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Hi Steven,

It was really interesting to hear your take on ethics as an interpreter in the context of professional-patient relationships from your experience! Although the roles of an interpreter and physiotherapist seem completely different, it was really eye-opening to read about your connections between the two.

Your discussion on the fourth point, being open to new ideas, was interesting to think about. It’s been very interesting working on group projects for this class as the body of students come from a much more wide array of backgrounds than I’m sure many of us are used to. Working together to create a comprehensive vision on a project brought a lot of creativity, as people’s working knowledge and interests have been refreshingly different. It feels just as much like a piece of artistic work as it does something of science. I also appreciate you talking about your relationship with interpretation in the context of equity. We have been discussing in depth how to be flexible for our audiences, and its always important to consider how our privileges may shape how we see the role of an interpreter versus what is the truly the best way to introduce our vision of nature to someone else. As you say, the main goal is always to improve the condition of the patient, and that’s a really compelling way to see the role of nature interpreters. Its been somewhat difficult to grasp certain concepts from the course and readings as someone that had many privileges, including the opportunity to develop a personal connection to nature from a young age. It is difficult for me to imagine what it feels like to not have that, but recognizing that those privileges exist and that there are ways to share nature with others without serving my own ideals is definitely something I have come to recognize over the course of the semester. It is one of my most intimate takeaways, and something I hope to continue to develop and shelter as we grow into interpreters sharing the world with our patients and peers.

Again, thank you for sharing. It was genuinely a pleasure to read and consider.

Have a great winter break,

James

My Journey as a Nature Interpreter

I began this course ignorant of what being a nature interpreter consisted of. My early assumption was that the role of a nature interpreter was to just explain and guide people to their environment. In a sense yes this is what they do, but there is a whole different level of complexity and skill needed to be considered a proper nature interpreter that I never thought of.

Throughout this course, I have learnt a lot about myself and who I want to be. I have taken something from each unit and created my own code of ethics (Steven’s Code of Ethics as a Nature Interpreter):

1. Be knowledgeable. Understand who you really are as an interpreter, understand your audience, and constantly think of ways to make your audience’s experiences more meaningful. Learning about nature is important and all but remember that meaningful connections last longer than random facts.

2. Be flexible. Realize that everyone is different and learns differently. Utilize different skills to help people learn more efficiently.

3. Treat everyone with equity. It is important to include everyone, but it is also important to realize that people come from different privileges. Making a program to ensure that everyone can have the same experience should be the goal.

4. Be open to new ideas. Constantly explore with different lens as there are many perspectives when viewing a topic. Welcome other ideas and go along with it. See where it takes you.

5. Honesty and Integrity. Be reliable and responsible for your actions. Keep your word and be respectful of the people and nature around you.

These are just some code of ethics that I thought were important. Was there anything that I was missing from your list that you think I should incorporate?

From creating Steven’s Code of Ethics, I realize that these traits are transferable to the profession that I currently am in. I work as a physiotherapist assistant and constantly must work on my knowledge of the field. Although in my field being knowledgeable about the topic is considered more important, there is still a huge emphasis on understanding the patient. I find that being able to connect to the person and fully understanding them, optimizes the entire healing process. 

Being flexible is important for building strength and stability, allowing for greater range of motion. Oh, sorry for the wrong context of flexibility (a bad health joke, although it is important to remember to stretch your body), what I meant to say is that every patient is different and will need different programs and techniques to treat. 

As I live in Toronto, Ontario, I have met people from different races, varying in age and gender and have treated them all to the best of my ability. Regardless of what it might be, I always ensure to work to the best of my best abilities. 

As for the fourth code of ethics, I am constantly learning from other professionals that I work with, such as the chiropractor, the head physiotherapist, the athletic trainers, the message therapists, and even the patients themselves. It is important to remember that as human beings, we are not able to know everything. We must constantly communicate with each other and be open with the different perspectives that the other professions might look at the situation. 

And for the last code of ethics, it is important to constantly build trust with the patients as well as your peers. Knowing your limits and asking for help may seem scary, but the main goal is to always improve the condition of the patient. By not being truthful, the patient may not see any results or even worse, their injury might worsen.  

Although my field is not related to nature, I have always had a love for nature. This course has further my appreciation for nature and made me realize the importance of being able to interpret nature for others. Especially for those who have been less fortunate and unable to grasp the beauty of nature. Whether that be due to being non-privileged such as the story of the Boys & Girls Club of Mar Vista gardens with the low-income housing projects (Beck et al., 2018, p. 127), or the barriers that come with being a minority (Beck et al., 2018, p. 135-147), I want to be able to open their eyes to the beauty that nature has to offer.

Artist: Angus Maguire

However, I understand that this is easier said than done. Beck et al. (2018) states that due to economic, cultural, communication, lock of knowledge, and fear are possibilities to why minorities are discouraged to participate in interpretative programs. Hopefully by seeing more minorities get closer to nature, other minorities will see that exploring nature isn’t all that scary or hard, breaking down some of the barriers that Beck et al. (2018) has previously mentioned.

I am aware that this is a hard task, as most older generation minorities are stuck in their ways, but we are lucky to be living in a time where technology is thriving. The first step to getting people to explore and interpret nature is first by getting their interest. Before my grandparent’s past, they loved staying home and watching the Price Is Right. They didn’t like going outside as they were scared that they would not be able to communicate with others and be judged by the people around them. But if I had the knowledge and internet content back when I was younger, I could have shown them the beauty of nature through nature walks on YouTube.

I would have been able to let them listen to the sounds of what hiking through a forest would sound like. I could have got them intrigued with nature and possibly got them to explore it with me.

This course has been amazing and eye opening. I will use everything that I have learnt from this course to help encourage more people who have not been able to experience and appreciate nature the way that I have been able to! I look forward to reading all your blogs and for those who I won’t be able to reply to, have a great winter break!

-Steven

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

Maguire, A. (2020). The difference between the terms equality, equity, and liberation [illustrated]. Research Gate. https://www.researchgate.net/figure/The-difference-between-the-terms-equality-equity-and-liberation-illustrated-C_fig1_340777978

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Hi Brayden,

Thank you for sharing with us this week. I strongly related to the part where you talk about trying to respect nature in the same way you would spiritual beliefs. Ever since I have been young the thought of littering has always filled me with a strange sense of dread. However, I was really struck by your question at the end. While we mutually believe in a respect towards nature, I feel that environmental degradation is something that should be kept away from education until there is enough mental maturity to truly reflect on the weight of what is being taught.  

It is difficult, as a child, to consider permanence as a concept. I think I talked about this in a previous post, but I had a thousand-page picture book with facts about Earth Science that I used to read all the time, even when I was very young. Despite the fact that I could probably recite more earth processes than a high-school student, I did not believe that global warming was real until I was a teenager. I was convinced it was some kind of misunderstood cycle, because the idea of very bad things coming very soon was not a reality I was ready to cognitively accept. An important thing to remember is that while children are cognitively ready to love nature, they lack the ability to connect to its degradation (Rodenburg, 2019). This is actually something I struggled with earlier in the course, as my group and I selected microplastics as a podcast topic – an issue that is difficult to dissect without getting terrifying. I think that the better way to teach kids is to encourage more time outside in nature, so that they can learn to love and understand their surroundings. Rather than putting the concept of environmental destruction in their minds, children have a right to experience the joy of discovering the richness, complexity, and diversity of life (Rodenburg, 2019).

