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Being Outdoors Allows Us To Explore
This week brings us to our final blog post, I’m excited to share with you my final thoughts about what I’ve learned is important to me as a nature interpreter and how I want to share my knowledge with the public going forward.
As an interpreter, my four main goals are to educate, connect, engage, and inspire those I’m interacting with. I believe that these are essential components of what being an interpreter means and the impacts they should have on those around them. As an environmental steward and a future educator, personally, I believe some of the most important people to interact with and inspire are children. Although some adults are receptive to change and new ideas, many are not. The media clearly shows us this by reporting the decisions governments and big corporations are making. For example, the Willow Project, there is a lot of controversy surrounding the project so I won’t go into too much detail, however even though there are many economic benefits the environmental repercussions of this project could be huge. Not only will 239 million metric tons be emitted over the project’s 30 years, but what about the harmful effects of building roads, increasing the human population, building more houses, and more noise, and light, what effects will this have on wildlife (Puko, 2023)? On the plant and climate change? People like Biden, and there are many others, say one thing and then do something else. People like Doug Ford want to develop the Greenbelt, an important protected natural area in Ontario and even with large opposition from the public (Jones, 2022). I don’t want to get too political here, but I want to make a point that, in my opinion, many adults cannot have their minds changed and continue to deplete and ravage the natural, endangered world around us.
For me, my focus and my passion as a future educator is to teach and inspire the new generations to be aware of and respectful of the environment. Taking them outside on a nature walk or on a field trip allows them to learn about the environment, and connect with the world around them through touch, sight, and sounds. It engages them in current world issues such as pollution, deforestation, and animal conservation. And hopefully inspires them to learn how they can help, inspires them to become environmental activists, and inspire them to teach people in their community. But, as mentioned in Jacob Rodenburg’s article, getting kids outside to explore and learn is becoming more difficult because it's cheaper and “safer” for kids to be inside (2019). I want to directly quote the article here because this short sentence is powerful “leaving kids indoors cuts them off from the knowledge and understanding of what it means to be a living being that shares a world with other living beings” (Rodenburg, 2019). I think this is such a powerful quote and is seen in our modern-day, corporate world. I honestly believe that some people forget that we share this planet with other living beings besides other people. They see plants, trees, squirrels, and birds daily but I don’t think they truly make the connection that we share the environment, they just think that they are living in our world.
You can only learn so much inside a classroom, that is where the differentiation lies between a teacher teaching you about the environment and an interpreter connecting you with it. Kids need to see it, touch it, explore it, listen to it, hear stories about it, and interact with it, learning about the environment from a classroom cannot create the connection that being outdoors can (Rodenburg, 2019). In schools, there is still a lack of balance between education, well-being, and life skills/exploration. But I believe incorporating environmental exploration and learning from nature interpreters can be a great way to balance all three. We came from the Earth, it is connected and has guided us for millennia, but with the rise of technology, we have become disconnected from it. Nature has been proven to help improve mental health, an important focus in today’s schools, it educated us, it tells stories by watching trees grow, seasons change, and animals hunt. And it gives us the space to explore and fulfill this biological need to connect with the environment around us.
As a future teacher, I believe it is my responsibility to my students to teach them about and interpret the environment around them but to do that they need to be in it. As I’ve gone through this course and reflected on my own guided nature experiences, I’ve discovered that I, as a nature interpreter, enjoy interpreting through stories. Not necessarily made-up stories like about a snapping turtle named Snappy, but stories that are about history, about the daily life of a grizzly bear, about the life cycle of a plant, stories that help to explain the world around us. Interpreting in this way, I believe, brings a sense of clarity and allows connections to form. These connections can lead to inspiration to help conserve and protect our environment and its inhabitants.
I believe it is my responsibility and my calling as an interpreter to teach children about the importance of the environment and how to connect with and be respectful of the world that provides and lives around them. Helping them understand the environment and creating healthy connections with the Earth will hopefully inspire them to as they grow up learn more, educate others, and get involved in protecting the environment and its inhabitants who, unfortunately, do not have a voice to advocate for themselves. That is another hope I have as an interpreter is to not only teach and build connections but to inspire others to do the same, and if need be fight to preserve the environment for generations to come, because at this rate there isn’t going to be much left.
