Nature Interpretation With Haleigh

This week’s blog post is very important, as it requires us to reflect on what we have learned in this course and consider how this has shaped our beliefs as a nature interpreter. Writing this final blog post is a bittersweet task. I have thoroughly enjoyed this course because these blog posts have given us the opportunity to communicate our personal opinions on course themes, and they have allowed us to interact with each other and share our views on nature interpretation. Whether you are leading an interpretive hike or discussing ancient artifacts, this course has given us many tools that will be useful in the broad field of nature interpretation.

Brandywine Falls Provincial Park, British Columbia. Photo taken by me.

Ethics are defined as “moral principles that govern a person’s behaviour or the conducting of an activity” (Oxford Dictionary, n.d.). Each individual has a set of ethics that influence the decisions that they make in life. One’s ethics can change as they mature and encounter different experiences. It is important that nature interpreters acknowledge their personal ethics, and consider how their ethics may influence the delivery of their programs. Personally, I think it is important that my programs are inclusive and accessible to everybody who is interested in them, regardless of what their “invisible backpack” may hold. According to Peggy McIntosh, privilege is an “invisible knapsack of unearned assets” (McIntosh in Noel, 2000, p. 116). In unit three we learned about the role of privilege in achieving environmental education and how interpretative programs aren’t always accessible to everyone (Hooykaas, 2021). In the setting of nature interpretation, privilege can govern the experiences you have access to, the destinations you can travel to, and your level of comfort while participating. Thus, it is important to me that everyone who is in my interpretive program has access to the same experiences, regardless of their privilege. The role of a nature interpreter is to share their knowledge of the natural world with their audience, and this experience should not be affected by an individual’s age, race, gender, class, education, etc. 

Photo Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2021/03/implementing-inclusive-policies-across-a-global-organization

One way to make nature interpretation more accessible to a wider audience is by using different methods of delivery. For example, someone who does not have the resources to attend an interpretive program at a provincial park may be able to watch a youtube video on the same topic and receive nature education this way. Chapter eight of the textbook discussed how to interpret to the masses and reach a wider audience via radio, social media and other outlets online (Beck et al., 2018). Additionally, the current pandemic has forced interpreters to come up with new ways to reach their audience, which has made the online delivery of nature interpretation more prominent. Thus, alternative methods of delivery (such as social media, podcasts and online videos) have the benefit of being accessible to a bigger audience and being accessed remotely. 

Different methods of delivery are also advantageous because they can cater to different learning styles. In unit two, we learned about the diversity of learning styles and how to cater to audiences with different learning styles (Hooykaas, 2021). Personally, I am an auditory and tactile learner and I benefit from listening to someone explain a concept or idea. However, I think one of the major responsibilities of a nature interpreter is to acknowledge your audience’s learning style and adapt your programs to fit their needs (Hooykaas, 2021). In order to achieve this, it is helpful to use multiple learning theories in your programs to make your program suitable to a large diversity of learners (Beck et al., 2018). Approaches that I would include in my programs are items and artifacts that the audience can interact with, visual aids (such as diagrams) , auditory aids (such as a discussion) and activities that the audience can participate in. These approaches cater to auditory, visual and tactile learners (Hooykaas, 2021). According to Beck et al. (2018), multisensory learning is beneficial because it engages more senses which enhances learning. I think it is important to consider these things while developing interpretive programs in order to ensure that all participants can synthesize the information you are presenting. 

My friend and I on a hike in Algonquin Park. Photo taken by me. 

There are many responsibilities that come with being a nature interpreter. Primarily, I think it is important that you have all the first aid and safety qualifications required for your programs. For example, if you are leading a canoe trip it is critical that you have wilderness first aid training, ORCKA training, bear safety training, etc. As the trip leader and guide, you are responsible for the health and safety of your participants and need to be prepared for any situation. It is important that you can act well under pressure and know how to adapt to various dangers that may be encountered. Another major responsibility that interpreters have is to share accurate information with their audience. There is a lot of false information that circulates in the media, online platforms and social media. Thus, it is important that interpreters ensure that their audience is receiving correct information. When collecting information for my programs, I would use primary literature, and peer reviewed journals and have colleagues review my work to prevent the spread of false information. 

A photo of me collecting water samples in Algonquin Park. We are always required to wear PFDs while working near water and we receive extensive training before starting field work (WHMIS, Bear safety training, Workplace health and safety training). Photo taken by my co-worker. 

One of the elements of nature interpretation that I find particularly important is education on environmental conservation. It has been made evident that climate change is progressing, and this involves the simultaneous enhancement of environmental degradation. Therefore, it is critical that we, as interpreters, communicate accurate information regarding climate change to the largest audience possible, regardless of their “invisible backpack”. I have strong beliefs about how anthropogenic activities accelerate climate change, and environmental conservation is a topic that I am passionate about. Due to my beliefs, I will try to incorporate environmental education into my nature interpretation. As climate change proceeds, it becomes progressively important that environmental education and science education are synergistic (Wals et al., 2014). As a marine and freshwater biology student, it is my goal to spread awareness on climate change and how it impacts the health of aquatic ecosystems. This course has taught me how to use social media as an outlet to communicate my knowledge on climate change, and encourage my peers to get involved in making a difference.

My friend and I collecting zooplankton samples from the Woolwich Dam. This was used for our research project on the impact of dams (anthropogenic disturbances) on zooplankton alpha diversity in riverine systems. Photo taken by my group member.

Thank you for reading my post! 

Cassie

References 

Beck, L., Cable, T.T., & Knudson, D.M. (2018). Chapter 6: How people learn. Interpreting cultural and natural heritage for a better world. (pp.105-111). Sagamore Venture.

Beck, L., Cable, T.T., & Knudson, D.M. (2018). Chapter 8: Interpreting to the masses. Interpreting cultural and natural heritage for a better world. (pp.165-182). Sagamore Venture.

