Nature Interpretation and Me
As this semester comes to an end, it’s hard not to look back and reflect on everything I’ve learned both academically, and personally. I doubt I’m alone when I say that has easily been one of my most interesting semesters to date. Interestingly enough, it has been one of my favourites.
Throughout this course, I feel as though I’ve come to understand what my definition of nature interpretation is, and where I see myself fitting into the field once I graduate. By using the knowledge I’ve attained from completing my degree in zoology, and the communication skills I’ve gained in respect to nature interpretation, I hope to be able to aid in the conservation of our earths species in any way I can.
Even as a child, my parents instilled in me that one of the best things for conservation, is education. They taught me that if people are unaware that there is a problem at hand, there is very little they can do to rectify the situation. Unfortunately, there are countless species which are on the brink of extinction and the sad truth is, if a majority of them disappeared, many wouldn’t even notice this disappearance. In my opinion, a major issue is that the media tends to focus on the species which are the most charismatic. Pretty much everyone knows that polar bears and rhinos are facing extinction, yet I’m sure only a very limited few know that the blue-throated macaw is on the brink of extinction. With a population estimated at less than 200, they are the most endangered parrot in the wild. This is a great shame as blue-throats are such personable birds and in my opinion, they should be getting as much attention as for example, polar bears.
Pictured above is Olivia, one of the blue-throated macaws I’ve had the pleasure of working with. Although she wasn’t the biggest fan of me, her mate Neuton grew fairly attached to me as I was one of the few people who didn’t scare him haha.
Due to this lack of knowledge, my goal as a nature interpreter is to educate the public and raise awareness that many known and unknown species are facing extinction and that we should be taking the initiative to save them. I say this because most of the species are going extinct due to our actions. All species are important in some and we should be attempting to save as many as we can and not just the ones that we think are cute.
One belief that I feel I bring to the table is that much of science is extremely unaccessible to those who do not have a background in science. What I mean by this, is that almost every scientific paper I’ve had to read has required at the very least, 3 read throughs in order to fully digest it. I believe that this is largely due to the at times, excessive use of scientific jargon. In my opinion, scientific articles are seen as the be all end all when it comes to communicating research. I feel that this is very outdated as there are plenty of methods of communicating information that could appeal to a much broader audience. The methods I speak of include but are not limited to; infographics, videos, podcasts or even comics! By using more accessible types of media, is able to be understood by more people which in my eyes, makes them much more valid methods for scientific communication.
Another course I was in this semester which I felt did an excellent job of instilling this message was ZOO*4910 or, integrative vertebrate biology. For our final project, we were tasked with presenting one of the scientific papers we studied in class in an untraditional format, which I thought was an incredibly cool assignment. For my project I decided to present Stoddard et al.’s study, “Wild hummingbirds discriminate nonspectral colors” as a video sketch, which I had a lot of fun making! I chose to do a video as I felt that using things like, music, pop culture references and comedy would make the material much more interesting and engaging. To ensure that the information presented was easy to understand, I sent the video to a few of my friends who don’t study one of the sciences. Thankfully the consensus was that the concepts presented we extremely clear and easily understandable which told me that I had done job well. If I’m being honest, this was probably the most fun I’ve doing a project in university and it is hand down the one I am most proud of.
A screenshot from the video capturing the eye sore that was my hummingbird costume. For anyone interested, the video itself is available at this link! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adcbJtaqw_M
Having played live music for a decent amount of time, performing is something that I not only enjoy doing, but I also think I am somewhat good at (could be delusion though). Because of this, I feel that this sort of performance based education is something I would like to get better at as I feel as though it is the method of interpreting nature that works for me.
As a zoology major, I feel as though it is my responsibility to use the knowledge I have gained to aid in the conservation of the species that we share our planet with. This extends to ensuring that the next generation will be able to see and experience the same biological diversity that I had the pleasure of experiencing. It may be one thing to view nature through the glass of an exhibit at a zoo or on a screen, but it is a completely different thing seeing it first hand in the wild. For me, I will never forget seeing killer whales in the wild, it honestly felt like I was seeing some sort of mythical creature that was thought not to exist.
A picture I took of the pod of killer whales I was lucky enough to see out in B.C.
Nature truly is a remarkable thing and it would be such a shame if we lost one of the most incredible things this planet has to offer.
Hello,
Great insightful post. Like you, I found myself enjoying this semester even though I thought I wouldn’t. I do find myself missing the social aspect of university though. Studying as a group in the library and going to lectures with friends are things I appreciated. But, I found that the convenience of attending lectures at home saves a lot of time travelling to and from class. So overall, it balanced out and I ended up enjoying it.
I think it’s really valuable to have a focus when it comes to making a difference in nature interpretation, and you seem to have that focus. Throughout the semester, I picked up on a clear sense of direction from your blog posts. For example, your first post of the semester also pictured a macaw (a military macaw) and your last one now pictures a blue-throated macaw! I find it a clear testament to your love for birds that your first and last original posts of the semester both feature a macaw.
A photo of your first Tumblr post in September showing a military macaw. Retrieved from here.
In my opinion, making a difference is hard. Since it’s hard, it requires someone to focus on one particular aspect that they’d like to change, such as reversing the decline of blue-throated macaws.
I also watched your video and enjoyed it. You have a great camera presence and I’m sure that took a lot of effort since you had to write an entire script and film two different characters talking. It felt really smooth between shots which I know is harder than it looks. Perhaps your camera presence can aide you in your future nature interpretation endeavours.
All in all, it’s inspiring to know someone majoring in zoology is genuinely passionate about their discipline. I wish you the best of luck in your future and I too wish to see the blue-throated macaws thrive!
Best,
Mo
Hello Luke!
I couldn’t have said it better myself; this semester has been definitely interesting! Although I agree that it has been an amazing semester. I am so glad that I chose to step out of my comfort zone and participate in this course because it has been one of my favourite courses throughout my university degree! Coming from the landscape architecture program, I didn’t exactly know what nature interpretation was, but I was surprised to find so many similarities between this course and my landscape architecture program. I am excited to be able to use all of the things I learned in this program in my future career as a landscape architect!
I admire that you are so passionate about conservation, we really need more people like you in the nature interpretation field. I recall our conversation at the beginning of the semester, and it was incredible to see your passion for wildlife and the ways you strive to advocate for conservation through your work at the African Lion Safari. Your unique upbringing seems to have contributed greatly to your love and passion for the environment. Education is the key to success in environmental conservation. Baba Dioum explains that “in the end we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand; and we will understand only what we have been taught”. It is very important for educators like yourself to use your platform to educate and raise awareness of species facing extinction. By doing this, you will be contributing to their survival and proceeding to fight for them. It is sad to think that most of the species extinction is caused by human impact, it would only be right if humans put a little bit more effort into saving these species that we have harmed through our actions.
I really like that you considered alternative methods for publishing information. I have a very hard time digesting information in scientific papers, just because they are always so long and use language that I am unfamiliar with. The methods you spoke about would definitely be able to reach a broader audience. Different types of media such as infographics, videos, podcasts, and comics should be used to get messages across in a more accessible way. With conservation especially, by doing this more people will understand and be willing to work towards the problem.
What an interesting assignment you had in your biology course! It is amazing to see a study like this one be displayed in a more engaging and entertaining way! The information you presented was very easy to understand and so entertaining! Through this video, I can tell that you would be a great performer, and you should definitely use your music talents to interpret nature in the future! That would be an amazing way to make an impact!
Thank you for so many great posts this semester, I really enjoyed engaging in coversation with you! Best of luck with your future career and your conservation efforts!
Victoria
