether its music, visual art, poetry or storytelling, art has the ability to affect each member of the audience deeply and differently. And, the same experience in nature can inspire very different artistic products. Consider these two paintings, both inspired by the Grand Canyon and composed within a couple of years of each other. One is a very literal, bright take on the scene, and the other is more abstract and looming. It’s clear that different things are important to these artists, but at least one commonality exists between them – their desire to immortalize the beauty of nature. It amazes me how making and seeing art can affect people diversely, and I would love to share that amazement with others.

Carol Nelson’s interpretation of the Grand Canyon, “Grand Canyon 2″

Randy Follis’ interpretation, “Grand Canyon”

References

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

DavidSuzukiFDN. (2012). David Suzuki and Richard Louv @Ago. Youtube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5DI1Ffdl6Y&t=272s.

[efenvs3000w22]

Hi, 

I really enjoyed reading your post, I have not seen many references back to our units talking about art, so it was nice to see how you will include art in your future nature interpretation! 

It’s funny, not long before I read your post saying “robotically regurgitating information” I had come across this video that did exactly that! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PpmKseUmZw&ab_channel=LearningMavericks

I think I might have been able to listen for 30 seconds max before zoning out, and it was supposed on be inspiring me for ideas on to make my interpretation more interesting - very ironic! I do think though, that this video highlights your point about needing an essence of humanness in our interpretations. People listen better and are more engaged when they care, and when the person is  talking with them than talking at them. This is likely to be even more true when presenting to younger children because of a shorter attention span. Connecting with people through personal experiences in nature, whether funny or heartwarming, can be a great way to turn a presentation from a lecture into a story I think. 

A last thing your post made me think of, is how you want to increase the access people have to nature through nature interpretation. This is, to me, the essence of this course because it will be much more rare that we will be presenting things such as nature walks, guided tours, or general information on an area/outdoors activity to people who are well versed in being outdoors and in nature. They are already comfortable and knowledgeable, unless you are presenting for an audience specifically geared towards knowledgeable people and experts. It is more likely that we will be presenting much more often to people with less experience outdoors, who are learning and want to become experts, or at least comfortable in whatever topic it is. To me, this means that one of the most important goals of interpreters should be being as inclusive as possible to make all beginners, or people not as comfortable in nature be as confident in their own knowledge and abilities as possible. Igniting a passion for appreciating nature in as wide a range of people means needing to make it as accessible as possible, which I think is always worth the challenge. 

Thanks for sharing your ideas, I really enjoyed reading them!

Emily  

[dnenvs3000w22]

Final blog post #1: My beliefs and tools as a nature interpreter

For the final week of blog posts, I would like to take the chance to deeply reflect on what I have learned and how I can give back to my community, once I have graduated. I believe that as an environmental interpreter, I have the responsibility to teach, to inspire, to learn and to grow. In order to perform all these duties in an effective manner, I need to establish a set of beliefs that I need to follow:

Teach effectively by incorporating many styles of learning, do not settle with just the bare minimum (i.e: only giving out factual information like what a plain textbook already has, a nature interpreter is a person, not an audiobook).

When it comes to inspiring people, effective communication is an absolute necessity. This can only be done if I understand the topic, do my research, and communicate with audiences with a passion.

Always stay humble. Being able to own up to one’s mistakes is the most effective way to learn and mature from one’s faults. Besides teaching, it is very important to keep an open mind and open ears to listen, no matter who my audience is. There is always something they know that I do not.

Planning and design is important before embarking on any journey. However, keep in mind that there isn’t any perfect plan for every situation. Expect the unexpected and be prepared to handle any challenges in the most calm manner as possible.

Working in this field means I need to do my best to encourage participation and collaborative efforts (Knudsen and Seidler, 2013). This translates to giving my audience the opportunity to touch, feel, and smell nature, that way they get to experience nature to the full extent. This directly ties into the naturalistic intelligence that Howard Gardner suggested in 2011 (Beck et al., 2018). Even though it is the latest to be added to the list of learning style intelligences, I personally think it is the most relevant way to connect with nature on a deeper physical and spiritual level.

A useful tool that I can use to effectively communicate with my audience is probably my sense of humor. I have always been afraid of boring everybody whenever I talk, therefore, over time I learned how to level up my linguistic intelligence (Beck et al., 2018). However, it is important to keep in mind that there is an extent to the use of humor. Too much would just make the audience question the seriousness of the issue or the subject that I am trying to interpret, and will likely backfire on me as an interpreter.

Finally, we are living in an era where information and technology is only one click away. I think we should maximize this to their fullest potential. The textbook suggested that as interpreters, we do not need to be afraid of technologies as distractions, but rather, we can turn them into a tool by smoothly incorporating it into the ways we teach (Beck et al., 2018).

For now, that is where I am going to end this blog. I will see you all in the follow-up blog some time this week! Thanks for tuning in!

Duong (Robin) Nguyen.

References

Knudsen, M. A., Seidler, P. H. (2013). Nature interpretation for children and young people in the Nordic countries. Nordic Council of Ministers. DOI: 10.6027/TN2013-534

Beck, L., Cable, T.T., & Knudson, D.M. (2018). Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritage for a Better World. Sagamore Publishing.

[efenvs3000w22]

Hi!

I really enjoyed reading your post this week, and think you made a great list of beliefs. I like that you made them broad enough to fit the many different scenarios that are likely to come up with a career in nature interpretation. I think that your point about staying humble is a very good one to make, there's always more to learn and everyone has different perspectives and different backgrounds. Remembering to be as inclusive as possible is always an important aspect, and part of that is being humble.

I also think humor is a great way to connect with people, depending on the topic at hand of course. I have found that when a presenter throws in a few good jokes, it makes their presentation a lot more interesting and makes them more approachable, and people more likely to ask questions and engage themselves.

On the topic of technology to use with nature interpretation, I think that there are so many fantastic tools that can be used now to help. One that I'm sure most people have used, or heard of, is iNaturalist. I think it is a great app because it connects you to a community of people who also enjoy observing nature. I've also heard of other apps like Merlin, for bird IDing, and have used Seek to get quick IDs of a whole variety of plants and animals. There's apps for planning and finding hiking trails around too called AllTrails that has reviews as well. I'm sure there are many, many more apps or other technology that can help with nature interpretation, or generally to learn more about nature around us. I would love to hear other recommendations that people use! It's great to have tools that make learning about nature easier and more enjoyable. With tools as easy to use as apps, more people have access to them and a broader community is created.

Emily

[efenvs3000w22]

Last Blog Post

Hi Everyone! 

This week’s post is a lot to think about and reflect on, and I’ve been looking through a semester’s worth of blog posts to see what I’ve learned about myself and nature interpretation. 

The most important takeaway I’ve learned is how vital nature interpretation is. I’m graduating with a Wildlife Biology degree this year, and I love learning about ecology and all things nature-related, including conservation initiatives. The skills I have learned in this class, though, will be some that I carry with me as I move on to my next chapter because to be successful in this field of work, being able to share my love for wildlife and inspire more people to care about nature is truly an important skill to have. I believe that one of our primary responsibilities now that we have the tools is to help others see the beauty and awe of nature, to give them a feeling of belonging and help others enjoy the world around them a little more. 

Touching more on beliefs I have, something I strongly feel is leaving wildlife and nature as pristine as how it was before I visited, or more so. This belief is an idea I would want to get across to anyone I am guiding or working as a nature interpreter for. I also believe that nature is for everyone and that as nature interpreters, we should make it our job to help as many people as we can learn and discover nature in any capacity they can. Being inclusive is of utmost importance so that everyone can feel comfortable and enjoy their time in nature. As discussed with the idea of an invisible backpack, not everyone will feel comfortable in the same settings (Gallavan, 2005). 