Hooykaas, A. (2021). Unit 3: Risk Versus Reward in Interpretation [Course Website]. University of Guelph Courselink. https://courselink.uoguelph.ca/d2l/le/content/666945/viewContent/2590559/View

Hooykaas, A. (2021). Unit 2: Teaching Learners [Course Website]. University of Guelph Courselink. https://courselink.uoguelph.ca/d2l/le/content/666945/viewContent/2583079/View

McIntosh, P. (2000). White privilege: Unpacking the invisible knapsack. In J. Noel’s (Ed.). Notable selections in multicultural education (pp. 115-120). Guilford, CT. Dushkin/ McGraw-Hill.

Oxford Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved March 28, 2021, from https://languages.oup.com/google-dictionary-en/

I think you really hit the nail on the head when you identified the need for inclusion and identifying the items in our ”invisible backpack” to be able to respectively and effectively connect with our audience. I think another great tool for interpreting is to be able to question and have the audience reflect on the themes and topics being discussed. Our textbook “Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritage for a Better World” identified 3 different types that are effective; using open ended questions, content related questions and direct or indirect questions. These tactics can help audience connect, feel like they are valued and experiences are relatable.

What a great and insightful post!

These blog posts most definitely have given us the ability to communicate our personal opinions on course themes. I think it was great reading through everyone's posts and seeing how differently everyone views things. My personal favourite was the very first blog post we had because we had the chance to get really creative and imaginative with our writing. It really allowed me to step back into a child’s mind again. We did have a wide variety of topics, and while writing about them, I was not sure what the final picture was going to be, but everything came together very well. Indeed, this course has given us many tools that will be useful in the broad field of nature interpretation. We now know how to effectively present information to a range of audiences, and how to keep them actively engaged.

I think it is great that you mention the invisible backpack. Before this course, I feel as though this is one thing that many people have not considered, myself included. Even though many of us know to treat people that are different than us with respect, it is important to also understand that other people will often have different needs than our own, thus it is important to research and understand the best way to address different needs before getting into the field. One bad experience due to feeling excluded may steer a person away from nature or nature interpretation experiences for life. According to Gallavan (2005), it is important that we are aware of our privileges because taking them into consideration will create an educational environment that feels safe, welcoming, and caring for everyone.

You make a great point about including a variety of different approaches to your programs. It is definitely true that multisensory learning is beneficial due to its ability to enhance learning (Beck et al., 2018). I have always found that a mixture of auditory, visual, and physical learning leaves me with the best understanding of topics.

With all of that said, it is so important that we use all of these new skills that we’ve learned and apply them to real life situations to spread information on the importance of a healthy environment, and what it can do for us. Hopefully we can rub off on the future generations and they will help us fight for a better and healthier world!

References

Beck, L., Cable, T.T., & Knudson, D.M. (2018). Chapter 8: Interpreting to the masses. Interpreting cultural and natural heritage for a better world. (pp.165-182). Sagamore Venture.

When this course began, I was in the dark about the whole concept of nature interpretation. Unsurprisingly, I assumed it would mainly entail developing increased awareness and mindfulness when spending time outdoors. I figured this course would help me learn to share those experiences with audiences from all kinds of unique backgrounds. My role as an interpreter before ENVS*3000 focused on topics surrounding my studies as a science student. Being in university has a way of making school the primary lens through which you perceive the world; at least, that has been my experience. As a result, when I look at the world around me, it is easy to recognize the ecosystems at play and the unique interactions happening within them that are essential no matter how small. As a science student in my final year of study, the natural world’s complexity is evident, and for me, this is one of the most humbling thoughts to entertain. It is crucial as an interpreter to be mindful of the natural world’s sheer magnitude, something often overlooked by the anthropocentric society we are immersed in. 

In nearly any situation, humanity has a way of commanding attention, but learning how the complex systems at work in nature genuinely are, makes it clear that it really is a delicate balance. It can also be an eye-opener for many to realize humans are not as pivotal to Earth’s well-being and function as we are conditioned to believe. Humans have less control over the world than we would like to admit. Although the environment is plagued by the seemingly infinite number of challenges resulting from human activity, the wilderness will and always should stay out of our control. As interpreters, it should be our role to help others recognize the power and knowledge found within nature and the positivity it can bring to our lives when we do our part to care for it and maintain its integrity. When we care for the Earth, it cares for us by healing our psyche and fostering our physical well-being.

Photo by Lukasz Szmigiel on Unsplash  

My development as a nature interpreter is heavily influenced by my personal morals and the belief that good interpreters should share the knowledge and power nature offers. The things most important to me that define my personal ethics as an individual and as an interpreter are respect, integrity, and the value knowledge holds. As interpreters, our primary role is to share the knowledge we have with others so that they may achieve the same benefits we do as a result of forming a meaningful connection with nature. Additionally, I think it is our job to teach others how we know to be respectful of the environment in sustainable ways to maintain the integrity of our natural surroundings. When discussing my development as an interpreter, my mind automatically jumps to my future role as a science teacher. I am starting my Bachelor of Education this upcoming fall to teach high school science, a clear showcase of my priority to share the invaluable knowledge that exists in the field of science with others. 

I have always loved sharing what I have learned with people around me, even if it’s just a remarkable fact I learned in class that week with a friend or even my mom. The key here is how significant knowledge and learning is to me, and I think this goes hand in hand with honesty, integrity, and respect, morals by which I try to live my life. While these factors are those by which I guide the actions and decisions I make in my life, they are also the ones I focus on when interacting with the natural world around me. Being respectful is one of the most important things to keep in mind when getting out and experiencing nature, especially to maintain the integrity of the ecosystems and the organisms that rely on them. Connecting back to my future as an interpreter through the role of science teacher, I can share these ethics with the students who enter my classroom and show them the importance of the environment and how they can personally maintain nature’s integrity. 

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash  

Continuing my role as an interpreter through teaching science introduces a variety of responsibilities. First and foremost, teaching youth to respect the environment and do what they can to improve nature’s conditions whenever possible. Environmental stewardship offers benefits to the domain directly, but it also provides an outlet for individuals to connect and spend time outdoors. I believe nature holds so much power, be it in terms of psychological relief from stress or anxiety or a physical escape from the hustle-bustle we are affronted by in modern society. I believe it is a gift to be shared, and that is our responsibility as teachers and as interpreters of the natural world. As mentioned in Rodenburg’s article (2019), today’s youth simply are not getting outside to experience nature the way many of us did as kids, even though that really was not so long ago. In a world that has been rapidly developing new technologies for even more convenience, people are beginning to forget to slow down and appreciate what is around them, and children are not exempt from this. It is so important to foster the connection between humanity and the environment to avoid “nature deficit disorder,” a term coined by Richard Louv in the textbook (Beck et al. 2019) to describe the detachment between humanity and nature. 