That being said, I completely understand where you’re coming from. Making sure we continue to pass on the weight of being responsible citizens of the world will surely be one of the biggest challenges facing the interpreters of the near future. Again, thanks for sharing this week. Enjoy your winter break.

James

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

Ethics within Nature

It can be debated that the very being of our ethics are developed around what we experience through nature. Nature is evident within our lives and is involved in our daily activity in some way or another. To further evaluate the role that nature has on our lives, consider the extensive interpretation work conducted by the author Richard Louv. Louv believes in connecting to the nature around us and every small detail it has to offer us, we in return are saving it at the same time. A quote from Louv (2019) regarding the importance of nature that has resonated with me within this chapter is this; 

“Will help everyone break away from their fixed gaze at the screens that dominate our lives and remember instead that we are animals in a world of animals.” 

I believe this quote stuck with me as the dominance of online forums takes over most of our lives. Although this new era of technology careers and schooling is not exactly the ideal situation, it has provided me with the opportunity to become the best nature interpreter I can be. When the pandemic became relevant, I moved back to my hometown in Northern Ontario. Growing up, I used to hate living so far away from any big cities and could not wait to get away from all the rural communities. My beliefs, perspective, and responsibilities towards the environment have been forever altered as I now am back in the North and would not want to be anywhere else. I have included a list of realizations I have now regarding nature; 

It is our duty as the next up and coming generation to highlight the importance of nature and environmental conservation as it becomes the predominant threat to society.

There is life outside the cities and this is even more relevant now that remote work is an option.

We should be interpreting nature everyday as it is all around us and is constantly changing, just like we should be doing. 

We all have responsibilities regarding nature. It is our personal duty to identify what they are and ensure we are actively participating in them.

These are just a few, but everyone has different emotions and perspectives regarding nature and our role in it. Personally, I try hard to be active in respecting nature and educating those around me in doing the same. I believe that nature and the environment should be respected the same way some groups view religion or spiritual beliefs. 

To expand on that idea, I believe that environmental education should be taught within the Canadian school system from the first day. Our young people need to be aware of the deterioration of the environment so they can become an active part of prevention rather than affecting it more without knowing. 

So how do you feel? Do you think teaching young people about their responsibilities as nature interpreters from a young age will inspire a generation of nature conservationists? 

Louv, R. (2008). Last child in the woods: Saving our children from nature-deficit disorder. Algonquin books.

Krebs, A. (1999). Ethics of nature: a map (Vol. 22). Walter de Gruyter.

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Guiding ethics as a nature interpreter

For people who think too much, nature can be a difficult thing to wrap your head around. After all, we are stupid featherless bipeds stuck to a rock we will never conquer. Looking back upon the nature we emerged from, it can be overwhelming to see just how widespread the degradation of our home has become. With this devastation in mind, rekindling a connection to nature is a deeply important role for interpreters to fulfill. Not only does it provide numerous physical and emotional benefits, allowing others to realize the ‘gift of nature’ sparks an instinct within the audience to protect what we have (Beck et al., 2018). While providing this spark is a difficult challenge without being in the minds of our audience, I believe nature will do the work for us. Depending on what you need to feel fulfilled, it can be a teacher, or a friend, or a challenge. That experience, whether it be a guided hike on the side of a mountain or a casual walk through a butterfly sanctuary, is molded by the audience. As an interpreter, to offer that experience which provides spiritual uplift through our direction is to succeed (Beck et al., 2018). My personal tenet as a nature interpreter is that the natural world is intrinsically valuable as a chicken soup for the soul.

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Some forms of interpretative media, like documentaries and zoos, occasionally create narratives within the natural world to harbour an emotional connection to the material. While this is suitable for kids and people who may not particularly care for the environment, this does not align with my perspective on interpretation. I see the environment as something to understand and appreciate – an opportunity to ask ourselves where we fit.

Why are we here?

I imagine the answer would change from person to person, but it’s a rhetorical question anyways. I am more interested in questions that have answers. Why do sunsets look like that? Is it just me, or does each one seem to look different? As an interpreter, I bring the personal belief that inspiration within nature comes from getting to know it personally. As I have probably demonstrated with my long-winded posts about the science of rocks and mushrooms, it is knowledge that fuels that relationship for me. But some of us have been inspired artistically, through dreams of the northern lights strewn on campus. Others, including myself, have discussed its importance to our stress relief and mental wellbeing. Throughout the semester’s prompts, we have all discussed the various ways that nature has touched our lives, but I would argue that it is exposure that brings it out of us.

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I personally see inspiration in nature as an outcome of allowing ourselves to feel small again. As an student in environmental science learning increasingly complex and boring information year after year, it is always uplifting to get the chance to ask a ‘stupid’ question about something I had never considered. Furthermore, I have always loved the excitement of feeling separated from the outside world, and the freedom to do ‘stupid’ things like climb trees or find out what leaves taste the worst. This is where the inspiration comes from, but it is realized when we take our experiences back into the real world. It is our responsibility to think about what we get to see and experience. To get to know the fight-or-flight response personally, maybe a deer will sneak up behind you and scare the living hell out of you while out for a hike in the middle of nowhere. Both of you will run, but only one has the chance to think about how their body feels as the adrenaline winds down. The more time spent getting to know your surroundings and the beings within it, the more opportunities there are to experience something new.

Furthermore, as someone driven by curiosity and the desire to know everything, it is my responsibility to understand that the role of an interpreter is not exclusively to educate. A true nature interpreter is not a teacher, although they are rightfully associated with information (Beck et al., 2018). There are more ways to know nature than are found in books and classrooms. For instance, nature interpretation often includes offering direct experience with the subject. Particular when dealing with beautiful vistas, it is best to leave these landscapes without explanation as the scene interprets itself (Beck et al., 2018). Giving the audience space to think for themselves encourages reflection. Perhaps you become a guide taking people up Mount Everest – see this not as moment to educate a captive audience, but rather an opportunity to accompany someone on a personal adventure. Hopefully, the questions they ask will be less in terms of:

How did this mountain get so big?

And instead, more along the lines of:

How did I get so small?

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The most suitable approach to interpretation will be to rely on the ‘gift of nature’ to provide the inspiration that education alone cannot accomplish. This is a particularly important point for an aspiring know-it-all like myself, who often attempts to rely on words to convey meaning that can’t be conveyed in words. This is something I talked about in depth back in Week 4 because of my lack of artistic talent. Still, the textbook goes on to provide further guiding principles and associated gifts (pp. 85), offering suggestions as to giving interpretation deeper meaning (Beck et al., 2018). For instance, an important gift of interpretation to consider is ‘the gift of relationship’ (Beck et al., 2018). According to the textbook, the ‘gift of relationship’ is that the interpretive program must be capable of attracting support, whether it be financial, volunteer, political, or administrative. In the textbook, this is phrased in the context of being able to provide support back to the informational program by indicating its importance. However, given the current state of the environment and the significance of the ‘gift of beauty’, I would argue this could be understood as a tool to create support against the continued destruction of our world. Heeding back to the introduction, we live in a world where it can be confusing or distressing to think about the future of the natural world. Therefor, as a nature interpreter, it is our goal and approach to show the beholder that nature is still out there, is worth saving, and that it can be saved.