Jones, R. P. (December 22, 2022). Ford government forges ahead with Greenbelt development plan despite ‘broad opposition’ in public consultation. CBC News. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/greenbelt-oak-ridges-moraine-regulations-1.6692337
Puko, T. (March 24, 2023). What is Willow? How an Alaska oil project could affect the environment. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2023/03/17/willow-project-alaska-oil-drilling-explained/
Rodenburg, J. (2019) Why Environmental Educators Shouldn’t Give Up Hope. Clearing. https://clearingmagazine.org/archives/14300
Congrats! We made it to the last discussion post, it has been amazing to see everyone’s different perspectives and hear their thoughts and opinions!
I really like the 4 goals that you have set, and I feel they are amazing to ensure you interact and reach an audience. I like that you bring in the direct quote in the second paragraph relating to leaving kids indoors. I don’t know about you, but I spent almost my whole child life outside when not at school or gymnastics practices. I mean, I did take for granted all that was around me for a very long time. True connections are made from personal experience. Although it has been amazing to live through the photos other students have shared, it is amazing to be able to experience something and then be able to grow an appreciation and understanding about the things around us and ensuring children have this is important. I also want to work in education and I want to make it my goal to inspire children in the way you have shared! I have stressed time and time again in posts and with other students the importance of not just seeing and living in the world around us, but also thinking about appreciating and preserving the beauty.
I can also personally attest to nature improving one’s mental health, because a day without a morning walk with my dogs throws my entire day off (for the doggos too). It has become routine to enjoy the quietness and buzz of nature that without this, I usually have lazier and less productive days.
Thanks for sharing!
Throughout this course my eyes have been opened to many different perspectives of nature interpretation. Not only through the course content, but also through reading other students' discussion posts and working through the group podcasts. It was amazing to receive so many different perspectives from students at the University.
Before the COVID pandemic my family lived in areas very similar to Guelph, and it was not until I was kicked out of residence from the spreading epidemic that I had the chance to work in an agriculture field. My parents moved while I was living on campus to a small town called Listowel. Nearing the end of the winter 2020 semester once I moved “back home” I started working at an egg processing factory (Gray Ridge Egg Farms). Long story short, working with farmers and even just seeing the mass amounts of eggs that were processed daily, began my interest in nature preservation.
Unfortunately, I am not able to share many of the photos from working at the factory as they were taken for professional purposes, but I have a couple that I could share. I also find it fun to share that on average in a single 8 hour shift, approximately 100,000 dozen eggs are processed through the machine. There are also 10,800 eggs on a regular single skid! That’s a lot of breakfast and baked goods! In the picture below you see a little more than 12 skids. (12 skids = 129,600 eggs!)
It blew my mind that one small factory processed and shipped eggs to so many massive companies, including loblaws, Costco and even Tim Hortons when they switched to real-whole eggs. I worked with the quality control professional for many months, while working there and she opened my eyes to the business issues related with quality control - both on-site and offsite areas (farms, collection processes, shipping etc.). The Gray Ridge in Listowel purchased eggs from local farmers and I was able to visit some farms with the Quality Control personnel, which was also very interesting and an amazing opportunity. I guess in a way I was able to see all of the outside steps that go into a product that almost everyone in this world uses, or even relies on. It is hard to imagine what issues would arise losing even small farms and what that could do for one production and shipping.
It was also at this time, and while working in a small grocery store in Guelph after the fact, that I thought about the large amounts of waste in these industries. At the egg factory, eggs dropped on the floor and into machine pans in mass amounts (the mess is unimaginable). One time a full skid (yes, 10,800 eggs) fell and it took every body on that shift (with their squeegees and dust pans) approximately 10 minutes to clean up, and all of that was liquid waste! It was very sad to see the amount of waste in the egg industry, as well as produce and food waste at this catering grocery store.