Throughout history, nature and humanity have always been intertwined; one can never exist without the other, so nature deficit disorder can introduce various challenges. Perpetuated by modern society, nature deficit disorder can manifest in countless ways that exemplify the physical, social, and cognitive deficits that result from the disconnect with nature (Beck et al., 2019). Teachers have so much power to initiate reform by educating and inspiring their students who will grow up to be the policy-makers, business owners, scientists, teachers ultimately, the future caretakers of the world. The impact teachers can have on their students is undeniable, which is a primary aspect of effective interpreters, which is a significant reason I decided to pursue a career in teaching to make a difference.

Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash  

Everyone will have a unique perception of the broad privileges granted by the environment that expresses the individuality between people. As an interpreter, it is vital to focus on the various things that catch different individuals’ attention, providing insight into the unique personal relationship held with nature and their relationships with others and even within themselves. There is a valuable connection between humans and the environment from the deep evolutionary history that forever links the two. Creating a strong relationship with nature and helping others to do so will aid mental wellness by reducing stress, anxiety, and depression, elevating mood and reestablishing attention to the physical health benefits that include promoting cardiovascular health and reducing obesity by staying active. There are many benefits to support the power of getting involved in the environment and building a personal relationship with nature. I believe that to be one of the responsibilities of a nature interpreter and a science teacher.

Photo by Steve Halama on Unsplash  

This course provided invaluable knowledge about how to reach a variety of audiences, but more importantly, it allowed me to gain insight into my personal relationship with nature. While learning techniques to improve the way I can share my own interpretations with others has been amazing to prepare me for my time in teachers’ college. The enhanced relationship with the natural world has provided me with much needed benefits and escape from symptoms of nature deficit disorder and many other aspects of nature I had never recognized before this course. I always knew the importance of the environment when it comes to science, of course, and in art based on the numerous art pieces or musical creations inspired by nature. This course expanded my appreciation for the incredible impact nature has had on humanity throughout history, but it is even more important in society today. 

Thanks for a great semester everyone!!

Sierra 🌼

References:

Rodenburg, J. (2019). Why Environmental Educators Shouldn’t Give Up Hope | CLEARING: A Nonprofit Magazine for Environmental Education in the Pacific Northwest. clearingmagazine.org. https://clearingmagazine.org/archives/14300

After reading your post, I realized that we both share a lot of similarities in our ethics and responsibilities when becoming a nature interpreter. I also discussed the importance of teaching the audience about being and living environmentally sustainable. This coincides with environmental stewardship as they both emphasize the significant impact that nature has on our lives. If we do not teach and provide options for individuals to be sustainable then they will not be able to learn the true sense of what environmental stewardship entails. When people reach a harmonious connection between these two components of nature interpretation, then, hopefully, the appreciation for nature will increase. I also agree that to instill the significance of environmental stewardship and sustainability in individuals, it has to begin at a young age as children are so impressionable. One way this can be accomplished is by implementing interactive ‘eco’ clubs within the elementary schools to try and get the children excited about being environmentally conscious.

I didn’t know that there was an actual term for the lack of connection between nature and humans. I found that to actually be quite devasting that people are getting out enough and experiencing nature. Like you stated, nature provides humans with so many benefits it almost seems endless. In an article written by Helen Briggs (2016), she stated “we’re more likely to learn about wildlife ironically from a David Attenborough programme than maybe from a walk in the woods.”. This statement really stuck with me as it grasped the essence of modern humans needing to be entertained, through technology, at all times but at the cost of such a crucial component of our lives.

Great job this week and best of luck with the rest of the semester

Alyssa

References

What a great post! Your use of writing and images in this post were very fitting and kept me engaged. While reading it, I realized we have very similar views. I completely agree with you that the Earth is in a delicate balance of things. It always seems to be in equilibrium, sometimes slightly shifting out of line, but always finding its way back. Nature's powerful is undeniable, but we must also recognize that we can only push it so far before it reaches its limit. Why should we care? Well, you’ve already said it! It heals our psyche and fosters our physical well being.

I am glad to hear that you are putting your good morals and passions to good use. It is very important that we teach our youth the value of nature and its preservation as one day, they will be leaders of our planet too. Teaching kids about the importance of nature for their overall well being will more than likely influence them to use nature as a positive outlet, which will lead to a growing respect and desire to preserve and protect nature!

This course did indeed provide invaluable knowledge about how to better reach and keep a variety of audiences engaged. I believe this course really showed us the importance of our own positive experiences in nature and how they helped shape us to be the best possible version of ourselves.

I wish you the best in your future endeavours. With your positive attitude and passion, I truly believe you will make a change, we need more teachers like you!

Over my university career, I have learned many things about the environment but the most amazing and surprising thing I learned was about sharks and the influence they have on ecosystems. Did you know that sharks evolved before trees and despite a few exceptions like the hammer head sharks, have remained relatively unchanged for millions of years (Davis, n.d.)? I first became interested in them when I took a vertebrate biology course and dissected a dogfish. Learning about the sensory modalities that these ancient animals have evolved blew my mind and is what initially interested me about sharks. The ampullae di Lorenzini are tiny electroreceptor pores found along the nose and face of elasmobranch species and allows them to detect electromagnetic fields that are generated by the muscles and movements of every living thing.

A schematic diagram of how sharks use the ampullae di Lorenzini to detect their prey. Credit: Sharkbanz

This incredible sense of elasmobranch species allows sharks to roll their eyes to the back of their head when feeding and rely on their electromagnetic sense to tell them where to bite. These amazing pores are also the reason why you should not listen to the common advice to punch a shark in the nose if you ever come face to face with a curious shark. Hitting the underside of a shark’s nose will cause them to reflexively open their mouth which is likely the last thing you want! Instead, as demonstrated in the video below, a better method to deter an inquisitive shark is to place your hand on the top of the head and direct them away from your body. Also, remember, only prey swims away!