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

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Hi Katelyn,

The knowledge that freshwater eels spawn specifically in the Bermuda Triangle is absolutely hilarious given the reputation that part of the world has in popular culture. It is just so very fitting that such mysterious, devilish creatures come from a chunk of the ocean that is so widely feared. For all we know it could have been eels that sunk all those ships and aircraft… we’ll simply never know. I love it when knowledge (or lack thereof) of the natural world intersects with the culture of the region it comes from, in cases like this. Like the textbook says, as interpreters, it is more important to take the opportunity to question, grow, and be stunned than simply to know our neighbours in the wild (Beck et al., 2018).

I also chose to write about a mystery in nature this week (Powell’s Great Unconformity), although mine is probably much less appealing for people who don’t care about rocks. For people who don’t care about rocks, I propose a second mystery related to my personal least favourite organisms – mushrooms!

This is the Witch’s Cauldron fungus, a rare fungus that can be found around Southern Ontario. It recently attracted a bit of a buzz by randomly popping up in British Colombia with seemingly no explanation (Godbout, 2021). With such a whimsical name, it probably shouldn’t surprise you that scientists still have absolutely no idea what the liquid gel these organisms form is or why they produce it. We also don’t know what role it plays in the forest ecosystem, which makes its sudden appearance thousands of kilometres away from its known habitats even more intriguing (Godbout, 2021). As scientists, knowledge is power, but interpretation just seems to be so much more fun when we can confidently say that we have no idea what’s going on.

Loved reading about your own mystery,

James

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Godbout, N. (2021, May 19). Inside the witches cauldron. Prince George Citizen. https://www.princegeorgecitizen.com/opinion/inside-the-witches-cauldron-3790616

The Most Amazing Thing I Know About Nature

The title for my blog post is a bit miss leading because what I am sharing today is what I think is one of natures greatest mysteries. One of my favourite parts of nature is how there is always something new to discover, and not everything is known, even by scientists. One species that I find interesting because of its mysterious reproductive path is the freshwater eel. 

Freshwater eels beyond the mystery of reproduction are overall some strange looking animals. Something about the long and slithering bodies in dark water gives me the creeps. I have this image engraved in my head of an albino eel being pulled out of water in one of those shows on the history channel that features some of the deadliest sea animals caught around the world. Aside from that image that has probably scarred me for life, I’ve seen many stories on how freshwater eels reproduce since no one has ever observed it.

Let’s start far back in history where numerous scholars in Ancient Greece hypothesized some crazy theories about eel breeding. For example, Aristotle believed that eels just spontaneously emerged from the mud, while others suggested they emerged from gills of other fish species. None of these theories were proven true, but knowing how miraculous nature is, you never know.

One of the main confusions associated with the freshwater eel is the life stages. Eels go through five very different life stages, and in each step, they look like completely different species. I can understand how difficult it would be to discover the origin of eels when it was unclear what the juvenile state looks like.

Now for the craziest part, freshwater eels spend the majority of their life in freshwater rivers and streams, but they originate from the ocean. Almost all other marine species would die if they entered freshwater from the salty ocean, but eels have kidney adaptations that allow them to maintain a saline blood level. Freshwater eels do not just come from any random place in the ocean; they specifically spawn from the Bermuda Triangle. I don’t know about you, but that seems pretty suspicious to me. Reproducing in the Bermuda Triangle would have been a short migration when the continents were originally closer, but now for an eel to migrate to European rivers, they have to travel 6,500 km. Eels make one of the longest marine migrations that we know of. I could not imagine as a young juvenile eel travelling that far.

Eels then travel through the river systems until they find a suitable area to grow and mature. During the movement through the river, eels can sometimes pile on top of each other to clear obstacles or predators. Eels are also omnivores and will eat anything in their path depending on their weight and length. 

Scientists know now that mature eels develop sexual organs and reproduce in the Bermuda Triangle, but no one has ever witnessed reproduction or found any eggs. One hypothesis is that eels fertilize in a flurry of external reproduction with free-flowing eggs and sperm. The long seaweed makes it difficult to know for sure, as of now we can only guess.

Does anyone else have other nature mysteries to share?

Cooke, L. (2020). No one can figure out how eels have sex. TED. Retrieved November 12, 2021, from https://www.ted.com/talks/lucy_cooke_no_one_can_figure_out_how_eels_have_sexutm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare.

Tsukamoto, K., Chow, S., Otake, T., Kurogi, H., Mochioka, N., Miller, M. J., Aoyama, J., Kimura, S., Watanabe, S., Yoshinaga, T., Shinoda, A., Kuroki, M., Oya, M., Watanabe, T., Hata, K., Ijiri, S., Kazeto, Y., Nomura, K., & Tanaka, H. (2011). Oceanic spawning ecology of freshwater eels in the western North Pacific. Nature Communications, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms1174

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Rocks never lie, but they do hide...

Who’s ready to talk about rocks? This week’s blog is about geologic stratigraphy. It is the niche study of the layers of rock formations around the world and the points that separate them. I think its cool because it is essentially what we use to turn back geologic history. The contents of rocks tell you everything you need to know about what was around when they formed. I am simplifying as much as I can but would be happy to answer any questions.

Welcome to the Devil’s Punchbowl! A very pretty waterfall in Hamilton that is a must-see for any rock lovers in the audience. When trying to explain what stratigraphy is and why I think its cool, this is probably the best place to start. Each layer you see here is composed of a unique set of minerals reflecting the environment the stone formed in. This can be seen in the changes in colour and texture – each layer of this striped face represents tens of millions of years of history. Enough time for seas to come and go, repeatedly.

The rocks on top are hard, formed by deposition from shells of a former coral reef. Shells are hard, so the stones they make are hard too! You can see lots of fossils and other cool stuff in these layers. Underneath, the older rocks are much weaker, formed by sedimentation in the shallow sea from while it formed – mudstones, mostly. The weak rocks whether away quickly – the hard rocks don’t whether, but will break off once the layer underneath them gives in. The result? A big fat cliff-face, which we call the Niagara escarpment.

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Let’s start to get advanced. The place where two rock formations meet is called a ‘contact’. You can find a lot about the history of an area by looking at a contact point between two rock layers. For instance, we had strong evidence that the dinosaurs were blasted away by a meteor before we ever found an impact crater. When looking at the compact between the two geologic periods of time (pre-dinosaurs and post-dinosaurs), geologists found significant traces of iridium, an element that is extremely rare on Earth but common in meteors. Rocks never lie.

Sometimes, extreme events such as large-scale glaciation can weather away formations of weak rocks completely, exposing the bedrock underneath. Eventually, when sedimentation resumes and rocks begin to form again, we are left with a layer of ancient rock overlain by a layer of much younger rock. In these instances, the contact separates rock formations that may demonstrate a large difference in age. We call this an ‘unconformity’, and this is often viewed as a ‘gap’ in the geologic record. All the information stored by the rocks that weathered away is gone forever. Rocks never lie, but sometimes they do hide. 

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And that takes me to my inspiration for this week’s post. Back in the first week, I talked about my trip to the Grand Canyon in Arizona – about how the layers of rock created a story about the history of the region over great stretches of time. Well, I mostly had one specific place in mind, and I’m glad I have the chance to describe it in more detail. The Grand Canyon is home to part of a rock structure called ‘Powell’s Great Unconformity’.

 I present you this image. Does anything look out of place?

It looks like the underlying rock was deposited at an angle, but it was indeed flat when it formed there. The rock is so old that the outermost shell of the Earth itself has contorted due to the movement of the mantle, resulting in the angular layer seen within the rim of the Grand Canyon.