Responsibilities are involved with being nature interpreters as well. As a nature interpreter, I have the responsibility to try to ignite a passion for learning about and enjoying nature in younger generations. A quote from the textbook in Chapter 7 reads: “Our most important audience might be our smallest and youngest ones. These groups are the future o four natural resources and cultural heritage. They are our hope for the future…Interpreters impact the future by interpreting to children today (Beck et al., 2018, pg. 144).” The idea of impacting people’s outlook on nature is also perhaps one of the most significant rewards of nature interpretation; seeing the people you are presenting to, of any age, be interested in what you say and develop their own passion for nature in some capacity. I think we also have a responsibility to consider multiple perspectives and make sure that what we are presenting is truthful to the best of our knowledge (Bowen et al., 2006). I also think that if I were in charge of teaching information to others, I would need to be responsible for continually educating myself by learning new information as it becomes available and broadening my understanding of the natural world. This education includes incorporating people’s views and beliefs that are not my own, as told and described by them in their own voices as much as possible, such as understanding the history of places and Indigenous perspectives. 

From what I have learned about myself over this course, I think that I am a lot more comfortable going about nature interpretation through the written word, such as this blog, or creating videos and podcasts that can be shared. I’m not a very outgoing or talkative person and am much more confident when I have time to practice, plan, and do re-takes, not in front of a crowd. I enjoyed interviewing an expert for my group’s podcast, for example, where it was a one-on-one friendly conversation with a pre-made list of questions/talking points. I also am more of a tactile learner, so being able to create shows and tangible things would feel rewarding for me. I enjoy learning new things from people about nature and wildlife and hearing others’ stories. A platform that would allow me to do so, interviewing people and sharing their thoughts, learning from them and creating a space for others to learn, whether through audio, visual, or written means, would be ideal for me as a nature interpreter. 

I have enjoyed sharing my thoughts with everyone through this blog over the semester and reading and interacting with others. There have been many posts that have inspired me and intrigued me. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and ideas. 

Emily 

References

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World (1st ed., pp. 127-158). SAGAMORE Publishing. 

Bowen, C., Bessette, H., & Cham, T. C. (2006). Including ethics in the study of educational leadership. Journal of College and Character, 7(7), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.2202/1940-1639.1241 

Gallavan, N. P. (2005). Helping teachers unpack their “invisible knapsacks”. Multicultural Education, 13(1), 36. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A137921591/AONE?u=guel77241&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=9fe2f151

[nzenvs3000w22]

Hey Emily,

I really enjoyed reading your final blog post this week! I definitely agree, looking back at all the past posts it’s crazy to see how our views on interpretation have changed since the “describe your current relationship with nature” blog. 

I liked your point that our duty as nature interpreters is to help others see the beauty and awe of nature. In my blog, I talked about how introducing kids to nature is the best way to conserve it, and I think the two go hand in hand. Rondenburg et al. (2019) talk about this in their article, saying that the true hope in environmental education resides in immersing kids in nature rich communities where they will learn to value and protect the environment. I think that having kids grow up being outdoors as much as possible, and with access to interpretive services to help them see the beauty of nature, is the best way to ensure the future of conservation. On top of that, exposing kids to the outdoors can give them some of the numerous benefits to their mental health as discussed in Beck et al. (2019) chapter 3. 

Another thing you said that resonated with me was leaving nature as or more pristine than you found it. As someone that enjoys spending time in nature, it bothers me to see people treating it badly by disturbing it or leaving garbage. A few days ago I saw a picture on Ontario Fish and Wildlife’s Instagram of an absolute mess of garbage left on the ice where someone took down their permanent ice hut. This kind of neglect for the environment is extremely damaging, not only to the environment itself, but to the image of the people who use it. If everyone picked up a piece of garbage when they saw it in nature, rather than leaving more, the beauty and enjoyability would be better for everyone. 

The post from Fish and Wildlife’s Instagram (Instagram, 2022).

References:

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., and Knudson, D. M. (2019). Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritage. Van Haren Publishing.

Instagram. (2022). Ontario Fish and Wildlife. https://www.instagram.com/fishwildlifeon/?hl=en 

Rodenburg, J. (2019) Why Environmental Educators Shouldn’t Give up Hope. Clearing Magazine.org, https://clearingmagazine.org/archives/14300 

[efenvs3000w22]

Hi Nathan,

Thanks for taking the time to read my post, you bring up some great points as well! After reading your post, it did make me think more about how well environmental stewardship and educating kid go together. I think that you're absolutely right, that introducing kids to conservation and caring for nature at young ages is beneficial not only for conservation work, but for the kids as well. Introducing the idea of local environmental stewardship- defined as "the actions taken by individuals, groups, or networks, of actors, with various motivations and levels of capacity, to protect, care for or responsibly use the environment in pursuit of environmental and/or social outcomes in diverse social-ecological contexts (Bennett et al., 2018)."- to children is a great way to start learning about conservation work. This also introduces the responsibility that when being in a natural area it is our job to make sure we don't make a mark on it, or leave it cleaner than when we got there.

An interesting point is made in Chapter 7 of the textbook, where between the ages of 4-7, the focus of nature interpretation for children should be to create empathy with nature (Beck et al., 2018). I think that creating empathy can include learning about caring for the places we visit, and wanting them to continue to be healthy.

I also found this article by Borhan & Ismail (2011) that showed how teachers, after not only talking at their students about environmental conservation and stewardship, but creating activities to learn and model what is being taught showed really promising results. The students took surveys on their opinions on thoughts surrounding environmental stewardship and after going through these activity their opinions positively increased towards the ideas. I think that this indicates how not only lecturing, but actually demonstrating with activities and being an example for others can greatly help increase the amount of care and concern others show nature.

Emily

References

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World (1st ed., pp. 127-158). SAGAMORE Publishing.

Bennett, N. J., Whitty, T. S., Finkbeiner, E., Pittman, J., Bassett, H., Gelcich, S., & Allison, E. H. (2018). Environmental stewardship: A conceptual review and analytical framework. Environmental Management, 61(4), 597–614. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-017-0993-2

Borhan, M. T. B., & Ismail, Z. (2011). Promoting Environmental Stewardship through Project Based Learning (PBL). International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 1(4), 180-186. http://www.ijhssnet.com/journals/Vol._1_No._4;_April_2011/23.pdf

[efenvs3000w22]

Last Blog Post

Hi Everyone! 

This week’s post is a lot to think about and reflect on, and I’ve been looking through a semester’s worth of blog posts to see what I’ve learned about myself and nature interpretation. 

The most important takeaway I’ve learned is how vital nature interpretation is. I’m graduating with a Wildlife Biology degree this year, and I love learning about ecology and all things nature-related, including conservation initiatives. The skills I have learned in this class, though, will be some that I carry with me as I move on to my next chapter because to be successful in this field of work, being able to share my love for wildlife and inspire more people to care about nature is truly an important skill to have. I believe that one of our primary responsibilities now that we have the tools is to help others see the beauty and awe of nature, to give them a feeling of belonging and help others enjoy the world around them a little more. 

Touching more on beliefs I have, something I strongly feel is leaving wildlife and nature as pristine as how it was before I visited, or more so. This belief is an idea I would want to get across to anyone I am guiding or working as a nature interpreter for. I also believe that nature is for everyone and that as nature interpreters, we should make it our job to help as many people as we can learn and discover nature in any capacity they can. Being inclusive is of utmost importance so that everyone can feel comfortable and enjoy their time in nature. As discussed with the idea of an invisible backpack, not everyone will feel comfortable in the same settings (Gallavan, 2005). 