Here is a video by One Ocean Diving, a shark eco-tourism group in Hawaii, in which Ocean Ramsey shows us how to physically deter a shark. Credit: One Ocean Diving

Other cool ways of deterring sharks using their electroreceptors are active shark deterrents like sharkbanz which use magnetic technology to interrupt the sharks reception using their ampullae di lorenzini to deter their approach.

There is a quick video explaining how sharkbanz work. Credit: SharkBanz

Learning about sharks in that lab dissection really highlighted to me how little we know about these creatures most of society would only describe as a monster. Since they aren’t as charismatic as other marine life, sharks receive a significantly less attention in turns of conservation and research (Cisneros-Montemayor et al. 2013). Our media focuses on the rare aggressive behaviour and influences like the movies JAWS has painted sharks to be blood thirsty, mindless killing machines when they are actually extremely intelligent and deserve our respect. For example, the common phrase “shark infested waters” really highlights our societies relationship this these apex predators. Since the waters are the shark’s home, technically humans are the ones who are infesting our waters with the amount of coastal development and the crowds at public beaches. I think Ocean Ramsey did an amazing job in her TEDtalk, explaining her relationship to sharks and their importance to our world so I highly recommend you check it out below!

Ocean Ramsey of One Ocean Diving describes her relationship with Bella the great white and their importance in ecosystems. 

Davis, J. Shark evolution: a 450 million year timeline. Retrieved 20 March 2021, from https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/shark-evolution-a-450-million-year-timeline.html

This is a great post! I really enjoyed reading and it was very informative. I rarely ever watch TV but when I do, it is always nature documentaries or TV series. I am very glad I came across this post because the idea that you should punch a shark in the nose is definitely very widespread, as this is what I thought was the correct thing to do (and i have watched tons of shark documentaries and TV shows). This also just highlights the importance of not spreading misinformation, because that advice could have a lot of people in trouble. I also just recently read that you should push a shark’s head down on an instagram account that I follow, but I was unsure as to why that would be, and because I was unsure, I believe that if I was in a situation where I was face to face with a shark, I would not do it because I would not have been sure if it was a myth or not due to the post’s lack of explanation. I think you also bring up a great point that society has presented sharks as monsters. This is such an important concept to tackle because I believe it contributes to the justification of killing sharks. Of course killing sharks is very wrong, but I have seen for years that sharks have been killed in very high numbers, and I have never seen anything done about it. Sadly, people just don’t seem to really care, and until they do, this crisis will never end.

I think it is very important that we also understand that these discussions do come up a lot in our lives because most of us are in science programs where the discussion of living organisms as well as their declining populations is inevitable. We are constantly discussing the importance of biodiversity and the protection of all animals. Not only that, but considering we all seem to be very interested in science, it is far more likely that we are researching these topics in our spare time, whether it is through documentaries, TV series, books, or journal articles.  I do not believe that the average person has this knowledge. Thus, it is important that we find a way to get the general public’s attention on this matter and inform them of the serious impacts that the continued loss of shark populations will have. We need to find a way to make the general public care enough to make a change.

While looking for more information on this topic I discovered this video:

It discusses the importance of sharks and how rapidly they are being wiped out, estimating that about 90% of the world’s largest sharks have been wiped out. The most alarming thing about this is that it was posted over a decade ago, and I have yet to hear that shark populations have begun to rise or at least stay steady. The last time I checked, their populations were still rapidly declining.

Questions

What are some ways that we could convince people that sharks are not the monsters we once perceived them to be?

Why is it so important that we inform the public of the importance of sharks?

How can we get the public's attention on this crisis, and evoke a helpful response in a lot of people?

I used to consider my grandpa’s shelf a treasure. He’d have books about all sorts of things and it was kind of an unspoken rule to avoid touching his stuff. But sometimes, I would  sift through and grab one of his special leather-bound books. I would flip through all of the words and right in the middle was the jackpot: laminated pictures of birds and brief descriptions about each species. I would quietly sneak off and sit in front of the big window and watch the birds fly in and out of the trees to feed on the birdfeeder my grandpa built for them. I would quickly try to shuffle through the photos to try to find the photo that matched the bird. Soon, my grandpa would find me and join me, and tell me what each of the birds were and then whistle the tunes they sang. Everytime I hear a bird call, I think  of my grandpa. 

Personal photo (2019). A view from my grandparent’s window. This place is my escape from the business of urban life. You can see the birdfeeder on the left but can you spot the deer in the orchard?

Music in nature doesn’t have to be as straightforward as a bird call. True, when I think of nature in music, my first thought is that memory. But music call also be the way the leaves bristle when a strong breeze rushes through them, or the waves crashing on the rocky shore. The world produces its own orchestra, if we take a moment to listen. Sometimes when the world seems so loud with the busy traffic and heavy schedules, I feel a pull to the woods. Almost, as if they were singing, beckoning me to escape. And sometimes, when I can’t make it there, I slip in my headphones and let my own music take over and ease all of my aches and worries away. 

This is a helpful mnemonics poster to remember different bird sounds. I used to teach these to kids when I worked at a nature centre. My favourite is probably the Chickadee because it’s easiest to remember and it says its own name “Chicka-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee”.  Retrieved from: https://becausebirds.com/product/mnemonic-bird-sounds-poster-eastern-north-america/

Music has a way of invoking so many emotions. Like the variety of music there is, music can act as different things, to empower, to share feelings, to get away from your feelings, and so much more. Some of these reasons are why music is such a good tool for grabbing someone’s attention. In environmental teaching, music can be used to draw your audience in. Play a nature sound, or bring out your guitar or play a jingle from your phone. I think our ears are naturally receptive to music. You could write a song to help facts or information stick. Have your audience have their own lines to repeat back to you and make it interactive. Or you could use music to paint a story using your words. My dad used to tell me a story when I was a little about this cowboy and his horse and their adventures. He would sing to me and use gestures like climbing a ‘mountain’ with his hands to keep me engaged. Music is a tool all interpreters should keep in their belt, whether we’re musically talented or not. 