I believe my responsibility throughout nature interpretation is to open people's eyes to all of the things that we as a society rely on and take for granted. I believe I can do this best by using personal experiences and pictures to hopefully spark other people's interest and have them join me along in my nature interpretation journey. I also believe my appreciation for the environment sprouted from all of the beauty that my family has been lucky enough to travel and see. I have attached a few of my favorite photos from a recent trip to flowerpot island near Tobermory that usually get people interested in sharing their own photos and stories as well, which kickstarts nature interpretation conversation. It’s important to keep other people interested by hearing their perspectives as well.
Interpretation through Story
This quote speaks deeply to the fact that we cannot forget the past when looking at preserving and maintaining something for the future, especially in terms of the environment. Things from our past can not only bring about stories and memories that make way to bigger things and ideas and it is from the past that new things are created, but it also adds dimension and emotion to something that may otherwise seem worthless. If we want to maintain what we have, or even advance - in any subject of life for that matter - we must look at how we got to where we are today. The steps/journey are just as important as the destination! This quote shows us that life exists beyond what we do or do not do, and instead has us focus on the past and future instead of the point in which we are living.
Another student spoke about the first car ever made and related it to this quote. This made me think a lot because it is true that the first car ever built is not even close to as technologically advanced as some of the vehicles we have today, but this car is still proudly on display to show us WHERE WE STARTED/ CAME FROM. It is through the preservation of the past that we can truly see how we have evolved.
What's On My Mind?
Looking at this picture there are multiple thoughts that run through my brain. I think of the beauty that this picture holds, a sense of belonging, I think of the science behind snow turning into ice and I think of how hard it’s going to be to shovel the snow and clean my car before going to class. Throughout the last five units we’ve been learning how interpretation works, we’ve learned what it takes to be an interpreter, how to interpret, for example, using science to interpret things, interpreting through art etc. and much more.
This picture is a great representation of what offers me a sense of belonging (Beck et al., 2018). This is a picture of Chancellors Way, housing services near the University of Guelph, where I live. The people that live in these buildings all offer me a sense of peace, especially my roommate (Beck et al., 2018). My roommate (my best friend) is the reason I enjoy staying at this apartment. She explains all the beautiful scenery and all the science behind it, she is a true biomed major (Wals et al., 2014). When it snows she goes into the whole science behind why snowfalls occur, she explains the chemistry behind the snow turning into ice and then turning into water puddles when the sun comes out. When the sun comes out and flowers start to flourish she explains the whole concept behind photosynthesis! These scientific explanations help me feel more connected to our environment and also offer a different lens to interpret nature through.
I believe that my roommate is helping me interpret nature through science education (SE) (Wals, et al., 2014). Science education focuses on environmental education stressing the “incorporation of values and changing behaviours” (Wals et al., 2014). This can be seen through the examples I listed above for example the changes occurring in snow turning to ice and the photosynthesis of plants. She also talks to me loads about climate change. She stresses how human behaviour is impacting our world's climate so every time we walk outside and see garbage on the ground she reminds me of how our planet is being harmed (Wals et al., 2014). Although it is not in the form of a textbook or journal article she is still teaching me about the environment and the science behind it all.
An interpreter's job is to get individuals to feel more connected to nature whether that be through explaining the history behind different scenery or offering them a sense of belonging or even just entertaining them and influencing them to come back and visit the same area (Hookyaas, 2023). This being said, I hope that everyone is able to find themselves an interpreter. Although my relationship with nature has always been great, by being exposed to multiple interpreters I have been able to see and interpret nature through many different lenses and am learning how amazing and beautiful our world is! I have also learned that our world is complex and that it is getting ruined due to human influences. We need to treat our earth with more respect especially since it is everyone's home!
References
Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage : for a better world. Sagamore Venture.
Hookyaas, A. (2023). Unit 02: Teaching Learners. Courselink.
Wals, A. E. J., Brody, M., Dillon, J., Stevenson R. B. (2014). Convergence Between Science and Environmental Education. Education Forum.
First of all, what a beautiful picture captured of the snowfall in a parking lot I think many of us have seen! I was especially focused on the trees in the background and how they are holding the snow/ ice (does your roommate know how this happens? Because I find it quite exceptional and beautiful!).