Responsibilities are involved with being nature interpreters as well. As a nature interpreter, I have the responsibility to try to ignite a passion for learning about and enjoying nature in younger generations. A quote from the textbook in Chapter 7 reads: “Our most important audience might be our smallest and youngest ones. These groups are the future o four natural resources and cultural heritage. They are our hope for the future…Interpreters impact the future by interpreting to children today (Beck et al., 2018, pg. 144).” The idea of impacting people’s outlook on nature is also perhaps one of the most significant rewards of nature interpretation; seeing the people you are presenting to, of any age, be interested in what you say and develop their own passion for nature in some capacity. I think we also have a responsibility to consider multiple perspectives and make sure that what we are presenting is truthful to the best of our knowledge (Bowen et al., 2006). I also think that if I were in charge of teaching information to others, I would need to be responsible for continually educating myself by learning new information as it becomes available and broadening my understanding of the natural world. This education includes incorporating people’s views and beliefs that are not my own, as told and described by them in their own voices as much as possible, such as understanding the history of places and Indigenous perspectives. 

From what I have learned about myself over this course, I think that I am a lot more comfortable going about nature interpretation through the written word, such as this blog, or creating videos and podcasts that can be shared. I’m not a very outgoing or talkative person and am much more confident when I have time to practice, plan, and do re-takes, not in front of a crowd. I enjoyed interviewing an expert for my group’s podcast, for example, where it was a one-on-one friendly conversation with a pre-made list of questions/talking points. I also am more of a tactile learner, so being able to create shows and tangible things would feel rewarding for me. I enjoy learning new things from people about nature and wildlife and hearing others’ stories. A platform that would allow me to do so, interviewing people and sharing their thoughts, learning from them and creating a space for others to learn, whether through audio, visual, or written means, would be ideal for me as a nature interpreter. 

I have enjoyed sharing my thoughts with everyone through this blog over the semester and reading and interacting with others. There have been many posts that have inspired me and intrigued me. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and ideas. 

Emily 

References

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World (1st ed., pp. 127-158). SAGAMORE Publishing. 

Bowen, C., Bessette, H., & Cham, T. C. (2006). Including ethics in the study of educational leadership. Journal of College and Character, 7(7), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.2202/1940-1639.1241 

Gallavan, N. P. (2005). Helping teachers unpack their "invisible knapsacks". Multicultural Education, 13(1), 36. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A137921591/AONE?u=guel77241&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=9fe2f151

[acenvs3000w22]

Week 09: Oh What a Wonder Nature Is

Hi everyone,

Seeing as this week’s blog prompt is about how amazing nature is, what could be more amazing than the 7 natural wonders of the world?! Nature has some of its own amazing features and in 1997, the Cable News Network (CNN) constructed a list of the most amazing creations of nature (Andrews, 2020).  I myself have yet to experience any of these natural wonders but someday I am hoping to cross them off my bucket list! Have you experienced any of these places? If so, where? Alright, now let’s get to it!

1) The Aurora Borealis – Northern Hemisphere Did you know that the aurora borealis (also known as northern lights) is named after the Roman goddess of dawn, Aurora, and the Greek word for the north wind, boreas (Andrews, 2020).  This captivating display of dancing colours paints the sky in ripples of blues, greens, pinks, violets, and yellows (Andrews, 2020).  These mystifying lights have various meanings to different groups.  In medieval times, these lights were perceived as an indication of famine or war, however, the Inuit believed them to be spirits of the beluga whales, deer, salmon and seals they hunted for survival (Andrews, 2020).  

The Northern Lights. Image retrieved from: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/12/09/northern-lights-aurora-borealis-visible-across-northern-us/3866912001/

2) The Grand Canyon – Arizona, United States This stunning natural wonder was formed by the natural erosion of rock and soil from the Colorado River over billions of years (Dodd,2021).  The Colorado Plateau was once the floor of a shallow sea and fossilized corals, shellfish, and snails from 20 million years ago can still be found today (Andrews, 2020). Known for its deep red rust, visible rock stratification, and most notably its size and depth (roughly 446 kilometers long, 29 kilometers wide, and 1.8 kilometers deep), this is truly a breath-taking wonder (Dodd,2021).  

The Grand Canyon. Image retrieved from: https://www.smartertravel.com/planning-a-trip-to-the-grand-canyon/

3) Victoria Falls – Zimbabwe and Zambia Despite not being the tallest or the widest fall on earth, with a combined height and width of 1,708 meters wide by 108 meters high, it does make it the largest (Dodd,2021).  This fall spills about 625 million liters of water every minute -  how incredible is that (Andrews, 2020)?!

Victoria Falls. Image Retrieved from: https://www.traveller.com.au/victoria-falls-zimbabwe-travel-guide-the-mustdo-highlights-h1kc5m

4) The Harbour of Rio De Janeiro - Brazil This bay Is considered the world’s largest natural bay based on volume (Dodd,2021).  This gorgeous harbour is encased by granite mountains and monoliths, which creates a striking visual appearance to all visitors (Law, 2020; Dodd,2021).  

Harbour of RIo de Janeiro. Image retrieved from: https://www.worldatlas.com/bays/guanabara-bay.html

5) Great Barrier Reef – Queensland Australia This spectacular feature includes over 900 islands, spanning over 344,400 square kilometers of the ocean (Law, 2020; Dodd,2021).  This makes it the largest coral reef system in the world and as a result, supports a plethora of life including 215 species of birds, 133 species of rays and sharks, and 30 species of dolphins (Dodd,2021; Andrews, 2020).  However, this natural wonder contains many endangered and endemic species and is currently being threatened by factors such as climate change and mass coral bleaching (Andrews, 2020)

Great Barrier Reef.  Image retrieved from: https://www.cntraveler.com/stories/2016-04-21/the-great-barrier-reef-is-dying-says-new-report

6) Paricutin Volcano – Michoacan, Mexico Paricutin is a cinder cone shaped volcano which last erupted in 1952 (over a 9-year period) (Law, 2020).  It was deemed as a natural wonder given that mankind was able to witness its birth and rapidly growing formation (Law, 2022). This volcano has only existed as it has since 1943 when it first appeared from a relatively flat corn field, making it the youngest volcano in the Northern Hemisphere (Dodd,2021).

Paricutin Volcano.  Image retrieved from: https://www.worldatlas.com/volcanoes/paricutin-volcano.html

7) Mount Everest – China and Nepal Debatably the most famous mountain on planet earth – Mount Everest.  This massive formation has an approximate elevation of 29,029 feet (Law, 2020). Did you know that this actually isn’t the tallest mountain in the world?  That title belongs to Mauna Kea in Hawaii, however, most of it is underwater and so it does not have the tallest peak ‘above sea level’ (Dodd,2021).  

Mount Everest.  Image retrieved from: https://explorerspassage.com/chronicles/facts-mount-everest/

In the textbook reading from Beck et al. (2018), it mentions the emotional state of being in ‘awe’, where “fleeting and rare experiences of awe can change the course of a life in profound and permanent ways”.  I believe that being able to experience the totality of these natural wonders would definitely elicit this ‘awe’ feeling.  Being in this state has the ability to elicit curiosity, purpose, creativity, improve mood, and reduce stress (Beck et al. 2018).  Although I provided some facts and information on these places, being physically present in nature and soaking in the surrounding can be more than enough to understand the beauty of nature and no interpretation is required (Beck et al. 2018).  This can also increase the use of citizen science as by experiencing these places first hand, this will provide the visitor with an authentic experience and hopefully encourage them to participate in the evolving community science that serves to benefit these natural places (Beck et al. 2018).  

I realize this post was a bit of a long one but I hope you got to learn something and feel inspired along the way!

Thanks for reading,

Ashley

References

Andrews, C. (2020). See the Natural Wonders of the World in 2021. Retrieved 19 March 2022, from https://www.nathab.com/blog/see-the-natural-wonders-of-the-world-in-2021/

Beck, L., Cable, T.T., & Knudson, D.M. (2018). Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritage for a Better World. Sagamore-Venture Publishing LLC.