Music and nature have a symbiotic relationship, if you take the time to listen. Even the brushing off the seeds off a dandelion produce a sound however faint. But it’s more than that. Both music and nature have a way of making simple things, like seeds, or stringing notes together, invoke powerful emotions. Retrieved from: https://greenlivinglab.org/2018/03/20/music-in-nature-new-lunchtime-concerts-the-green-living-lab/

It’s easy for me to believe that music and nature go hand in hand because I’ve experienced it. And music has such a powerful way of shaping our memories. Have you ever listened to a song and it instantly takes you back to a moment? Maybe you remember the song you danced to with your high school prom date or the song you and your friends were blasting on a road trip. When I heard the song, ‘River Flows in You’ by Yiurma for the first time, I felt transcended. My parents put me in piano lessons (though not for long) and I remember thinking how peaceful and beautiful the song was. It’s not a complicated piece, but there were no lyrics to tell me how to feel and that simplicity made me feel like I was literally drifting down a lazy river with pretty flower petals falling from the tree branches above me. It makes me think of all the time I spent in front of that big window at my grandparents house or all the times I escaped to the safety of the trees. Music allows us to express ourselves emotionally, and nature is always a safe place for us to return to. So together, music and nature calls to me like the birds who sang with my grandpa. 

Great post! You make a great point that music in nature doesn’t have to be as straightforward as a bird call. When trying to define what music really is, things like the sound of the ocean and tree leaves bristling can also be considered music. I find that when I am inside my house, I am constantly listening to music, but as soon as I step outside I take my earphones out and listen to the natural sounds around me as they are very calming. Oftentimes if I find myself having a hard time falling asleep or seeking out ways to reduce my stress levels, I will go on my Spotify app and listen to wave or jungle sounds.

a photo of my cousin and I swimming in the waves in North Carolina. The ocean produces such strong waves. The noise of waves crashing has a soothing effect!

I too agree that music has the potential to evoke emotional responses in people. Music is an art that is an essential part of my daily life, and without it I feel as though my life would be very dull. Music usually makes me feel very good. This is why I think that using music as a way to educate people could be very effective! People love music and they love to find new music, thus instead of a boring presentation one can enhance the presentation by including music or using music to tell people the message that they want to tell. I believe that music is a tool that should be used far more often in nature interpretation. You have suggested some great and creative ways to keep an audience engaged by keeping them interacting with the information being presented to them. Like you suggested, having their own lines of a song to repeat back to stay engaged is a brilliant idea!

In general, I think that music is a great tool to reach a broader audience and inform people of what is going on in the world, while also evoking an emotional response. Doing so will make people care about the information you are presenting far more than if they did not have emotions associated with it, and it will also help them to remember. My favourite example of this is the Earth Song by Michael Jackson, which warns us of the ecological damage to come (if we continue down the path we are currently going down which includes excess urbanization and industrialization).

The Earth Song is a great example of integrating education with arts to enhance the response to the message being told. Nature interpreters do not necessarily even have to make their own music because it is more than likely that there will already be a song out there that captures the message the nature interpreter wants to get across. This music can simply be presented and interpreted by a nature interpreter to their audience.

Questions:

Are there any songs you can think of that contained a message that has changed you for the better?

This week's readings have shown me that contrary to what I had previously thought, music can be a very important tool used in nature interpretation. A good interpreter/educator will seamlessly blend the arts and information (A. Hooykaas, lecture notes, ENVS3000 Nature Interpretation, March 3, 2021). This week's blog post was the one I had definitely struggled with most because despite the fact that I have a great knowledge of music and musical theory itself, I was not familiar with music and nature together. I prefer to listen to rap, hip-hop, or r&b, none of which have nature sounds or themes included in them.

Music is defined as patterns of sound which vary in pitch and time which are produced for emotional, social, cultural, and cognitive purposes (Gray et al., 2001). Based on this definition, we are not the only species on Earth to produce music.

Birds are most likely the animal that comes to mind when you think of an animal making music. Birds are everywhere, and they are always chirping songs, especially in the spring and summertime. Birds often use the same rhythmic variation, pitch relationships, permutations, and combinations of notes as human composers do (Gray et al., 2001). Not only do birds make music or musical noises with their vocal tracts, some species even use ‘instruments’ such as twigs which are used as a drumstick to hit hollow logs to attract partners, while others may use special feather structures to make musical noises (Gray et al., 2001).

This is a video I took in my backyard! If you listen closely you can hear owls hoo-ing, or shall I say, making music!

Humpback whales have also been found to produce songs similar in structure to those of humans and birds (Gray et al., 2001). Songs are considered to be any rhythmic repeated utterance which can be vocalized by birds, frogs, insects, or whales, all of which are constructed according to laws very similar to what human composers have adopted.

With this information, it becomes very clear that humans and many other animals produce music with many commonalities, thus we can conclude that it is very possible that music predates humans, and contrary to what many of us probably thought, we may not be the inventors of music.

Not only can we find music in nature, we can sometimes find nature in music as well. Some small examples would be the song California King bed by Rihanna, the music starts off with the sound of waves and leaves brushing together in the wind, which sets a soft feel-good/tropical vibe. This is something very minor and simple, but there are other examples where the nature in music is more extreme. A really great example of this is Musician Ben Mirin, he is a wildlife DJ that uses different animal sounds from New York City to Madagascar to produce music (GrrlScientist, 2016). He does this to bring awareness of different animals and their needs. In 2016, Ben Mirin was in Madagascar using his music to bring attention to the endangered Lemurs of Madagascar (GrrlScientist, 2016). He is a great example of someone using entertainment for educational purposes. He exposes a wide variety of people to different animals around the world through the sounds the animals make. Not only this, but his plan in Madagascar was to help its inhabitants celebrate their natural heritage while bringing awareness to the endangered Lemurs.

One of my most favourite and memorable songs about nature is the Earth Song by Michael Jackson.

Here is the link to the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAi3VTSdTxU

Watching the music video and listening to the song gives me chills because it has such a strong, passionate, and relevant message. The main message of this song is that we need to learn to love nature and preserve it before our greed completely takes over and destroys our beautiful planet beyond repair. The music video was a great way to use visuals to enhance the message. The music video starts off in a jungle full of life, abundant with trees and various animals. Soon after it shows the trees getting cut down, and what was once a beautiful landscape being industrialized. Eventually it shows murdered elephants along with a dirt landscape with burning trees that lack any foliage. The Earth Song was released in 1995, and its message is more than relevant today. The entire project is a great example of combining nature and music to spread awareness and evoke an emotional response in its viewers, a great way to make a change! I personally remember watching this video when I was around 10 years old and crying because it made me feel so sad. It is a great alternative to what songs and music videos are about today, which is oftentimes guns, violence, and drugs.