The definitive boundary between the flat layer and angular underlying rock makes for a striking visual, but the nature of this division provides a startling insight into our knowledge of the Earth’s past. The sandstone is 550 million years old, which would be staggering if not for the knowledge that the schist directly beneath it is about 1.7 billion years old. I’ll give you a second to think about that.

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That is a 1.2-billion-year gap in the geologic record. More than a quarter of the history of the Earth. Gone. I hope that after reading my monologue on rock layers, that bothers you as much as it bothers me. This fact may not be amazing or overly interesting to everyone, but I hope that the scale of such a large gap in our ability to interpret history leaves you momentarily stunned and curious as to what could have been. 

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Where is music in nature? Where is nature in music?

While I went into this week’s topic thinking little of the applicability of music to nature, I was surprised to find the connections ran much deeper than I had thought! Have you ever heard of the question, “Did humans discover or invent math?” I used to think of music as being something that also fit the topic of a question like this – something elementary that humans just seemed to have mastered. But I now see that such a comparison is not applicable - beautiful to think that music and music theory is something that pre-dates us and is shared by all kinds of complex life! I was particularly shocked to find out how complex whale songs really are! It was interesting that they use repeating, ‘rhyming’ refrains (Gray et al, 2001). I knew there was a great deal of math within the harmonic scale but learning about how it is used by other complex life was genuinely shocking. There is much more to music within nature than I had imagined before learning more.

I was also very drawn to the ramifications of the idea that ambient sound is a central component of natural habitats (Gray et al, 2001). I get really strong feelings of nostalgia while listening to music or hearing sounds, and one of the things that stands out to me is how I feel like these sounds and the feelings they give me relate to seasons. Music makes us feel first and think second according to Sahi (2012), and I think that the setting of our scenario plays into those initial feelings strongly.

What season do you think of when you hear this sound?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZD47Mhzm-CU

How about this one?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pODTgPZx3o

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While nature songs in music are interesting, I think that the connection of nature to music is a much more intrinsic feature, in a nostalgic sense. Music affects our minds through emotion and tension, and the melody creates an atmosphere for the lyrics to specify what its about (Sahi, 2012). Sahi (2012) goes into detail about how folk traditions are passed on through the musical sounds of the region. In particular, the significance of nature within the culture is something passed through Finnish folk music. This can easily be seen among Indigenous peoples of Canada and their enduring connection to the land. I would even go so far as to say that while it may not be rooted in deep tradition, songs like Bobcaygeon by The Tragically Hip for myself and other South Ontarians with the privilege of memories of the Muskokas and the shield.

Personally, a song that brings me back very vivid memories of the environment around where I grew up is Pink & White by Frank Ocean. I grew up in a small city and so songs about suburbia bring about a lot of nostalgia, just as those about forests and nature do. Despite the song’s very clear connection to the artist (being in New Orleans during hurricane Katrina), it depicts a carefree energy in melody and lyricism that I connected with during the freedom of summer growing up. I worked closing shifts as a buggy boy in a parking lot – probably why the imagery here stuck with me so strongly.

“That's the way every day goes

Every time we've no control

If the sky is pink and white

If the ground is black and yellow”

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Do you have any needlessly specific songs that remind you of summer? 

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.

Sahi, V. (2011). Using folk traditional music to communicate the sacredness of nature in Finland. Spiritual Values of Protected Areas of Europe, 2, 129.

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Hi Krystal, 

It’s been very interesting to read about how people have interpreted the provided quote from the readings in different ways! I thought about the past in a very date-time-place-centric way in my own post, but I definitely believe that the power of spoken word and memory plays a strong role in our connection to the past as well. This is, as you and many of our colleagues have discussed, of particular importance to the Indigenous groups of Canada and the knowledge passed down based on their long histories of connection with the land. 

“Just because the train is gone doesn’t mean it was never there and it also doesn’t mean the train and the station didn’t have a lasting impact.”

This is a really interesting way to rephrase the quote! Looking from the perspective of a train station through which trains have previously passed - it seems the past is inherently connected to the context of the present. Maybe I’m really overthinking this... but I imagine someone in an empty train station for the first time with no previous knowledge of trains. You would never be able to determine what the purpose of the place you’re visiting without first seeing a train come through and stop. Suddenly, the purpose of the seats, open area, and rails are all fairly explanatory. Our understanding of what is going on in the present is reliant entirely on what went on in the past. This flip in perspective helps further drive home some of the themes being communicated during Chapter 15 of the reading. Much to consider! 

Thanks for sharing, 

James

Quote interpretation

“There is no particular 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)

There is definitely a lot to unpack with this quote. I definitely did have to read it a few times before I was fully able to understand the deeper meanings of this quote and form my own personal interpretation and I’m excited to share my interpretation with you all! From the beginning of the quote, it discusses how just because something is old doesn't mean it has any importance; it’s what is carried along with the item that’s important. For example, a piece of clothing worn 100 years ago is not special on its own, What makes it special it's the memories of the piece of clothing has associated with it. So much of Modern-day Society relies on keeping prior human memories alive, whether that be good or bad parts of human history, that is the only way we can fully move forward as a society. Like the quote discusses to have full integrity in history, every part of the story must be remembered and we have a duty to pass along that memory from generation to generation. When I think about this I imagine an item belonging to indigenous culture, yes this item belongs to an important and history-filled culture but much of their culture was lost due to colonization. We owe it to the people of the past to pass on their story to future generations in its entire truth. Furthermore, when I read the metaphor of the quote, I definitely see this aspect within what Hyams is trying to say. Just because the train is gone doesn't mean it was never there and it also doesn't mean the train and the station didn't have a lasting impact. Recognizing both the train and the station it's important to understand the true significance of the station. In general, you can split apart the train in the station as separate things but combined they create a full story. Moreover, although the train was only there temporarily the station will always be there and will continue to be there for as long as time carries on. This is true of what I was describing before, The people of the past are gone but the lasting impact or “station” is still there and recognizing the people or “train” is where true merit lies.

For nature interpretation, understanding history and what has changed is also extremely important to move forward. A lot of what we see in nature is completing new, countless forests and trees have been lost and gained in even the last 100 years. Just because Those forests are gone does not mean they do not have the impact on the environment that we see today. They influenced the world that we know now our duty as people to protect it. Recognizing the past is also important for climate change due to the fact that we have the knowledge of the planet in danger and it's our duty to try and save it.

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A continuation of the past

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)

This is a picture of a ‘quarry’, which some of you may have seen before. It’s located off Stone Rd next to the Eramosa River, between Victoria and Watson, and there are a set of trails around the area. I experienced it for the first time during a field trip for Principles of Environmental geology – the open face allows us to look at the layers of Silurian rock and make out fossils from the shallow reef that used to be in Guelph long before Guelph arrived. I say ‘quarry’ because the area is the site of a former prison. This face was carved out by prisoners.

It is impossible to find yourself somewhere that hasn’t been touched by the past. Not only is the past inherently connected to the nature itself, but also the ways in which we are able to experience and interpret it today. As stated in the text, a “…reason to interpret history is to remember.  To remember not only the happy stories of our past, but also the tragic ones… Keeping memories alive may be the most significant role of history interpreters,” (Beck et al, 2018). While this quote may be in reference to the atrocities of our history, it is also important to think about how the ugly side of our past contributes to our modern interpretation of nature.