Dodd, C. (2021). The 7 Natural Wonders Of The World. Retrieved 19 March 2022, from https://www.worldatlas.com/places/the-7-natural-wonders-of-the-world.html#h_51335814238881631701075573

Law, L. (2020). A Guide to the 7 Natural Wonders of the World | PlanetWare. Retrieved 19 March 2022, from https://www.planetware.com/magic-travel-a-guide-to-the-seven-natural-wonders-of-the-world.htm

[efenvs3000w22]

Hi Ashley, 

Great post, you definitely captured the idea of the “awe” of nature! Some of the places included I had never heard of- like the volcano in Mexico. I can only imagine how amazing it would be to see these places in person, going to the Great Barrier Reef is definitely one of my dream Bucket-list locations to visit. 

It also got me wondering about how they could even limit the list to 7 wonders when there are just so many amazing locations in the world. I thought a bit about what place I would add as an eight wonder to the list if I had a choice, and I came up with Lake Baikal - the oldest, deepest, and largest (by volume) freshwater lake in the world (Siegel, 2020).

 For reference, here is just how deep this lake is compared to the Great Lakes. It holds 20% of the world’s unfrozen freshwater reserve (Siegel, 2020). 

Image taken from Siegel (2020)

There are also over 2,000 endemic species (meaning these species are only found in this specific lake) because it has been around for 25 million years (Siegel, 2020). Over such a longtime many species evolved, one example is the Baikal seal which is exceptionally cute! 

Image taken from Siegel (2020). 

There are also really incredible aspects of the lake once it is frozen too, and it definitely does freeze considering it is located in Siberia. One of these mesmerizing aspects is the methane bubbles that get trapped in the ice and create very interesting patterns in the clear ice (Makeeva, 2018). 

Image taken from Makeeva (2018)

There are also a lot of neat phenomena that happen during the extremely frigid winters, where the wind and plummeting temperatures cause these cool formations on the ice (usually with rocks one the ice surface perched on these little platforms).

Image taken from Taylor (2019)

Lake Baikal is already a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but because of it’s ecological importance, both as a source of freshwater and also the sheer amount of endemic species, and just for its overall beauty, I think it should be a contender for the 8th natural wonder of the world! I would love to hear what other places people think should be on the list (UNESCO, 2022)!

Also, if anyone is interested in learning more about Lake Baikal, I learned a lot from a Tik Tok account @geodesaurus who made a whole series on the lake. This is where I first learned that this lake even existed, and she makes some really interesting short videos all about the wonders of this lake (and other hydrology facts globally!). 

Emily 

References

Makeeva, K. (2018). Methane Bubbles Frozen in Lake Baikal. Nasa Science. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://science.nasa.gov/methane-bubbles-frozen-lake-baikal.

Siegel, E. (2020, June 24). The incredible science of lake baikal: The World's largest, oldest, deepest lake. Forbes. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2020/06/24/the-incredible-science-of-lake-baikal-the-worlds-largest-oldest-lake/?sh=64a4bfa0641b

Taylor, A. (2019, May 28). Photos: The incredible ice formations of lake baikal. The Atlantic. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2019/05/lake-baikal-ice-formations-photos/590374/

UNESCO World Heritage Center. (2022). Lake Baikal. UNESCO World Heritage List. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/754/

[kh-genvs3000w22]

Shinrin-Yoku

I want to share a really cool practice with you all.  And I hope that it inspires you to spend as much time as you can out in nature wherever you can find it.  'Shinrin-Yoku’, translated into English as Forest Bathing, is the Japanese study of using the beauty and rejuvenation of the forest to heal.  The research and data continue to show a lot of potential in reducing many mental and physical health issues, where the main way to reduce the issues has been medications (Hansen, et al 2017). The idea of letting time in nature heal the mind and reminding people that it is okay to go slowly in life was promoted in Japan during the 1980s as preventative health care (Hansen, et al 2017). The combination of  Shinrin-Yoku with environmental interpretation and education has enormous potential to help both environmental degradation and mental health. In our course reading, the Richard Louv term ‘Nature Deficit Disorder’ (Hooykaas, 2021) refers to the negative effects that can come from people spending all their free time on electronics, for example short attention span, anxiety, and depression, due to missing out on the benefits that come from spending time in nature.  Although Louv is not from Japan, his ideas have been connected to Nature Bathing which is seen as a cure for Nature Deficit Disorder. An article by the Government of Canada states that Shinrin-Yoku has been studied for nearly 40 years and is an evidence-based wellness practice (Health Promotion, 2021).  

This is one of my favourite spots to experience Shinrin-Yoku at the Bruce peninsula.

Our textbook says that when people are just browsing online, their attention span is often that of a goldfish: that is 9 seconds (Beck et al. 2018). Set the timer and see how long that is—I bet you won’t, you’ll get bored—you’re currently reading this on the web! The idea of nature being a cure can give the environment even more standing against developers. Shinrin-Yoku is motivation to protect natural habitats and visit nature centers with interpreters so visitors can learn and understand the importance of nature in their life: for example, physical improvements of walking, climbing, emotional relaxation, and purposefully being present and interacting in the community. It is very easy to feel isolated in buildings and this disconnect from others can have severe consequences. These issues can be not just reduced but may even be cured with as little as a daily 30 minute walk in the forest.  An impactful quote in our textbook says: “But if the trance induced by electronic gadgets makes us oblivious to the wood, the wildflowers, and the songs and smells of resurgent spring, then we have suffered a grievous loss” (Beck et al. 2018). There are a lot of reasons for the disconnect from nature, not just electronics, but the main emphasis for me is to not lose the natural health benefits of nature for children and adults and to make experiencing nature a priority.  I would love to hear if anyone else has heard of Shinrin-Yoku or have felt the benefits of time in nature for themselves.        

                                                 References

Beck, L. Cable, T.  Knudson, D. (2018). Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritage For a Better World. Sagamore-Venture Publishing LLC. ISBN 978-1-57167-865-2

Hansen. (2017). Shinrin-Yoku (Forest Bathing) and Nature Therapy: A State-of-the-Art Review. PMC. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5580555/

Health Promotion .(2021). Health Promotion- Improve your mental well-being with forest bathing and fall into wellness. Government of Canada.  

https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/corporate/news/regional-news/western-sentinel/2021/09/improve-your-mental-well-being-with-forest-bathing-and-fall-into-wellness.ht

Hooykaas, A. (2022). Sense-Making of Nature Interpretation. [Unit 9 course reading]. Nature  Interpretation Course University of Guelph.

Wals, A. Bordy, M. Dillon, J. Stevenson, R. (2014). Convergence Between Science and

Environmental Education. Science. https://www-science-org.subzero.lib.uoguelph.ca/doi/10.1126/science.1250515

[efenvs3000w22]

Hello!

I’ve never heard of  Shinrin-Yoku, but your post really caught my attention! You describe it really well, and I found myself doing some googling to read more about  Shinrin-Yoku. What caught my attention is that I have been noticing many people, including myself, at some point during this course mentioning going on mental health walks, or just getting outside to get a break from school or work. I didn’t think this would have a name, or be quite as studied as it is! This paper by Wen et al. (2019) is a systematic review, and includes all the recent research into this practice, and they found 210 papers published from 2015-2019 relating to medical research on  Shinrin-Yoku (they only ended up including 28 papers in their review though)! That is quite a large number of papers in a short amount of time, and overall conclusions were that it has positive health benefits.It also seems that this practice has global acclaim as well, this article mentions that Kate Middleton has spoken about it as well! (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jun/08/forest-bathing-japanese-practice-in-west-wellbeing) 

It seems to be a very universal experience, the joy of just taking a break from emails, social media, online school by escaping into nature for awhile for the people in our class, and a more general group of people as well. Something I have been noticing is that usually, if I decide to go on a walk or do an activity outside, I will wear headphones and listen to either music, or an audiobook while I’m outside. Though it’s entertaining to have something to listen to, I don’t feel as relaxed after spending time outside when I’m concentrating on listening. Though I have never knowingly participated in Shinrin-Yoku, I often do what I call “mental health walks” wit the same goal of disconnecting from electronics for a bit and getting some fresh air. My observation during this is that completely disconnecting for these walks, including no music and not checking my phone, leaves me feeling a lot calmer and peaceful by the time I get back home. I think that engaging all our sense, by noticing what is around us while out in nature is an important part of actually being in nature. Taking the time to completely disconnect for a bit every day, or every few days really helps life slow down a bit and enjoy the moment more, and for me at least helps me to feel a lot less anxious and stressed. Sometimes all I need is a quite walk outside to remember that school stress isn’t the end of the world, and to still find some joy each day. 