I can also agree that we can learn a lot from the people around us (like your roomate). I have a similar situation where my roommate (in biomedical toxicology, a similar program to your roommate) is able to open my eyes to different things happening in nature. During the summer, my roommate and I would go for walks through the forest in our backyard. She would always point to different plants or animals and share little facts with me about what was going on around us or even point to a small puddle and try and explain why it is where it is. I have included a picture of my backyard where you can see the forest on the right. If you live near Edinburgh and Kortright, you too can explore this area and all of its beauty! I also included a sign (one of many) that someone had put up in this forest.
I really like how you explain the importance of preservation and conservation, “We need to treat our earth with more respect especially since it is everyone's home!”. I think that many people (even some of us) can take for granted all that we have in the environment! I spoke in a couple of my posts about all of the environmental resources that are used on personal and manufacturing/ professional levels. Things as simple as water to things as complex as mineral and energy resources are often overlooked, but they are all things we rely on to live and we cannot take all this for granted.
Nature Interpretation through Science
The lack of a prompt this week had me struggling to decide what I wanted to discuss. I have always had an interest in science - mainly biology, therefore I feel like I have a lot to share in terms of Nature Interpretation through Science.
I thought for a while about what I would like to discuss this week, and I landed on my summer camp experiences. Although I used to work at an indoor Gymnastics facility while being a camp counsellor, it was my goal to be able to get the kids interested and busy in our outdoor lunch activities. We had the opportunities to explore Cambridge (nice and close to Guelph!) in many ways; personal exploration and even field trips. I remember the summer before COVID I was running this particular part of the camps and I wanted to be able to introduce the children to the environmental resources in Cambridge.
We would go for walks in the forest near the facility, have flower scavenger hunts, and even went on a trip to the butterfly conservatory. I noticed that a lot of the children were consistently asking questions as their curiosity grew while exploring new places. They were asking me questions I never thought to explore and even taught me some things! I remember this one little girl glued to my hip and kept asking questions about the different places we explored and even had some fun facts to share with me. It was at this time that I knew I wanted to explore my career opportunities as what we call an ‘environmental interpreter’. I knew I wanted to work with kids and teach them (and learn from them!) all about the environment, again mainly relating to animal biology since it is something I am particularly interested in. I would love to share some pictures of our field trips, but unfortunately do not have any without some of the children, and I cannot share those on here. Instead, I have found a google image to share with those of you that have never visited the Butterfly Conservatory in Cambridge. (I highly recommend taking a day trip to the conservatory!)
Without a prompt, and also thinking about Nature Interpretation, I began to think about how my interest in the environment and environmental conservation grew. I think it was experiences like this growing up (field trips and personal exploration) that made me very interested in the complexity and beauty of the outdoors. My parents never highlighted the importance of environmental conservation, but themselves, myself and my siblings were always happiest outdoors, at the cottage swimming, fishing, or exploring. I think the memories that I have related to the environment are the reason that I am so interested in conserving and preserving the beauty.
Gift of Beauty
I have always been one to enjoy stopping to take pictures of beautiful things in nature. I try and pause and take in the view and then snap a photo so I can go back and look at all of the different places I have found beauty and then recall the memory I have associated with it. Every morning when I take my dog for a walk I try and go early enough when the sky is still changing colours from the sunrise, I like to start my day with a little bit of beauty! (I couldn’t find a picture of both Pablo and the sky, but I still included a photo of him for those of you who are curious about this little cutie!).
The textbook defines “the gift of beauty” as the following; "Relationship 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, L. et al, 2018). I believe it is most important to take the time to reflect upon the things we find in nature. There are so many beautiful organisms and habitats around us that support entire ecosystems, it is difficult to grasp the complexity of these systems when you are not in-tune with nature. An individual must have respect and appreciation for the ‘gifts of beauty’ they see in order to think about preservation.
I am not sure if this is common among other individuals, but I truly miss the days of endlessly exploring the neighborhood on my bike with my friends. I feel like once we get older, our life becomes too busy to just have 'free time' outside where not much is on our mind, but the space to reflect.
I do have that desire to go out and explore and have the hope of preserving the beauty. I believe I express and interpret nature best through shared images. I have shared with you some of my favourite photos from over the past year that I have collected and hope you see the beauty in them as I do.