When thinking of a song that brings me back to some sort of natural landscape, the only thing that comes to mind is the artist city and colour. He has some great campfire songs, although I wouldn’t necessarily say he moves me to make the world a better place!

References

Gray, P. M., Krause, B., Atema, J., Payne, R., Krumhansl, C., Baptista, L. (2001). The music of Nature and the Nature of Music. Science(5501).  https://go-gale-com.subzero.lib.uoguelph.ca/ps/i.do?p=AONE&u=guel77241&id=GALE%7CA69270354&v=2.1&it=r&sid=AONE&asid=fb9366a8

GrrlScientist. (2016, September 21). Music as a gateway to nature. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/grrlscientist/2016/09/21/music-as-a-gateway-to-nature/?sh=36a58201549e

What noises can you find in nature that you might consider to be music?

Why do you think that sharing different animal sounds may be very beneficial to helping save the earth?

Graphic created by me. Quote accredited in graphic. 

As a Canadian citizen, from European descent, reflecting upon this quote I am obliged to consider how Canada’s natural history was once shaped so beautifully by it’s Indigenous people- this is something that is very important to me. 

First Nations people fished the Canadian shores with tools such as spears and nets, but also with their traditional knowledge (Pringle, 1997). For generations they passed down knowledge of fish growth patterns and migrations, thus allowing them to maximize the benefits of each catchment. Indigenous people have co-evolved with the landscape (Moola, 2020). They employ techniques that maximize the use and regeneration of natural resources in a way that causes minimal damage to the environment. One technique is “prescribed burning” which is the practice of intentionally setting fire to plants in a way that doesn’t burn it, rather stimulates growth and high yield (Moola, 2020). Another technique is fertilizing their gardens with seaweed they collected from the ocean, because it adds a high source of nitrogen to plants (Moola, 2020). Indigenous tribes have traditional knowledge that is wealth of information about plants and animals, allowing them to harvest and hunt sustainably to support their communities.

Pictured: A member of a native tribe in California practises prescribed burning to enhance crop yield and reduce the risk of dangerous fires. Source: NPR

As Europeans colonized Canada, they faced many challenges in terms of harvesting resources. Settlers didn’t know the difference between poisonous and safe berries, they struggled to produce high yield crops, and hunt native animals. Many indigenous tribes shared traditional knowledge with colonizers, allowing them to prosper (Moola, 2020). For example, many modern day pharmaceutical companies have exploited important medicinal plants in the Canadian Boreal forest that were cultivated by Indigenous tribes (Moola, 2020). Colonizers did not have the same understanding of sustainability as Indigenous people. In 1885 the Canadian Ministry of Agriculture stated “Unless the order of nature is overthrown, for centuries to come our fisheries will continue to be fertile” (Pringle, 1997). Even renewable resources were seen as something that could be fully exploited without the consequence of depletion. We now know that this is not true. As the Canadian population grew, demands needed to be met. A modern day fishery operator in Newfoundland stated “What we have here today, is a legacy of having to find fish and having to find places to process it”. Our ability to exploit resources is better than ever before. Technology has changed, and nature has co-evolved with it.

Pictured: a fishing boat with a large net captures a school of fish. Source: CBC News

As discussed in class, nature is dynamic (Beck et al, 2018). And so what this quote means to me, is that its important to understand that nature didn’t always look like it did today. In Canada’s natural history, it was much more pristine. That being said, it won’t always look like this either. It is ignorant to believe it will, especially while we still face issues like climate change, pollution, and the exploitation of non-renewable resources. We must keep history in mind if we want to learn from our previous mistakes of over-fishing. The decimated fisheries are a legacy of our ignorant colonial mindset. Indigenous people played a huge role in shaping Canada’s natural history. It was not until colonization that so much pressure was put upon natural areas here. We must be more in touch with historical traditional knowledge so that we can live more sustainably, protecting the future of Canadian nature.

Doig River Tribal Members pointing to the K’ih tsaa?dze Park sign. This is one of the only Indigenous Protected Areas in British Columbia. Source: David Suzuki Foundation 

Can you think of historical examples of things that are now banned, that were awful for the environment? (Eg. like a doctor telling you to smoke cigarettes, but for nature). Can you think of some ways to live more sustainably in your own life?

References:

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritage for a Better World. Ed: 1. Sagamore Publishing.

Moola. (2020). Personal Communication: GEOG*3210, Management of the Biophysical Environment.

You definitely have an interesting take on this quote. I love that you brought up the First Nations people and their use of their own history in their own adaptations to successfully living in Canada. I have never heard of prescribed burning before. It sounds like a great and sustainable technique - one which we should be utilizing widely in times like this. It seems as though the First Nations have always connected with the Earth and done everything in a way that allows them to live comfortably while causing minimal, if any, harm to the Earth. True adaptations take a long time to perfect, a concept that us Europeans and settlers should be taking into account. This was not our land before, and those that have been living on it for far more years than us know best. The First Nations people have always spoken up against the damage being done to their land. Canada has never listened, and I think if this continues we will see some very bad things.

Your point about nature not looking the same as it did today is also something I agree is very important. History is so important in this case because we know from other historical events that history repeats itself. Right now, we are exploiting the land we live on, and we can already see irreversible destruction right in front of our eyes. We can see that it is not getting better, it is not staying the same, and things are rapidly getting worse. Our climate has begun to fluctuate from all of the greenhouse gases we are releasing into the air, our water is becoming less clean and less abundant, and we are losing the abundance and biodiversity of fish. If we continue to exploit these things on our land, one day we may never see them again. A perfect example of history showing us that this will happen is, as you have mentioned, the major depletion of fish abundance which has never been able to bounce back.