I would love to hear how others spend time disconnecting from electronics, or if they have had similar experiences! 

Emily 

Wen, Y., Yan, Q., Pan, Y., Gu, X., & Liu, Y. (2019). Medical empirical research on forest bathing (Shinrin-yoku): A systematic review. Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine, 24(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12199-019-0822-8

[efenvs3000w22]

Mimicry is cool!

Hi Everyone!

It was incredible difficult to choose one amazing thing I know about nature because there are just so many topics, but I finally decided on talking about mimicry because it is an adaptation that blows my mind. So many animals have developed ways to hide by impersonating other species, and it always makes me wonder how it could evolve.

I’ll start off with a bit of information about mimicry, and then give some examples of what I think are amazing instances of mimicry in the animal kingdom.

Mimicry is when a species will evolve to resemble another species in some way, shape, or form to confuse other species of their true identity and gives the species doing the mimicry an advantage of some kind (Font, 2019). Mimicry can be in the form of cues and/or signals. Signal mimicry has evolved to alter the receiver’s behaviour while cue mimicry is incidental (received by unintended receivers). In other words, signal mimicry works so that both the species being mimicked and the species doing the mimicking have the same goal in mind for how their look/behaviour will be received. Cue mimicry does not, so the intended target for the mimicked species is different than that of the species doing the mimicking (Jamie, 2017).

Another classification of mimicry is Batesian and Mullerian. Mullerian mimicry is when multiple dangerous or toxic animals will evolve similar features/ colours to let other species know not to mess with them. An example of this is with animals who use bright colours like red and oranges and blue to signal that they are poisonous. Below are pictures of different species of poison dart frogs, whose bright colours tell predators not to eat it (Wickler, 2019).

Batesian mimicry is a form where two species will look similar, but only one is actually dangerous (by having spines, stingers, toxins etc.) (Jamie, 2017). An example of this seen in nature is with wasps and flowerflies, where wasps have stingers and are aggressive animals that others avoid, and flowerflies will mimic them but they are actually harmless (Wickler, 2019).

(Photo by Andrew Swenson, 2021) A wasp fly of the genus Ceriana that looks incredibly similar to a wasp (hint: to tell the difference, look at the number of wings. One pair of wings = fly, two pairs = wasp)

A last example of mimicry that I will leave you with is with mussels. There are mussels that are able to mimic fish to lure fish to them. These mussels need to parasitize fish so their young can find a host to grow in, and the species of mussel has specific fish they lure to them (Byrne, 2016). These mussels have evolved to be incredible mimics! Below is a video that I think shows just how crazy of a mimic they are

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZeCSi4ULPc&ab_channel=DEESTUARY

One last shout-out for mimicry is one of my favourite bugs: stick insects! As their name suggests, they look like sticks and are just incredibly cool looking bugs, but another group in the order Phasmatodea are the leaf insects which are just so interesting to look at:

Hope everyone is having a great week, I’ve been really enjoying reading everyone’s posts on what they think is cool about nature!

Emily

References:

Byrne, C. (2016, June 3). Mimicking Mussels. Retrieved March 17, 2022, from https://u.osu.edu/biomuseum/2016/06/03/mimicking-mussels/comment-page-1/#:~:text=Some%20mussel%20species%20lure%20fish,other%20parts%20of%20the%20fish.

Font, E. (2018). Mimicry, camouflage and perceptual exploitation: The evolution of deception in nature. Biosemiotics, 12(1), 7–24. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12304-018-9339-6

Jamie, G. A. (2017). Signals, cues and the nature of mimicry. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 284(1849), 20162080. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2016.2080

Wickler, W. J. H. (2019, February 7). Mimicry. Retrieved March 17, 2022, from https://www.britannica.com/science/mimicry

Images:

Imbler, S. (2020). He Was a Stick, She Was a Leaf; Together They Made History. New York Times. Retrieved March 16, 2022 from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/01/science/leaf-stick-insects-phyllium-asekiense.html

Swenson, A. (2021). Black-sided Wasp Fly. iNaturalist. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://inaturalist.ca/observations/81215591.

Zug, G.R. (2021). Poison frog. Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrived March 16, 2022 from https://www.britannica.com/animal/poison-frog

[gmenvs3000w22]

Nature and Music

I was very excited to hear that this week’s topic was about music. I’ve always loved listening to music and have definitely found a relation to it and nature. I am not musically talented at all but love listening to it and singing along none the less.

When I first saw the question “where is music in nature?” I had to think of what music is. As defined in the unit this week, music is patterns of sound produced for emotional, social, and cognitive purposes (Gray et al., 2001). Using this definition, I thought about the places you can find music in nature. Bird songs were the first that came to my mind. Birds use their calls to communicate with each other. They use a variety of patterns and pitches to communicate different things. For birds, these songs serve social and cognitive purposes. To the human ear, it sounds like a musical instrument and serves an emotional purpose. I also thought of wind. The rustling of leaves and wind on water create calming sounds to humans. Humans also often use windchimes to capture music from wind. I think that music is everywhere in nature, and humans often seek it out for its relaxing qualities.

The question “where is nature in music?” is actually fairly different from the first question. I think that nature is used in music a lot. Often it is used in lyrics to create imagery that everyone can identify with. It is a powerful tool to provoke emotion in a listener. For example, describing the weather or the surrounding trees transports the listener to the same place as the song writer at the time they wrote it.

As a Taylor Swift fan, I can think of many times when she has used nature in her song writing. For example, in the song “the lakes” she describes wanting to escape the The Lakes district in England. She describes how she wants to watch “wisteria grow” and “bathe in cliff side pools”. In “All Too Well” she uses the imagery of “autumn leaves falling down like pieces into place” to describe where she is in her relationship. I think that these are good examples of how nature is used in music to create imagery and invoke emotion from the listener.

A song that takes me immediately back to a natural landscape is “Barrett’s Privateers” by Stan Rogers. This is a song that we would always sing while canoe camping. One of the dads on the trip was from Nova Scotia and would lead the song as we canoed through Algonquin Park. Now whenever I hear it, I am transported to a canoe in the middle of a lake in Algonquin.

I find that I associate a lot of music with natural landscapes. I think this has to do with nature being in so much music as well as my experience on road trips and other activities that music was involved in.

“the lakes” by Taylor Swift:

https://youtu.be/tOHcAc3r2kw

“All Too Well” by Taylor Swift:

https://youtu.be/9OQBDdNHmXo

“Barrett’s Privateers” by Stan Rogers:

https://youtu.be/ZIwzRkjn86w

Gray, P. Krause, B. Atema, J., Payne, R., Krumhansl, C. & Baptista, L. (2001). The Music of Nature and the Nature of Music. Science. 291. 52-54.

[efenvs3000w22]

Hi, 

Your post made me excited because I am also a big Taylor Swift fan, and when I was thinking about songs relating to nature I somehow didn’t think of her? You’re right though, she makes a lot of references to nature to set the atmosphere of her songs. I think her album Folklore does this really well because even the cover photo uses nature to set the scene, being in a forest alone with some fog. 

Some other nature references include the song Seven, “Please picture me in the trees” and “Feet in the swing over the creek”, which helps set up the reference to a childhood playing outdoors. The song Willow too, with the lyrics “Life was a willow and it bent right to your wind”. My favorite though is in the song you mention, The Lakes because it gives so much imagery to me of cottage country with the phrases “Those Windemere peaks” and “a red rose grew out of ice frozen ground”. 