Downtown Guelph
Tobermory, ON
I have also spoke a lot about my cottage in my past posts and have shared some photos of some beautiful sun landscapes as well as some of my favourite early morning fishing trips. This is where my appreciation for the silence that a quiet day can provide grew and where I began to reflect most about all that was going on around me (lack of wifi and being stuck on an island forced me to find this passion and appreciation that I may have lost while growing up).
Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: for a better world. Sagamore Venture.
Unit 03: Risk versus Reward Interpretation
Addressing Privilege in Nature Interpretation
I define privilege as unearned advantages that apply to certain groups of people. For instance, someone who grew up in a middle-class home with married parents did not earn the benefits of having food on their table every night, but rather are born into that privileged lifestyle. Peggy McIntosh (1989) describes how privilege can be seen as an ‘invisible backpack’ of unearned assets that can be counted on cashing in each day, but is meant to remain oblivious. In other words, many individuals are unaware of the privilege they hold in their invisible backpack and overlook the lack of privilege that others experience. By unpacking our invisible backpacks, we can acknowledge the privilege we have as individuals.
Here I will unpack my own invisible backpack; I am a white, middle class, healthy, young woman. I am also a highly educated individual that speaks English, is able to pay for university, possesses a Canadian passport, and has the opportunity to travel outside of Canada if desired. I grew up in a small suburban neighborhood that was relatively safe, I always had food on the table and my family could afford many extracurricular activities that my brothers and I would partake in. These are all things that I have been given from the love and support from my family without directly earning.
Privilege also has a major influence on how we interpret and experience nature. There is a noticeably large lack of attendance from minorities in nature interpretation parks and this is suggested to be true due to economic, cultural, communication, knowledge, and fear barriers (Beck et al., 2018). Economic barriers from minority groups relate to large entrance fees to parks and minorities experiencing a generally lower socioeconomic position in society (Beck et al., 2018). Cultural barriers refers to the differences in culturally accepted activities in minority groups. For instance, some minority groups would not prefer camping as it is deemed more as being in deep poverty than as an activity to experience the wilderness for enjoyment (Beck et al., 2018). Communication barriers can prevent interpreters from being able to communicate with a variety of audiences that speak different languages aside from English. Speaking English is of high privilege and gives great advantages to people to be able to experience an abundant amount of activities in Canada. In relation to this, there is a lack of knowledge on the subject of nature in minority groups which can be a result of language barriers. Finally, fear also corresponds with this notion of lacking in knowledge. There is uncertainty of what to expect with wildlife encounters, as well as potential discrimination against minority groups in predominantly white-based activities such as camping (Beck et al., 2018).
Beck et al. (2018) suggests ways that we can provide inclusivity towards underprivileged and minority groups in terms of nature interpretation. Cultural barriers can be reduced by personally inviting minority populations to nature interpretation events through organizations to attract minority populations. By hiring a more diverse group of individuals, language barriers can be minimized by having a variety of programs be presented in multiple languages. Similarly, by increasing staff diversity, fears can be reduced and ultimately more education can be provided to marginalized groups.
References
Beck, L., Cable, T. T., Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritage for a Better World. Sagamore Venture.
McIntosh, P. (1989). White privilege: Unpacking the invisible knapsack. Peace and Freedom, 10-12.
I really enjoyed some of the topics you brought into the discussion, specifically relating to the unpacking of your own backpack, as I feel we grew up with similar access to resources. I, like yourself, had access to many extracurricular activities as well as access to a fantastic education. I am not sure if you had/ have a cottage or the ability to go camping while growing up, but I feel that much of my appreciation and knowledge for the environment came from this time, through exploring these areas myself. Another blogger spoke about their opportunities through having a cottage and I completely agree that trips like these made me slightly selfish for all of these opportunities. I was able to share these experiences with family and friends and I am grateful to be able to do so, but as environmental interperters we are obviously looking to entend it furtner than just fmaily and friends.
I also enjoyed reading about the points you bring up in the article you mention (Beck et al. 2018). It is interesting and important to relate culture and economy to environmental access as it plays a key role in an individual's knowledge and connection with the environment.