To answer your question, one thing that was used in the past for many years that is now banned is a pesticide called DDT. DDT was very under studied and was used for many years, causing a lot of irreversible destruction. DDT was very toxic to animals and humans, yet it was used as a pesticide for over a century. Canada did not learn their lesson after seeing the destruction that DDT had caused. Shortly after DDT was banned, a new type of pesticides called neonicotinoids were released. It is known that neonicotinoids are toxic to pollinators, and we also know that the loss of pollinators could lead to an extreme reduction in plant biodiversity (thus it is very possible we may lose some of the fruits and vegetables we love most), yet neonicotinoids are still being used today. History can be a very great way to avoid bad things from happening, but it seems that capitalism and greed always over power and disregard these messages until it is too late.

This summer I had the amazing opportunity to work at a local organic vegetable farm called Edible Acres Homestead. This job was unlike any “outdoor” experience I have previously encountered, however, I was eager to learn!

Although my family has been growing their own organic vegetables for years, this was the first time I was involved in every stage of the growing process. Growing a vegetable garden is something everyone should try at least once in their lives as you learn a great deal from nature, plants, and how everything interacts. The most rewarding accomplishment is witnessing your hard work of planting endless rows of vegetables come to fruition.

Here are some photos taken of one of the back fields at Edible Acres showing the heads of lettuce growing. These rows stretch 50ft long and use irrigation tubes to water the plants. Photo taken by my boss, L. Ahrens, 2019. Retrieved from: https://www.edibleacres.net/

Working at Edible Acres has shown me the importance of supporting your local farmers. So much time, money, and energy goes into maintaining a farm, especially an organic farm. When you omit the use of pesticides and herbicides, you have to manage pests and weeds in a natural way. This may entail days on end where all you do is weed. From spending 8+ hours a day sweating in the direct sun weeding to tediously preparing logs for shiitake mushrooms on rainy days, the grind never stops.

This is a photo taken by my boss in their back bush of the growing process of the shiitake mushroom logs. We took old logs and drilled holes into them and filled the holes with a mushroom mixture and covered it with a wax coating. The logs remain in the bush for a year before new growth forms. Photo taken by C. Ahrens, 2019. Retrieved from: https://www.edibleacres.net/

As consumers, we rarely factor in everything that goes on behind the scenes. How often do we go to our local grocery store or farmer’s market and simply purchase a fresh bundle of carrots without stopping to consider the time and effort that went into planting, growing, weeding, picking, washing and packaging those carrots?

Here is a photo of a customer's order. It shows the wide variety of produce that we grow on the farm from eggplants and leeks to pumpkins and jalapeño peppers! Photo taken by my boss, L. Ahrens, 2019. Retrieved from: https://www.edibleacres.net/

Caring for the gardens at Edible Acres has shown me how we have to be the caretakers and stewards of this earth. The earth is not ours to exploit, pillage, and strip of its finite resources for our own benefit. As we are collectively confronted with a catastrophic climate crisis, we must radically care for the Earth and act with urgency through more sustainable habits and ethical consumption.

During my research I found many great resources to inform us on how to be better caretakers of the earth. Here are some easy ways we all can work harder to help save the earth (Aleteia.org, 2020).

Reduce meat consumption.

Practice energy-saving techniques such as turning lights off when leaving a room.

Cut down on car transmissions by biking or using public transport.

Strive to go more zero-waste and using reusable materials

Here is another great resource illustrating 3 actionable steps to save the planet backed by science.

As I conclude my blog, I would like to pose some questions.

What are some lessons that nature has taught you?

What are some actionable ways that you contribute to tackling the current climate crisis?

Thank you for reading my blog and listening to my experience as an organic vegetable farmer!

Janieka :)

Works Cited

https://www.edibleacres.net/

https://aleteia.org/2020/01/06/10-simple-ways-to-be-a-steward-of-the-earth-in-2020/

This is a photo of my cousin, mom, and I before we ran 10 KM on the beach in North Carolina. Fun fact: I used to run and bike to and from school when I was in high school and lived close enough to do so!

The most shocking way I have recently learned to help save the environment that you also mentioned, was through the consumption of less meat. I think this is information that needs to be far more widespread as I feel it is not common knowledge whatsoever. I believe that if more people were aware of this, there would be a lot less meat consumption in the world. In my own research, I found that a single burger requires 660 gallons of water for its production (Hallock, 2014). This is an extremely alarming number that more people should be aware of! Instead of simply growing plants to eat, we are also growing plants for the animals we want to eat, to eat. On top of that, we have to feed these animals water (shocking, I know!). All of this water adds up, and in a time where we are rapidly running out of freshwater, this is very scary. I think my favourite aspect of this way of helping to save earth is that it is actually beneficial to human health - I feel as though this may be more of an incentive for people to actually do it! Not only can eating less meat help save the world, a plant based diet can also cure or prevent heart disease and type II diabetes.

Questions: When did you learn the benefits of organic farming? When you go to the grocery store, do you buy organic? Why or why not?

How have any of your classes taught you to help save the earth? What ways have you learned to help save the earth, but only outside of class? Do you think these things will eventually be taught in classes if they are not already?

References

I think one of the most important things in life is to find your passion. My passion is healing via nutrition. I am mainly fascinated by the aspect of healing human diseases with natural foods or products, but this concept branches out into many directions.

This is a photo of my friend and I on a picnic, we are eating lots of vegetables!

Finding my passion made me feel as though I had purpose in life. Every day I learn more about plant based diets and their effects. My love for this topic has pushed me to do far more research on the topic than the average person, and because of this I have the ability to educate others around me. I have the ability to change people’s lives. I have even been able to cure a syndrome I was diagnosed with at twelve years old, one I was simply told I would have to live with for the rest of my life. I did so by adopting a plant based diet!

After doing plenty of my own research over years I’ve learnt how your diet can affect your physical and emotional health, as well as the planet's health.

My interest in plant based diets sparked 5 years ago. I had always struggled to maintain a consistent weight and I wanted to feel emotionally better, healthier. Finally, one summer my mom and I watched a documentary called “What the Health” which discussed the linkages of consumption of animal products and very common and deadly diseases. I was so intrigued that I continued to do research. I found that even though plant based diets had been proven to cure things such as poly cystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), heart disease, and diabetes, many people had no knowledge of this. Eventually I stumbled upon my now favourite book, “How not to Die” which discusses many diseases and disorders in depth including their cause and how plant based diets can cure them. All the information in the book is backed up by primary journal articles and experiments.