I really liked your post, and now when listening to Taylor Swift will be listening more closely for nature references! 

Willow: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EvwIw4gIyk&ab_channel=TaylorSwiftVEVO

Seven: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEY-GPsru_E&ab_channel=TaylorSwiftVEVO

[jalenvs3000w22-deactivated20220]

Music in Nature ~ Nature in Music

A cinematic moment you may recognize that comes to mind is a little red crab gathering his marsh pals to sing “Sha la la la la la” and create an epic love story score! 

I believe there is music in nature everywhere. Just picture hearing birds singing, crickets chirping, streams and waterfalls splashing, leaves rustling, pileated woodpeckers drumming away in the backyard…

Each time I find myself outdoors I like to take a moment to listen to the natural sounds around me, even silence in winter has a ring to it. Some sounds are not as pleasant as others (I’m thinking about an obnoxious Blue Jay claiming the birdfeeder). From my experiences, seeing a bird of prey swooping down to catch an unsuspecting mouse as I drive along the highway is analogous to a cymbal crashing in the band. As a white tailed deer jumps out in front of you, it’s like being immersed into the music of nature. 

Now the reverse of that is “Where is nature in music”? Rhythm. There’s a lot of rhythm in nature. Not the typical idea of rhythm or beats used in music, but instances like the circadian rhythm or  life cycles. Or even the fibonacci sequence, the Golden Ratio seen throughout nature is a beautiful flow for the eyes to follow – similar to how music flows.

Today, we are not as dependent as indigenous groups were (or still are in some locations) on cycles and the rhythm of nature: when to hunt, relocate, and prepare for different seasons. Now, we are blind to those factors of life because of situations such as buying a mango in the middle of winter! Many farm families may also relate to needing the rhythm of nature as a part of their life: plant, treat, harvest all in the right time frames.

I was asked what song takes me back to the natural landscape. Right off the bat I think about country songs; any country song puts me in the summer mood. I think when I listen to country songs the most it is during the summer time, windows down, road trip experiences. In particular I’m thinking about “Follow Me” by Uncle Kracker. I had to take a few moments to actually figure out why this song brings me ‘good nature vibes’ and I think it really just has to do with the connotations I have placed with it from my outdoor adventures. I think it is a very applicable song to any of my family’s camping trips or bike ride excursions I have taken with my sister. I know we were only supposed to select one song, but as I was thinking about camping trips Fleetwood Mac came to mind. All of their songs are familiar to me as “camping vibes”. Especially “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac because of all the natural language used as metaphors and similes. I get the picture of “snow-covered hills,  ocean tides, season of my life, landslide…” it’s all very poetic. 

I can’t wait to read about everyone’s nature songs,

Jacqueline

[efenvs3000w22]

Hi Jacqueline, 

I really loved reading your take on where nature in music is, I personally had a hard time thinking of my own answer to that question and really like your interpretation! It’s true that nature is made up of a multitude of interactions between each organism, and all these small interactions (like pollination and finding food) work in harmony with each other for the ecosystem to exist and thrive. The idea of rhythm in nature relates, as all the relationships in wildlife continue to cycle and evolve so that they can all survive and create another generation. 

I also love your song choice, especially Landslide because every time I hear that song it makes me feel very reminiscent of happy memories. There’s a cover of the song sung by a band called The Chicks. I remember listening to their music, including their cover of Landslide, on repeat when I was young especially in the summer. 

I found a video that’s kind of cheesy, but names a bunch of examples of rhythm in nature and I thought it fit well with how you described rhythm! https://www.britannica.com/video/179750/rhythms-circadian

Emily

[efenvs3000w22]

Week 7 Post

This is a very open-ended question for this week’s blog post, and it took me a while to come up with an answer. For reading week, I went back home to my parent's house, and while there I was taking my dog on a lot of walks. During these walks, I tried to notice what sounds I was hearing to listen for “music in nature”. As I’m sure most people thought of first, my mind immediately went to birds with their chirping making up a cacophony of sounds. I thought about other animals that make up common sounds like squirrels chattering, and the many insects that buzz around in the summer. I also thought about the biotic elements that make up calming sounds, like in the summer hearing wind rustling leaves overhead and the crunch of leaves in the Fall as we walk through them. Even in the winter, as I was walking, I heard the wind whistling through the icy branches of the trees. One day I was out while it was snowing pretty heavily and instead of all these sounds, I heard next to nothing because of the blanket of snow falling muffling everything and making everyone want to stay inside. This unusual quiet was just as interesting to listen to as the noises we usually hear.

After reading the article by Gray et al. (2001) I was really caught on the description of whale songs, and how the Indigenous people who live close to where the whales are located heard their songs for millennia before scientists were able to record and hear them. The article goes on to describe the multitude of similarities between human music and whales songs, which made me think that when talking about where is nature in music, nature could be what created music. The fact that music is so universal between cultures and species makes me think that the inspiration behind the creation of music is likely from our environment, that is nature (Gray et al., 2001).

As a side thought, I wanted to talk about the music that insects make because I think it is truly fascinating. The way that sounds are able to be distinguished by their own species, as well as by predators is a distinct part of nature (Krause, 1987). What interests me is how all the sounds insects make serve important purposes, especially for mating. It is often the males that stridulate, or make sound by other means, to attract females of their own species. There are instances of predators, such as a fly that would locate grasshoppers based solely on their stridulation, or even insects that mimic others to trick them for predation purposes like katydids (Marshall, 2017; Willson, 2018). Here is an interesting website that shows the sounds of different insects, so the next time you hear something you may be able to figure out what insects are around! http://songsofinsects.com/identification-basics

Lastly, for a song that takes me back to somewhere in nature, the first thing that I thought of was the campfire songs I used to sing when I was young. A pretty common one I remember liking was “down by the bay, where the watermelons grow”. It reminds me of being around a campfire at the end of a fun day and playing games like figuring out the word pattern someone made up. I really enjoyed those nights, and this song is a part of it.

Gray, P. Krause, B. Atema, J., Payne, R., Krumhansl, C. & Baptista, L. (2001). The Music of Nature and the Nature of Music. Science. 291. 52-54.

Krause, B. L. (1987). The Niche Hypothesis: How Animals Taught Us to Dance and Sing. " Whole Earth Review, 57, 14–16.

Identification basics. Songs of Insects. (2019, December 4). Retrieved March 3, 2022, from http://songsofinsects.com/identification-basics

Marshall, S. (2017). Insects: Their natural history and Diversity: With a photographic guide to insects of Eastern North America. Firefly Books, Limited.

Willson, M. F. (2018, August 23). Buzz, Chirp, squeak: How and why insects make sound. Juneau Empire. Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://www.juneauempire.com/life/buzz-chirp-squeak-how-and-why-insects-make-sound/

[hsenvs3000w22]

The Power of the Past

While unpacking the quote written by Edward Hymas, the first thing I did was google the definitions of some key words and according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, this is what I found:

Merit: Refers to having a good quality or feature that deserves to be praised.

Integrity: To be honest and fair.