Beck et al (2018) goes on to discuss characteristics of authenticity in historical interpretation. Objective authenticity being tied to original artifacts and historic buildings, with constructed authenticity being tied to historical interpretation in a constructed space. While the reading goes on to discuss natural authenticity as its own spiritual aspect, I think that the previously described principles can easily be applied to modern interpretation of nature. Think about how many parts of nature people are only able to experience in a constructed setting. Take a second to consider zoos, nature documentaries, and other methods of which most people see the ‘exotic’. Do you think these are authentic natural experiences?

While I appreciate these resources, they offer a constructed form of reality – the main concern of which is their inability to properly appreciate the past. When you walk into a zoo you are met by messages of conservation and protection, with little information on the modern destruction of ecosystems around the world which led to the collapse of species that necessitate conservation efforts. It is, in many parts, a failure to acknowledge the ugliness of our past – that this very experience of marveling at the unknowns of faraway places is in part why practices like poaching and game-hunting became popular at the hands of the Western world. I will admit that doing so would not be very kid-friendly, but it is still a failure to create an experience that admits to the weight of the devastation that rests on our shoulders.

And it is important to recognize that it does rest on our shoulders, as consumers who benefit from the debts paid by the natural environment. While we are not responsible for decisions made in the past, we are still a continuation of people who came before. If the situation we are presented with is dire, we should be the first to treat it as such.

In the context of nature interpretation and how I view it, that is what I take away from the quote – to not be caught up and fascinated by things that existed previously or shrug them off as something that can only exist in memory. There was natural heritage that existed before that does not today, but that should serve as a motivation for today’s conservation rather than a distraction. We must do what we can with what we’ve been given, lest today’s nature be forgotten tomorrow.

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

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Hi Hannah, 

I’m glad you decided to cover this topic in our open prompt week, as its such an undervalued part of nature conservation. Access to green space is one of the single most important indicators for good mental health, especially in children (Summers & Vivian, 2018). And for people struggling with mental health issues, one of the many forms of ecotherapy can be hugely beneficial. I grew up with a parent with GAD and didn’t realize until the last few years why they go for nature walks every day. Stress has an obvious effect on how we feel, but our environment around us has so much more of an effect on our stress than I had realized while doing some of my own research into this prompt. Physical activity has an obvious and immediate effect on our mental health, but I didn’t realize that even just the sight of green landscapes releases endorphins like serotonin  (Summers & Vivian, 2018). This summer I was saved by ecotherapy, having never even heard of it. 

I spent this summer away from home and school, working in a city where I didn’t know anyone - in the middle of a pandemic. The culture shock was immediate and distressing. As I was already in therapy prior to this point, I felt like I had few places to turn to. So I started walking. Coincidentally, 10 minutes out of town lay the Trans-Canada trail. Three days a week, I drove out to wherever I was on the Trans-Canada trail and walked for as long as I could. I walked 350km+ of the trail over two months. Apparently this is called ‘wilderness therapy’, but I don’t care. Through this mastery of the outdoors, my loneliness became self-assurance. With all the time in the world, I started process things I did not believe I could touch. I completely understand what you mean when you talk about nature being a deep breath. It is the purest form of distraction, giving us time to think when we want it and small memories to hold on to when we need them. 

In Week 3, I discussed in depth how I felt my personal point of privilege was connected to class - as a function of my ability to access nature. I think subconsciously, I connected with this over other issues of privilege affecting the environment because of how deeply my access to nature has touched my life. Not everyone has the chance to do what I did, let alone spend money on therapy. This is why nature interpretation is important to me. The average person’s access to nature is diminishing as we continue to modernize our society (Summers & Vivian, 2018). Even if its small, I want to give others the chance to discover, and interpretation is a method of achieving that goal. 

The importance of nature for our mental health is something I think everyone can relate to. It was great reading your post and branching out to learn more about something I did not realize I had been engaging in. 

Again, thanks for sharing.

James

Summers, J.K., Vivian, D.N. (2018). Ecotherapy – A Forgotten Ecosystem Service: A Review. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 1389. 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01389. 

Mental Health and the Environment

This week’s blog prompt got me to think about nature and what I want to share with everyone. There are so many topics that I could talk about for hours with everyone, and probably write several essays on, but I think this week I really want to talk about how interconnected the environment is with Mental Health. 

In a lot of my posts, I talk about how exploring the wilderness awoke a different part of myself, that made me appreciate the world around me and kickstarted my education into Environmental Science. With this, my exploration into nature has also improved my mental health and continues to be a coping mechanism for when I am overly anxious or stressed. 

Nature continues to act as my escape to the world, where I can immerse myself in the wilderness and forget about the stress of my day-to-day life. 

I’ve said it before, but I continue to use nature as a way to take a deep breath. This week’s blog prompt got me to think about my own feelings towards nature, and I did some research on how mental health is scientifically proven to be improved by interactions with nature.  I wanted to share with everyone some of the research I found, to help convey to everyone how important nature is to improving and maintaining good mental health. 

I think a lot of people would be surprised by how much the environment can impact someone’s mental health, and if more people knew the facts, they would be more inclined to explore the natural world in order to improve their own mental health. 

In a study, it was found that people who spend at least 2 hours a week in green spaces are more likely to report good health compared to those who have no exposure to green spaces (Robbins, 2020). Not only does nature act as a relief for mental health, but it also provides a safe space for people to exercise to improve physical health.  Good physical health is important to mental health as the endorphins released during exercise create feelings of joy and happiness that put people in a better mental state (Robbins, 2020). 

Looking into how nature continues to make people feel relaxed, it’s understood that people pay attention to nature in a different way than they do everything else in their day-to-day life. Look at your own life. In your day-to-day life, you pay extra attention to whatever task you are working on. When people enter nature, they pay attention in a more broad sense, and with less effort (Robbins, 2020). The broad and effortless view leads to a relaxed body and mind because people are not paying as close attention to what they are doing, and simply enjoying the moment (Robbins, 2020). 

Reading the facts has reinforced to me, and I hope everyone reading, the importance of exploring nature and how it can be a great benefit to our mental health. 

Robbins, Jim. (2020). Ecopsychology: How Immersion in Nature Benefits Your Health. Yale Environment 360. https://e360.yale.edu/features/ ecopsychology-how-immersion-in- nature -benefits-your-health

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Knowledge in nature interpretation: Why I Have Mycophobia

Thinking about how to relate this week’s open prompt back to interpretation through science, I decided to consider what role knowledge plays in interpretation. This course and the readings have definitely shaped how I think about interpretation, as there are aspects about interpretation that are passive – allowing one to enjoy the beauty of nature – that I had never considered. Knowledge definitely plays a role here, as I tried to share last week. Knowledge of beautiful places lets you share nature you find beautiful with others. But knowledge can also be used actively within interpretation, to tell a story. The more you know about something, the better you can describe it to someone without needing to use technical jargon. Science gives us the chance to share small details with others about the way the world works to build an appreciation that may help provide some sense of spiritual uplift. I’d like to share some experience that gives me the opposite of spiritual uplift.

I have a fear of mushrooms. And not the pathogenic ones, the little dubious lumps that grow out of stumps. I hate them so very much.

Mushrooms are the expressions of fungi we see at the surface. They may seem to come and go, but are actually living and hiding underground at all times. Toadstools are the ‘fruit’ of the fungi, a method to reproduce – the branches, trunk, and leaves are all hidden under the Earth. Despite appearing to grow like plants, they are much genetically closer to animals – but interact with the environment like microbes. Picture a decaying log under the surface. Like bacteria growing in an agar plate, a fungus will find this food source, and grow outwards, not up. They decompose and consume it until the nutrients are gone, and finally sprout to the surface. The result is a ring of mushrooms in a perfect circle. 