Environmental Privilege
I believe the best way to describe privilege is the unearned advantages awarded to an individual or group of individuals based on perceived characteristics that in turn make their life easier. Privilege can relate to anything from the language we are taught and the resources we have to our familial culture and background. I grew up in an upper-middle-class family and therefore was able to develop an appreciation and relationship with the environment in many different ways with access to many different opportunities; camping trips and family vacations, living and playing in a safe neighborhood, access to education with field trips and other learning opportunities, participation in many extra-curricular activities etc. To unpack my own indivisible backpack, access to these types of resources and the ‘Canadian culture’ I grew up with allowed me to unknowingly have these advantages in our society. Along with access to higher education and different opportunities throughout many aspects of my life, it is not until reflection that I am able to see these advantages and think about extending access to individuals without these advantages.
Privilege plays a very big role in the way in which we as interpreters and learners appreciate the environment. Many individuals, if not all, do not see the beauty of the environment, let alone all of the resources that are used on individual and manufacturing levels. Individuals without access to the same amenities may lack resources, knowledge, and an understanding of the diversity of the environment. Taking in some things we learned in the last unit when being able to connect with learners as interpreters, we must gear our so-called lessons to our audience and offer them information and tips for areas they have access to.
The Arctic Interpreter
Nature Interpreters are essential for the education of the natural world to the public. They help people understand the natural world, the threats nature faces, and how we as humans can help minimize these threats. Nature interpreters have a difficult job as they need to effectively communicate education in a fun interactive way to the public. As stated by Mills (1920), “People are out for recreation and need restful, intellectual visions, and not dull, dry facts, rules, and manuals.” Doing so will help the guest have a life-changing positive impact on the environment, allowing them to take part in acting sustainably (Beck et al., 2018). A successful interpreter will be able to instill the passion of learning to the guest regardless of age, gender, or ethnicity. A good first step to become a successful interpreter is to follow The Gifts of Interpretation (Beck & Cable, 2011), which are a list of 15 gifts on how to approach interpretation and relate to the audience.
I have spent four summers working at Rondeau Provincial Park as a Naturalist (nature interpreter) practicing my interpretative skills. One of the main things I learned was to teach what you are interested in, as this will give you the most passion towards your topics. As an interpreter I would focus on educating the public on climate changes impact on the Arctic tundra. Being a Canadian the arctic is near and dear to my heart and being the most rapidly changing environment due to climate change in Canada, it needs our help conserving. Growing up in rural Ontario I understand the perspectives of individuals who doubt climate change and believe that I can use their concerns to better educate the public without touching politics. Ideally, I would work at Polar Bear Provincial Park, as it is the largest of the provincial parks, in the arctic tundra and is currently unmanned.
Being the first interpreter at Polar Bear Provincial Park, would provide me an amazing opportunity to use the cumulative knowledge from this class to create a solid foundation for its interpretative program. Having this program in the high arctic would allow visitors to see first-hand the accelerated impacts climate change has on the arctic biome. To accommodate to all learning styles, the visitor centre with be equipped with auditory, visual, and tactile/kinaesthetic learning stations. For auditory listeners, a recorded tour will be available, or an interpreter who can give a presentation of the visitor centre live. For visual learners the visitor center will be fill with exhibits demonstrating the arctic, such as diagram and photos as well as an underground display showing the melting of the permafrost. For the tactile/kinaesthetic learners as aspects of the exhibits will have interactive components such as arctic animal furs, a temperature changing permafrost exhibit (to tactile feel the temperature change) and a cold room, where the freezing arctic temperatures and storms can be experiences (with supervision). All these learning styles will be incorporated into each exhibit allowing for ideal learning conditions for everyone regardless of what learning style/combinations of learning styles best suit them. These combinations, will lead to an effective and successful interpretive centre.
Citations:
Beck, L. and Cable, T. 2011. The gifts of interpretation, Champaign, IL: Sagamore.
Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World. SAGAMORE Publishing.
Mills, Enos A. “The Adventures of a Nature Guide.” 1920, https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.title.57806.
Hey Andrew!