This is a very powerful quote with multiple layers to be dissected. The first part of this quote recognizes the fact that there is no distinctive goodness in ancient things unless we give them meaning. As mentioned in the textbook, “Without  interpretation,  artifacts  are  merely  old  things,  historic  buildings  are  just  old  buildings,  and  ceremonies  and  festivals  are  merely  entertainment” (Beck et al., 2019). However, through honesty and transparency we can keep track of meaningful changes in landscapes and artifacts over time and as mentioned in the quote by Edward Hymas, this requires a knowledge and memory of ancient things. This is where integrity plays a crucial role in the preservation of historical events. Since changes occur over time, we must be able to maintain integrity in our knowledge and memory of these changes in order to determine their true meaning. The railway station analogy given in this quote is a powerful way the author has conveyed their message. By recognizing that there is more to life than what just you and I have experienced, we can appreciate the history that shaped the way we live our lives. Acknowledging the fact that there was life before us and life will continue on after us, we can begin to appreciate the past and find meaning in its events. The past is never done with, in fact it shapes our very existence today from the way we eat, play, sleep, work to the traditions we practice, and values we hold. Our knowledge of past events has shaped the way we see the future. Through patterns, physical evidence, data, and research conducted over time we are able to make predictions about what the future might look like based on the past. This again amplifies the importance of integrity when sharing our knowledge and memories of the past, as they ultimately shape our future. Keeping these memories alive, whether they be good or bad, is a key part of historical interpretation as we can find inspiration in the stories of survivors and use them as agents of change (Beck et al., 2019). 

References: Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2019). Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritage. Van Haren Publishing.

[efenvs3000w22]

Hi, 

Very interesting to read your interpretation of the quote for this week! I had also looked up the definition of integrity out of curiosity and found a different version that influenced how I wrote my post for this week. I found from Merriam-Webster (2022) another definition that is “the quality or state of being complete or undivided”. Even with working off slightly different definitions, we had a lot of similar ideas! The quote you pointed out from the textbook especially made me think because the emphasis we put on traditions and our history dictates their importance. Learning from our past is a part of the human experience as we grow up, but also learning from those around us who have different experiences and points of view. Striving to better understand the history of the places around us holds value as well because through analyzing the past we can see what factors shaped it to be the way it is. As you say, trying to create as complete a history as possible is important so as not to rewrite history, with some parts lost and forgotten. The past is all around us, and I like how Corfield (2008) says “ All people and peoples are living histories... Understanding the linkages between past and present is absolutely basic for a good understanding of the condition of being human.” This is a very good post by a historian discussing the importance of studying history, and I thought it very relevant to this weeks blog post (link below if anyone wants to read). 

Emily 

Corfield, P. J. (2008). All people are living histories – which is why history matters. Making History. Retrieved February 16, 2022, from https://archives.history.ac.uk/makinghistory/resources/articles/why_history_matters.html

Merriam-Webster. (2022). Integrity definition & meaning. Merriam-Webster. Retrieved February 16, 2022, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/integrity

[omenvs3000w22]

Blog Post 6 - History and Interpretation

“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.”

(Edward Hyams, Chapter 7, The Gifts of Interpretation)

When attempting to deconstruct the above quote I think it is important to recognize that it is meant to be interpreted, leading to many possible conclusions on the meaning. The ambiguousness of the wordplay lends to the author’s favour, allowing personal connections to relate with the writing. In my mind, the ultimate objective of this quote is to emphasize the importance of interpretation of history and how interpreters can weave stories out of the past. Unravelling the quote itself provides insight into why an interpreter should see the significance of history.

Breaking down the first component of the quote, I believe the author is alluding to the power of interpretation. Without interpretation a relic is just that, a relic. A relic or an old structure by itself is not particularly worth discussing. However, how the owners of the relic treated it or what they did with the relic can be fascinating and important, even relative to modern times. Exploring the how or why something is the way it is can provide stories from a bygone era, giving interpreters a look into the past. By investigating the integrity of something from the past, interpreters can construct a vision of life from that point in time. The ability to extrapolate history like this is an incredible tool that is essential in educational purposes. Recreating authentic experiences from history can translate memories and feelings to audiences despite living however many years later.

The second part of the quote relates to how the perception of time is often skewed, and that the events of the past intertwine with the ongoings of today. It is very easy to think that the happenings of the past are in the past, never to be revisited again. I am guilty of such thinking. Nevertheless, what happened in history influences every aspect of living in the present and even though a critical event may have happened a long time ago we still feel the reverberations. Being able to understand where we are in the grand scheme of things allows us to place ourselves on a point in the relative scale of time and human history. In doing so we can learn from mistakes of the past and realize what steps we need to take to accomplish our future goals.

So, what can we takeaway from this quote? First and foremost, this quote is an excellent example of interpretive writing. The author pulls out all different types of meanings from a wide variety of individuals, the evidence of this being our separate ways to unpack the quote in our blogs. Additionally, interpreters have an important role in contextualizing via the events of the past. Accurately depicting and learning from history may be imperative for learning about something in the present. Finally, using a narrative based in the past is an efficient way to interpret as it can drum up strong emotions and personal connections.

[efenvs3000w22]

Hi, 

I really enjoyed reading your post this week! I agree with the points you made on the takeaways of the quote. Making an effort to maintain the history of objects and places is worth the work involved, and learning about their history is important. It is important because as you say, the past is not always in the past and choices we make today should reflect on the mistakes of the past and learn from them. Personally, I have always loved learning about history, and when I learn about the history of a place I’ve been in some capacity it makes it feel more special and more memorable of a trip. It becomes a place that is bigger than what we see now, we hear about the people who have visited before and have left their impact on it. It reminds me of how countries like Greece and Italy are some of the most visited places in the world by tourists because they hold so much history in them. The Colosseum, temples, and especially mythology with stories of gods and heroes all enrapture people’s attention. Greek mythology has captured the imagination of many and it is still used in modern storytelling, like Percy Jackson YA books for example which are based on mythology. These stories were made millennia in the past, but the continued telling of their stories brings them back to life for us still. By sharing the history of a location, it can bring it to life and capture your audience’s attention if told well.

It also reminded me of a lesson I learned in one of my classes talking about how data on caribou and wolf interactions in national parks were collected over decades. From this interaction, they were able to investigate what best management strategies to implement to save both populations. Using the history of population dynamics can influence decisions for the better in a scientific sense as well, building upon knowledge from the past to learn more. An article explaining some of these caribou-moose interactions is https://wildlifemanagement.institute/sites/default/files/2016-09/14-Predator-Prey_Management.pdf

Great post, thank you for sharing your thoughts!

Emily 

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Unit 6

Unpacking the given quote for this week’s post has proved to be challenging for me. I have spent some time thinking about it, and my mind keeps going back to the idea that history is a narrative. It depends on who’s telling that narrative. In another class of mine, we learned how important it is to conduct scientific research to include different narratives. In particular, including various knowledge systems, such as the scientific community and local and Indigenous knowledge. There are many forms of knowledge and many narratives surrounding natural history, which can greatly differ from different points of view. I think an example of such is National Parks in Canada. They are seen as beautiful and vital pieces of Canada’s history to help maintain our country’s historical natural landscape. Their creation is usually seen as positive, but that is a colonialist viewpoint. I do not want to speak for a point of view that is not my own, so I want to say that I am not a part of a First Nations community. It is a fact that the creation of National Parks in Canada displaced many First Nations communities. They were excluded from entering and prohibited from doing any activity in the parks, such as hunting for these people (McNamee & Finkelstein, 2012). This land, described as pristine, has been cultivated for a very long time by First Nations communities before creating the parks, so even the idea that National Parks conserve the integrity of natural history is not wholly accurate (McNamee & Finkelstein, 2012). My point is that the idea of having complete integrity in history is not possible. There are always different narratives that influence the integrity of history. With National Parks, which have a goal of preserving natural history, their efficacy is subjective. They have a history of violence that is often forgotten. As suggested in the course notes for this week, who’s narrative are we hearing when we are told the history of a place? It is crucial to incorporate different areas of knowledge and even what knowledge is, as it can come in many forms.

The natural landscape we see around us now has been shaped by our land use and development history. The forests we see in southern Ontario are majority new-growth forests because centuries of logging and land development decimated old-growth forests in the area (Land Owner Resource Center, n.d.). The natural beauty we see in forests in southern Ontario now is not the same as what was here before colonialists settled here. Maintaining the integrity of biodiversity as it is currently does not necessarily depict the natural history of a place. The history of a place is difficult to claim the integrity of, as nature is constantly changing and being affected by numerous facets all the time. Trying our best to understand history through different points of view and from different information can give a more complete image of the past. It is important to consider the effects past actions have had to make better choices in the future. As the quote suggests, just because it is in the past does not mean there are no repercussions still around from that history - such as with new growth forests and the formation of National Parks.