The creepy little artist is letting you know that:

a) Something died in the middle of this circle

b) I ate it, and it was delicious.

Utterly disturbing. Again, when you see a fairy ring, that is one fungus. This is one organism. Did you know the biggest living thing in the world is a fungus, akin to what we see above? Maybe climate change isn’t so bad. Even the word ‘fungus’ is a mass noun – simultaneously singular and plural. My skin is crawling typing this out.

Mycophobia is the fear of mushrooms. The most common cause of mycophobia is that some mushrooms are poisonous when consumed, and some believe that evolution has produced a fear response in some people upon sight. The best way to get over your fear of something is often through exposure, but this unfortunately has not been the case here. I loathe these abhorrent creatures and everything they do. There is no shortage of unsettling facts about fungi and their activities.

Also, they can communicate with each other through electrical impulses. Here’s what it sounds like:

Five Minutes of Blue Oyster Mushrooms Talking - YouTube

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Knowledge plays an important role in nature interpretation because it allows me to tell a story, and communicate with others through facts that we can agree on rather than my own opinions. I could have written 500 words this week about how mushrooms are gross, and I don’t particularly like looking at them. This is true, but not very convincing. Not everyone has mycophobia, but everyone can learn more about these fascinating (and terrifying) creatures and relate to what mycophobia may feel like. At the age of 21, I am now mostly okay with the sight of mushrooms. I’ll share some pictures of the biggest fairy ring I’ve seen this autumn so far (from a distance). 

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My question prompt for this week is:

How can something that grows from the ground have such suspiciously meaty flesh?  

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Hi Lauren,

Thank you for sharing your art with us! I particularly appreciated the context behind your painting of the Northern Lights, I hope to someday see them in person as well. I love that they kind of flow from one source like a stream – I can’t give any first-hand experience but I’ve always thought they would look like rivers in the sky and I can relate to your depiction for that reason. I don’t believe art has to be pretty to be beautiful – but in this case yours is!

As an uncreative person, I spent some time thinking about this prompt as well. I think we came to a lot of the same conclusions about the role of an environmental interpreter pertaining to “the gift of beauty”. We can all agree that parts within nature are beautiful, and yet its so difficult to explain to someone else why something is beautiful to you without waxing poetic. The gift is exposure to beauty, and the principle that it will touch the audience. We can give stories to the world around us but it will never be those stories that gives the world intrinsic value.

I also agree with you that the interpretation of beauty is so vastly different from person to person. I think it really does hinge on our own personal experiences, as its something of a reflection on where we have best connected with nature on our own. I deeply love rivers and streams and hope to spend the rest of my life working around them. I grew up within walking distance of the Grand River. I spent my first blog post ranting about my childhood love for the Colorado River. I love that there is peace within the constant noise of water. Many people love winter and all of the stillness and silence that comes with it – yet I can’t stand how quiet it is. You’ll never find a group of people who will agree on their favourite season of the year, and I think that’s charming.

Thanks for sharing.

James

Art is Everywhere

Although I often see art through nature, I found this weeks prompt a little difficult. I am not a very artistic person so I had to really think about the question “who are you to interpret nature through art?”. But I do feel that I was overthinking the question. I think that we are all capable of interpreting nature through art, but maybe we just aren’t looking around to see it. The saying “stop to smell the roses” is famous for a reason, we often forget to look around and appreciate the beauty all around us. In the society we live in, everything is go go go so we often forget to stop and smell the roses. That is where I think nature interpretation comes in. 

Nature interpretation gives people the opportunity to step away from what is going on in their lives and dive in to the beautiful natural world. In chapter 5 of Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritage For a Better World, I learned about the principles of interpretation and “the gift of beauty”. Having “the gift of beauty” means that you as an interpreter can get others to see the beauty of whatever it is you are interpreting to them. Being able to inspire other’s imaginations, give inanimate objects a story, and open people’s eyes to the beauty of the things around them is what “the gift of beauty” entails . For me personally, I don’t have a hard time finding beauty in nature. No matter where I find myself, I try my best to take a step back from what I am doing and appreciate my surroundings. Even on the darkest, gloomiest days, there is still beauty to be found; in the sound of rain hitting the earth, in the way lightning stretches across the sky, and even in the colour of the clouds. What I think is so cool about beauty as well, is that it is subjective. What I find beautiful can be completely different from the next person and that is so exciting. It is for that reason that I think nature interpretation is so exciting as well, you get to see and hear so many different opinions on the beauty of nature. For example, an interpreter that does nature walks will have different groups of people everyday and they will each have their own perspective on the beauty of things around them. Nature interpreters can learn so much from the people they interpret to, just as the people they interpret to can learn from them. 

I wanted to end this post by sharing a few pieces of art that I have made that are inspired by nature. I am by no means an artist, but nature often inspires me. Usually when I see something in nature that I find beautiful I take a picture. My paintings however, are often of things I haven’t had the chance to see yet but I find beautiful. For example, I have attached my painting of the Northern Lights. I have always dreamed of seeing the Northern Lights but I haven’t had the opportunity to do so yet. So instead of taking a photo, I painted a picture in hopes that one day I can go see the real thing (which will definitely put my painting to shame). I am similarly inspired by the ocean, thus the other two paintings I have attached are of the ocean and the beauty that it conveys.

These paintings are just one way that I interpret nature through art. Let me know how you interpret nature through art!

Lauren

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Who are you to interpret nature through art? How do you interpret “the gift of beauty”?

I have never been anything close to creative. I can competently draw a frog, or a dogbane leaf beetle, but I cannot create what many of my peers have shared in paintings or photographs. Even when taking pictures, I struggle to create the same feelings of scale and colour and shape experienced in person. But still, even while lacking all knowledge of artistic principles and techniques, I can look at a painting or photograph and immediately find attractiveness in the depicted landscapes. Having had the privilege of spending lots of time in Algonquin, paintings from Tom Thompson and other members of the Group of Seven feel strangely familiar. Nature is the most universally recognised form of art, transcending culture and borders. Without a definition of the word ‘beauty’, I think most people would look at a sunset over a lake and agree that something about it is intrinsically beautiful. The “gift of beauty” takes away the role of an interpreter to describe why a landscape is pleasing, or what exactly is calming about a clear day with puffy clouds. Additionally, it makes interpretation a special experience as there is no way to directly interpret “the gift of beauty” to someone else, as we are each inspired by it individualistically.

Having had a difficult time talking about art initially, I came across this quote that helped me begin to understand my person inspirations.

“The human ear perceives the dissonance that originates from the disquiet of oscillations as disturbing – but it perceives the quiet of harmony, the consonance, as beautiful.” (Heisenberg, 1970). 

I realized that I am inspired by the harmony of nature. Little things, while interesting on their own, come together to form something completely different. Akin to the description given by the above quote, a single cricket is interesting to listen to – did you know you can use them to tell temperature? But a choir of crickets, joined by the many other bugs of the night, creates a song that nearly anyone would recognize and appreciate. I cannot press into someone else to that same feeling of gratitude for how all of the littles in the world are so big at the same time. But I can try to lead them to places that will show it to them for me, and I know that we can all recognize that such beauty is something to preserve. To me, that is the very essence of “the gift of beauty”.