I completely agree that it can be difficult to install the same passion an environmental interpreter has to their learners. It is important to try and gear what you are trying to communicate in an enthusiastic way. It’s easier to do this if you have a true passion for it yourself, like I see you do for the Arctic. I really enjoyed the photos you shared and would also love the hands-on activities you could offer. I am mostly a tactile learner and learn best by participating. I appreciate that you have found different ways to communicate with learners and keep them engaged.
I find myself most interested in exploring topics related to aquatic and marine ecosystems as I grew up canoeing, boating, and fishing at my family’s cottage on Georgian Bay. Seeing the ecosystems around me every weekend while on the island as well as canoeing around, sparked my interest at a young age. My fascination grew when spending hours fishing for bass. I always wondered what the real difference between smallmouth and largemouth bass because I could never really tell myself. I then did some research and found myself doing this a lot after spending my time on the lake, very interested in what was going on around me. (Don’t worry, I now know the difference between small and large mouth bass).
A very important aspect to take away from being or following an environmental interpreter is the overall idea of preservation. It is important to have a respect for the environment around you and work to preserve and share its beauty. Many different science courses in my educational career have allowed me to have an appreciation for these wonderful systems around us (from the molecular level all the way up to things as large as forests and ecosystems). I believe it is very important for an environmental interpreter to understand and share their appreciation as well as have the knowledge on their environmental passions to succeed as an environmental interpreter. Not only do we rely on the environment for basic life processes and entertainment, but we are very selfish with how many amazing resources are harvested and used on personal and manufacturing levels. I spoke about this in a past post but I would like to bring it up again; I only recently found an appreciation for the amazing world around us. I grew up spending a lot of my time outdoors on hikes, fishing, gardening etc., but I only recently ‘stepped back’ and said to myself “woah, this stuff is pretty cool and I take for granted all that is around me”.
My role as an environmental interpreter is to take the lead in sharing my knowledge and past experiences with scientific communities/ individuals. I believe that environmental interpreters can also be anyone that is able to articulate and share their experiences with a community. I know this is very broad, but I think it is the discussion, questions, and thoughts that shared experiences leave us with that allow us to learn. This can relate to the learning skills activity we participated in. Listening to stories and facts about experiences can help auditory learners while seeing pictures and watching videos can help visual learners. I believe since I am a kinaesthetic learner, I tend to ask many questions so I feel more included in the actual activity/ discussion.
My 'Sense of Place' and Appreciation for Nature
Nature has always been very important in many aspects of my life and I have only recently begun to reflect; not only during this time but also on many of my past experiences.
Not only do I appreciate the beauty of many different flowers, plants, wildlife etc., I have also been able to really enjoy the sense of stability and relaxation that comes with many ecosystems and territories that I visit and research. I also share many fond memories outside with family, friends, and different types of clients that I hold close to my heart.
I go on a daily walk with my dog, and frankly I think I enjoy it more than he does. The peaceful morning buzz that you hear as the sun starts to rise is my favourite part of these walks. I find that without this in my morning routine, my whole day is thrown off. His favourite thing to do after a fresh snowfall is to roll around in the snow. I used to hurry him along since I am always cold, but I have grown to appreciate the happiness that a fresh snowfall can bring this little guy.
I have also been very active my entire life that during the pandemic i began to really enjoyed (and almost relied on) going on daily runs/walks by myself. I found it relaxing to just spend time outside, exploring the new town my family had just moved to a couple months before the pandemic. I think we can all agree that our appreciation for the outdoors grew during this time of lockdown. Anyways, during this time I found myself enjoying random walks around Guelph or the town my family lives in. I have included some snapshots of my favourite views I have randomly come across.
Some of my favourite memories growing up are of my siblings and I enjoying time exploring anything we could outside. I can relate my interest in nature to these memories because having many siblings with different interests, we all tried just about everything and I appreciate the diversity of outdoor activities that I took part in in turn. My parents also enjoyed almost all weekends at our cottage (and although we were not much of an ‘electronics’ household, lack of wifi at the cottage had us exploring even further). From spending hours looking at the stars at night to playing each and every sport during the day (and finding time to fish in between), I feel like these activities built my appreciation and interest for the outdoors as well as my ‘sense of place’.