Emily

References

Land Owner Resource Center. (n.d.) The Old-Growth Forests of Southern Ontario. Government of Ontario. Retrieved February 15, 2022 from https://cvc.ca/wp-content/uploads//2021/07/oldgwth.pdf

McNamee, K., & Finkelstein, M. W. (2012). National Parks of Canada. The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved February 15, 2022, from https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/national-parks-of-canada

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Walk it off

Hello readers! 

This week there is no prompt and I get to write about what I’ve been thinking about. Of course school first comes to mind. The stress of it all (homework, interviews, job searching, midterms…) is a lot to take in sometimes. So this past weekend I went on a long walk with my thoughts. In hindsight, I should have worn some better shoes – just ask my pair of blisters! I ended up walking with my thoughts around Guelph for 2 hours. I started on campus and made my way down to Speed river. Next I found myself sitting briefly on a bench by the river that didn’t have a heap of snow on it. It was nice to sit quietly and enjoy the sounds of birds and the quiet sound that comes from the insulated, snow covered ground. I continued my walk all the way until I hit Highway 6. I was pretty content to keep walking so I followed the Royal Recreation Trail until I found myself around familiar streets and guided myself home. I think taking the time to appreciate nature in all the chaos of my life helps me “heal”. I hope those reading also have a coping strategy, or activity that helps them find peace. 

I had another uplifting and relevant moment this week. During the week I’m thinking about my group’s podcast and doing research. I was talking with a friend and they shared with me a podcast they had created for a different class. It was so clever! They had interviewed a duck which made their podcast interesting and kept the educational portion of it as well. It made me laugh and still taught me about wetlands. I can’t wait to see what everyone else comes up with for this class!

I hope everyone had a great weekend and week.

Thank you for reading,

Jacqueline

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Hi Jacqueline, 

I just wanted to say that is an impressive walk! I get what you mean though, midterm season makes it seem like our entire lives revolve around school, especially in the winter semester when the weather is cold and there is so little sunshine. This is when taking some time for ourselves is so important though. I haven’t heard of the Royal Recreation Trail, I will have to check it out! 

My coping strategy is also often going on walks, though they are much less impressive and just around the neighbourhood. I live near an off-leash dog park that has a trail, so when school gets overwhelming I tend to go for a little trek to see some dogs and trees! It’s a nice reminder that life does not revolve around school, which is needed sometimes. 

Your post has inspired me to go outside today and try to appreciate winter a little more! Thanks for sharing your ideas, 

Emily

[cljenvs3000w22]

First Time Independent Traveller

Hi all! 

Welcome back to my nature blog. Today, I have a little anecdote/story to tell about how I came to be EVEN MORE in love with nature over the course of the pandemic than I was before!

I thought I would talk about how this year was a big year for me! Before this year I had never been on a plane, or been on a vacation without my parents. However, in 2021 I completed both these things, even despite the pandemic. The pandemic has been going on a long time now, and it has been quite mentally and physically draining on everyone. I have learned a lot about myself throughout this time. I’ve had the chance to be alone, to decompress, to feel lonely, and to long for human connection - as have many of us I presume. At the beginning of the pandemic, almost 2 years ago now, I felt lonely, bored, and generally physically exhausted from not being outside or doing the activities that I would normally do (like go to the gym, or go to a gathering with friends). However, throughout the years (yes, years!) I have grown to enjoy being on my own, and I feel that nature helped me immensely on this journey. This post is somewhat of a love letter, if you will, to nature. 

The summer after it first broke out - I started to enjoy being outside in general - sitting outside, reading, listening to music, going on a walk, lying out in the sun, etc. This was my time to decompress to enjoy time with myself, and it allowed me to grow in a very short amount of time. This growth, that I could not be more grateful for, did wonders for my confidence. I was able to express myself with people and make connections I was never able to make. This actually led me to find someone who shares the passion for being outside and travelling to new places just as much as I do (now that I have come to appreciate it so much more).

Last summer, we went on a trip, just the two of us, completely in the middle of nowhere. We rented a cottage with no wifi, no air-conditioning; just us, the lake and nature all around us. It was truly a moment in my life I felt completely confident in my abilities to live in the “real world”. I know it must sound silly, but it’s true! And those few days I was able to appreciate nature which only made me want to travel and see more of the world in this same way. 

Here are a few photos of the trip:) 

Thank you so much for reading!

Cora 

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Hi Cora, 

I wanted to start off by saying that your post made me smile, and I love hearing about how you took a bad situation (a literal pandemic) and still made the most of it. Your reflection on the last couple of years resonates with me, as I think it will for many people because, like you said, there was a lot of alone time where I also did some reflecting and growing. The exhaustion you mention from not doing anything was particularly true, I remember feeling so lazy because I was doing nothing all the time. I didn’t have many hobbies or activities I would do on my own at the time, but now that I’m reflecting on the last few years, I really have learned how to be by myself and enjoy my own company so much more over the last couple of years. I’ve learned to be more independent and if there’s something I want to do, especially going for bike rides in the summer or walks/hikes, then I feel comfortable just going by myself. This is something I never would have done pre-COVID. I also picked up some new hobbies, I’ve gotten so much more into reading and listening to podcasts for example and learned to make time for things that make me happy. 

It’s great to read your journey over the pandemic, and I think we have some similarities. A memory I thought about while reading your description of your first trip without your family was my first trip that was right before the pandemic started. It’s kind of the complete opposite of your trip because I went to New York City with a couple of my friends, where there was so much happening around us all the time, noise, people etc. instead of a quiet and peaceful trip. It was pretty scary at first to be on our own, but we had a great time. It was like you described, being on our own was a feeling of independence and an “aha” moment where we learned some independence. 

Thanks for sharing your story, 

Emily

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What has been on my mind? Lepidoptera!

During my summer employment, I worked in a Lepidoptera collection, which included butterflies and moths. I loved working here, but I did not get to interact with the public or share all of the fantastic species I was working with. There are such a wide variety of species, and all are beautiful in their way. I think that talking about butterflies and moths relates to our prior blog posts about art since their wings are beautiful and useful for things like mimicry. When it comes to nature interpretation, something I think is important is introducing people to new, exciting parts of nature. Butterflies are a great way to get people interested in insects because many are very visually appealing. I've attached some of my favourites that I found around my work. Working at this job is what started my interest in entomology. I honestly did not think I would like it very much when I accepted the position, but now I really enjoy working with bugs! I hope that I will be able to introduce more people to the fascinating world of bugs through nature interpretation.

Butterflies are some amazing creatures. Take the monarch butterfly, for example, who goes through an amazingly long and arduous southern migration. Considering their size and weight, it truly is an impressive feat. I remember my kindergarten teacher had brought monarch caterpillars into the classroom. We helped take care of them until we released them as adults. I am fond of this memory because I remember being fascinated by the transformation (and I still am). Because of monarchs popularity, there is also attention brought to their problems, such as lack of food. Milkweed is the monarch's preferred food source, but there are problems with its dwindling abundance, so in school, I was taught about planting native species for butterflies and pollination. Looking back, these are valuable lessons that apply to a much broader group of insects than just monarchs, but I learnt about invasive vs native plants because of being invested in monarch butterflies after seeing them grow. I also learned how animals use mimicry to differentiate between monarchs and viceroys. I think about how I have learned about nature from presenters and what lessons stuck out to me. Butterflies, monarchs in particular, are a great way to generate interest in the world of bugs because they are beautiful. This idea could be applied to a broader context where, as a nature interpreter, the goal is to catch the audience's interest before teaching them more detailed information.

I would love to hear about what creatures/topics interest others either when they were younger or now!

Emily