While I may not be able to creatively benefit from the gift of beauty in nature and create art, I do believe I know where to find it – and that is where my role as an interpreter comes in. Through the privilege of knowledge, I can give art to others in the form of nature. I know when fireflies are in season. I know where to find them, and what time of night to go. I cannot explain to you why it is so magical to walk through a field peppered with the flickering lights of horny luminous insects. But I can tell you to take a walk through the large clearing at the center of Preservation Park in early July on a warm night, near 11:00PM, and you can experience it for yourself.

Heisenberg, W.K. (1970). The Meaning of Beauty in Exact Natural Science [Lecture manuscript]. Bayerische Akademie der Schönen Künste, Munich, Germany. https://inters.org/heisenberg-beauty-natural-science

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What is your personal interpretation of the quote I attached? Do you have your own connections to harmony within the beautiful mess that is nature? 

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Hi Krystal, 

I absolutely had the same reaction, as it took me a moment to reflect on how privilege has affected my own accessibility to nature. One other position of privilege I have been considering throughout our discussion of the topic is being able-bodied and male. In my own blog posts, the concept of appreciating the natural environments within cities has been important to my writing as it has helped me form a very personal connection with the natural heritage areas of the places I have been. I have the privilege of venturing off-trail, needing not worry about my safety due to my gender, race, or other aspects I have no control over. I have the privilege of feeling safe when out on my own, something I far too often take for granted. I truly believe that exposure to natural is a healing force and it is disheartening to consider all of the reasons not everyone may be able to take full advantage of that resource. 

Furthermore, I appreciate what you shared in the last paragraph of your response. Access to education is absolutely a massive benefit for anyone who is able to afford it, especially those that have the luxury to do so without bearing the financial burden on their own. Becoming a natural interpreter is not a high-paying career, and the weight of student debt must be a significant hinderance to following such a passion. I too am a believer that hard work bears its rewards, but I sympathize for you - paying for school is difficult enough without having to take care of others alongside. 

Thank you for sharing.

James

Privilege in nature interpretation

To start off with my definition of privilege, I think it’s anything that gives you an advantage in life when compared to someone else. Obviously, there is a lot of things that are associated with privilege; these include race, sexual orientation, religion, social-economic standing, physical/mental health, etc. These things give privilege to varying degrees, however. For example, a gay white person would have more privilege than a straight black person because race has more associated privileges than sexual orientation. That’s why being able to understand the privileges we have are so important, being aware of the privileges you hold over others is the first step to becoming a good ally to marginalized groups.

At first, although it may seem that privilege and nature are two topics that don’t relate to one another, unfortunately, there actually is a lot of connections if you reflect on it. One that comes to my mind is the privilege that able-bodied people have. Obviously, many nature interpreter roles do require the person to be in the outdoors; such as a nature guide or a camp leader. A person that experiences physical disabilities would likely never be able to experience those jobs because accessibility for outdoor work is extremely limited. Another example that comes to mind relates to nature interpretation jobs in general. To get a job relating to nature interpretation or the environment in general, education is a must need. Especially in today’s job environment where higher education levels are considered a “bare minimum” for many career options. Relating back to privilege, education is a privilege that relates to economic standing. Someone who experiences poverty or is from a lower class will struggle to pay for education because those funds are not available to them. So although someone may dream of an environmental interpreter job, they will struggle to reach their goal. They will most likely have to look for a part-time job to cover costs, working harder than someone who already has the money. This situation personally speaks to me as I do come from a lower class and I struggle to pay for university as I am also helping my parents pay bills, that’s why the thought of wasting money is very hard for me but I am remaining hopeful that it will be okay and I will be rewarded for hard work.

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What role does “privilege” play in nature interpretation? Please include your working definition of privilege.

Privilege can be given the simple definition of a right or benefit that is given to some people, and not others. A few important observations can be made about this concept of privilege, as statements which can generally be considered accurate. First, those who benefit from privilege are unaware of their advantage over others. Second, people with privilege often view themselves as the norm, failing to recognize that their advantages are not the common experience.

Privilege is an important concept in nature interpretation as exposure to nature is not evenly distributed, and what many outdoorsy people would consider ‘nature’ is restricted to areas that many do not have easy access to. Not just due to geographic or economic reasons constraining travel, but also for valid concerns related to safety and comfort. For this reason, it is important to consider this as an environmental interpreter so you can effectively communicate with an audience who may not have the same exposure to nature.

First, it is the responsibility of the interpreter to help the audience understand the natural environment they are being subjected to, and avoiding overwhelming the audience is an important aspect of this. An interpreter is responsible for making sure the information they are providing is acceptable for the comfort level of the audience. Similarly, the interpreter is responsible for making sure the experience they are providing is acceptable. While exposure to the elements can be a humbling way to get in touch with nature, it can also be torture to someone who does not feel comfortable with the many irritations of the ‘pristine nature’ experience. I took a group of friends into backcountry Algonquin, and made the mistake of trying to give them the same experience I was used to having while growing up. This was a mistake – my idea of camping involved substantial physical exertion and pain, things I now realize are not inherently fundamental parts of the experience. It was simply too much nature to experience all at once for the very first time – rather than gradual exposure to the beautiful suffering that I had been given the chance to experience.

Furthermore, the interpreter must ensure that the audience is able to relate to the interpretation they are providing. This is particularly important to highly disproportionate exposure to pristine nature, as many people living in urban or suburban spaces may have only minimal exposure to old-growth forests, and other untouched environments. In these instances, it is important to reframe nature interpretation to reflect the commonplace environments surrounding the average person. Wildflowers, bugs, birds, and small mammals all inhabit cities, and learning about them may contribute more to changing someone’s day-to-day perception of nature than going out somewhere that looks nothing like home. This is not always true of course, but is something to consider when interpreting, as preservation of biodiversity in urban environments is just as important as within conservation areas.

Privilege is an important factor to consider as an environmental interpreter. Often, with the benefit of knowledge and exposure to the environment, the interpreter is in a position of privilege. It is important to avoid the described traps of thinking, and instead explain in a way that benefits the experience of the audience.

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Hi Tom,

Thank you for sharing your experience! I can completely understand why you would want to work in animal rehabilitation based on the programs you watched. Its pretty crazy how the things that keep us entertained as kids often lead us to be inspired later. I read a lot as a kid and I can honestly say that the earth science section of Bill Bryson’s A Brief History of Everything is probably at least some of the reason I am studying what I do today. I’m sure following the careers of zoologists as well as keeping up with the work done by National Geographic had the same effect for you.

I completely relate to your desire to working in the field – nature and the life within it is best studied and explained when in its presence. I can see this being especially important for animal education – documentaries form a very different level of respect than just observing a species as it goes about its idle business. I feel like many people only familiarize themselves with a dramatized version of nature, one that doesn’t capture the day-to-day reality of the uninterrupted environment. What I’ve always appreciated about animal interpreters is their ability to engage the audience without disconnecting them from what animals are really like in their habitats, while emphasizing the importance of the preservation of their habitat. My all-time favourite documentary is Ants: Nature’s Secret Power. While it bolstered a curiosity, watching Ants Canada on YouTube shows a much more realistic depiction of what exotic ants look like and do. And yet I’ll still go out and watch local ants swarm when in season, as it garners a different kind of respect for the creatures. I respect what you’re trying to do as an interpreter and wish you the best, as I can tell that it is meaningful to you.

Thanks for sharing,

James

My ideal role as an environmental interpreter

Ever since I could remember I knew I wanted a job outside surrounded by nature. Hopefully that career would be working hands on with animals but if not I would still be happy with being outdoors. I'm older now and my job aspirations haven't changed much since I was a child. I still am chasing that field job so i can be outdoors breathing in the fresh air every day. As id be happy with a field job, I have focused in on finding a job that involves animals in some form. My ideal role as an interpreter would be to share my knowledge of wildlife and their ecosystems. I would primarily set a focus on local Canadian wildlife and habitats and eventually branching out from there down the road. A hands on in the field type job is a must for me so a nature guild or educator for National Geographics or a national park would be a dream even working at animal rehabilitation centers. There would be a number of different skill sets I would need based on the career I get into. One of my favourite shows as a child was zoboomafoo, which gave me my first taste at an educational program aimed to teach about different animal species. After that I loved following the careers of different zoologist and wildlife adventures like Steve Irwin and recently Forrest Galante. Especially in this time when the internet is a huge source of information and for an outlet for entertainment I don't think this is the type of interpreter i want to be as of yet. I like the idea of being in the location I would be educating about. I feel like being in the location in person would deepen the connection and bring more of an impact on the lessons and information I would be delivering. Doing this job in person out in the field would take a bunch of different skills from communication to physical ability. Communication skills would come in to play to one get the information across and to be able to teach and inspire the crowd. To teach the younger generation or anyone who cares enough to listen is the main goal of mine. To teach how to respect and care for animals and the habitats we share with them would be an importance of mine. I would also need to learn on how to keep an in person crowd involved with wildlife activities and visuals to help get my points across. Also safety would be a big key to as groups of people trust me to lead them around our national parks I want to know how to lead them through the terrain safely. As my "heros" in this field taught me I would stress on conservation and preservation of this beautiful planet we live on to the younger generation to help stand up to the different forms of ecosystem loses we face today.

Thanks for reading!

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Describe your ideal role of environmental interpreter. What might it entail? Where might it be? What skills might you need?

A good environmental interpreter is someone who is able to weave the world they are interpreting into a story – to be able to make connections, and plant seeds of thought into the heads of their audience. Capturing the scale of nature is sometimes a difficult task, and it takes a good narrator to do so properly. Still, a great environmental interpreter also possesses the skill of being knowledgeable about the importance of their surroundings, and can educate their audience in such a way that encourages sustainability. In the place where science and resource management intersect with the art of storytelling, is the ‘ideal’ environmental interpreter.

My idea of an ‘ideal environmental interpreter’ embodies someone who is able to establish connections between the nature they are responsible for and the greater context of their role in an ecological unit. For this reason, my ideal role for an environmental interpreter would be an education interpreter working for a conservation authority. Conservation authorities play an important role in watershed-scale conservation and are the proprietors of watercourses for suburban communities like my own. Many of the areas protected by these organizations serve as crucially important of connections to nature for surrounding communities. These watersheds are undergoing great stress due to the communities they intersect, and greater education of the challenges they face could help sway the public in a way that would protect the integrity of natural streams and their natural fluctuations.

Outreach is one of the most important and overlooked aspects of natural protection. As environmental interpreters have the responsibility to make material matter, it makes sense for an ideal interpreter to be delivering a message from an entity with a real and important role in the protection of a local natural environment. In my hometown, we have an annual water festival run by the GRCA and Brant Waterways Foundation where kids go on a field trip to learn about every-day ways to save water and prevent pollution of our natural areas. As someone with considerable experience in the world of environmental compliance, it is apparent that many people are uninformed as to what is and isn’t appropriate for the environment around them. Spills, erosion events, and malfunctions in environmental infrastructure go unreported by a populace who have simply never been given the tools to identify such issues.

For this reason, I think it is important that the ideal interpreter has an understanding of the issues that face their environment, as well as the ability to communicate what can be done to protect it. This is something that would have to vary depending on the audience, something that education interpreters are often required to do. Furthermore, I believe that inspiration to do good for the environment comes from acquiring a love for untouched nature. The most important skill for the ideal interpreter would be the ability to share that connection with others. Such communication is more of an art than a science, and also comes with patience, care, and honest interaction with your audience.

To be able to frame all of these things in a way that would inspire people is not something I think I could come up with on my own yet, but I hope to get better. We are all in this course to become communicators of our own messages and I look forward to reading the stories you have to share.

[jraenvs3000f21]

Hi Emma,

I really enjoyed reading your experiences with nature and some of the moments that have helped you connect over the years! I’ve always felt very comfortable outdoors but not everyone gets to have that experience – it was cool getting to learn about your process of overcoming that discomfort. I can definitely understand how your own ‘sense of place’ developed on your trip with your family, as its always a really beautiful thing getting to see and experience something new with people you love. I also love that you mention your love of photography! Its an awesome tool to capture little moments and I love the nostalgia that comes with looking back at old photos. I’ve done a lot of moving around over the last few years for work and I can always tell which city pictures in my phone are from just from looking at the landscape and plants. To me, nothing says ‘summertime in Guelph’ like sprawling patches of goldenrods.

Additionally, its really cool that you mention the field trip you went on in grade 9 as I went on pretty much the same one! It ended up influencing the direction I wanted to go in as a career and I now get to work very closely with watercourses, doing pretty much all the things from that field trip! Experiences like that are why I’m looking forward to learning more about nature interpretation. Thanks for sharing, seems like we have a lot in common! Looking forward to reading your posts this semester.

James

my relationship with nature

I would say my current relationship with nature is one full of fondness and excitement. I love being outside and taking in the world around me. I have respect for the environment and always make sure to take care when exploring or travelling. I am excited to be learning more and more about how plants function and grow and how to identify many of the plants growing here in Canada. Through my love of photography, I try to capture small moments in nature when something wonderful is happening from a snail moving across the pavement to a butterfly drinking from a flower to raindrops on a spiderweb. Every cloud, every sunset, every rainy day pulls me in further and I try to appreciate the gift nature really is.

I haven’t always felt completely comfortable outdoors, though. Growing up I certainly played outside with my friends, made forts out of sticks and snow, and made “potions” with random berries and leaves, but I think the unpredictable elements of nature discouraged me because I didn’t fully understand it. I was terrified of bees, insects of any kind really, and when I would brush by a plant I would get scared for no reason. I think for a long time, being anxious kept me away from all the aspects of nature that help ease my anxiety now. My family did go on a few long camping road trips across Ontario and all the way to the East Coast, stopping at a different Provincial Park every night, and I absolutely loved them. I loved waking up with the sunrise and feeling the cold morning air, seeing all the different forms that our Canadian landscape can take on, and just being present with those that I loved. Those trips definitely started my transition to a more friendly relationship with nature and gave me that “sense of place”. There was one trip I went on with my science class in grade 9 where we walked around a conservation area with an interpreter and got to take samples from a creek, look at different wildlife, and even identify plants like poison ivy. After a few hours I was an expert at spotting poison ivy and different insects and it made me so excited. Since then I have had a few summer jobs and some classes at the University of Guelph that have really gotten me excited about nature again.

I always cherish the moments with friends, family, coworkers, and even strangers when I learn something new about our natural world or when I can share a breathtaking moment with someone. This summer I was working in a greenhouse cleaning up some annual plants and my coworker walked up to the plants I had just meticulously gone through and pointed out an amazing insect. There was a Golden Tortoise Beetle on one of the leaves and we were both so excited because we had just found what looked like a golden ladybug! I couldn’t believe I had missed it and was so glad that my coworker shared that discovery with me. I find that if I can learn about and understand something, I grow fond of it. Plant or animal, biotic or abiotic, living or non-living, I appreciate it all and I know how much of a gift our natural world is.🌿