A photo I took in Costa Rica of a pineapple growing!

Not only did I learn how unhealthy animal products were for my physical and emotional health, I also learned of animal products’ contribution to environmental degradation through excessive loss of freshwater and a rise in greenhouse gases. When you think about it, it all makes sense. Of course the crops we eat require an abundance of resources such as water, fertile soil, and land but when we are eating animal products, we require not only land for them to graze, but we also require more crops to be grown for the animals to eat. This means we’ll be using a lot more energy and burning a lot more fossil fuels, on top of the methane (a greenhouse gas) that cows produce. On top of that, we use vast amounts of fresh water for growing these crops for the animal feed and for drinking water for these animals. To be exact, it is thought that the production of a single pound of beef requires 1799 gallons of water (Hallock, 2014). This number includes water for processing, drinking, as well as water for the irrigation of grains and grasses in the feed. To put that into perspective, a ⅓ pound burger requires 660 gallons of water (Hallock, 2014).

The problem with this information is that it is not very widespread. Despite having taken many environmental science and nutrition courses, I have never once learned about the effect of plant based diets on the environment in class. Simply put, I have found that school often teaches about the root cause of issues and all of the details such as what, where, when, why, and how, but we never quite learn how to solve the issues at hand. For example, in all of my nutrition classes we learn very much about heart disease and diabetes, but I have never been told by any of my professors that a plant based diet can cure either disease (which it can). In my environmental classes I have learned all about greenhouse gasses and how they are the reason for environmental destruction and global warming and how we are running out of fresh water, but I have never once learned how eating a plant based diet can really help both fresh water loss and reduction of greenhouse gases. Most people understand how serious environmental degradation is, but they do not know how to actually help prevent it. Going forward, I think it would be important to converge science and environmental education because science focuses mainly on skills and information, whereas environmental education has been found to change values and behaviours (Wals et al., 2014). With the two combined, teaching basic knowledge and how to make a positive impact on the planet, especially to students who are very passionate about the subjects they are learning about, the world could be a better place. We could have far healthier people, as well as a far healthier planet!

A photo I took on my trip to Costa Rica of the healthy, lush foliage.

References

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

(Hallock, 2014)

Are the things I talked about in this blog post new to you? Did you know how harmful agriculture can be for the environment? Did you know that plant based diets can cure many diseases?

My social media is usually full of different pictures from hikes, canoe trips and various outdoor activities. My phone wallpaper is always, without a doubt, an image of a landscape or sunrise. I never considered nature as a form of art. It was always just something to pass the time, something that to helped me de-stress and something that I enjoyed looking at. I saw nature as something beautiful, but not necessarily art.

I’ve never really considered myself an artist. When I think of an artist, I think of someone drawing beautifully detailed sketches, or of a painter creating a colorful painting. Both of which are not my strong suit. My artistic ability in that sense extends as far as stick man drawings with the occasional smiley face for added detail. It wasn’t until I read the content for this week that I began to challenge my own definition of art.

In this unit’s content one thing that really stood out for me was when the element of beauty was brought up about photographs. That when you capture an image it is because some form of beauty is held within it. Once that image is shared you are extending that appreciation and that moment with another. Seems as though I have been an artist and interpreting nature without even realising it.

As defined in the textbook the gift of beauty: “should instill in people the ability, and the desire, to sense the beauty in their surroundings - to provide spiritual uplift and to encourage resource preservation” (Beck et al. 2018). For me the gift of beauty has always been a beautiful landscape or sunrise. These things have always been something I found beautiful and provided me a sense of place and peace. Of which I described in one of my previous blog posts. It hasn’t been until going through the content of this course that I have started to explore this idea within myself further.

Questions for anyone reading this. What do you consider art and what is your personal experience with art?

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the term ‘privilege’ as “a right or immunity granted as a peculiar benefit, advantage, or favor”. My own understanding of the concept of privilege is that it refers to the advantages a person has in society, for things they had no control over things like their race, gender, and the socioeconomic status they grew up in.

My easy and safe access to nature throughout my life is a large part of what has allowed me to develop such a strong appreciation for it. If I want to go bird watching, or walk my dog through a local forest, or on a camping trip, there is very little that is stopping me. Many people don’t share the same privileges that I do, and don’t experience nature in the same way because of this.

(Picture by Sarah Morton)

It’s a privilege to have the time and means to go out into nature at all. At the very least you need transportation, sufficient free time, and appropriate clothing and shoes. And this is just what is required to physically be out in nature! I am a white, middle-class person without a disability, and I have easy access to public transportation. I was raised by both parents and they pay for my university education. When I’m going out into nature, I don’t have to worry about acts of racism, or whether the area I’m going to is wheelchair accessible, or whether I can afford to take time off work. These experiences can make it more difficult for people to safely and easily access nature on a regular basis, and their experience may be entirely different from mine!

Camping has always been one of my personal favourite activities. I am able to go to parks and I have the money to pay for it. A major contributing factor to my ability to do this is the financial stability of my family. My family has already purchased all of the things necessary to go camping. We have camping beds, tents, portable stoves and more. It is easy to question why others may not be engaging in these same activities but it is important to step back and think how their situations may be different. Some kids are not provided with these tools, nor do they have any experience camping. If my family had never taken me camping, it is unlikely I would ever have the confidence to go on my own! If my parents had not bought all of these camping supplies to be used among us, it is unlikely I would fork out the money to do so. Other privileges also play a major role, such as my skin colour. Someone who is not white may not feel as comfortable as I do going to a provincial park to go camping because these parks are most often filled with nearly all white people, including the staff. As someone who may have grown up experiencing discrimination due to the colour of their skin, going camping in an all white provincial park may not be a risk they are willing to take, and that is understandable (but it really needs to change). The privilege of transportation is another great point. My parents bought me a car as soon as I got my license, which was a major advantage that I did nothing to earn. People often need to save up for a long time to buy a car, and finding other means of transportation to provincial parks in the middle of nowhere is definitely not always feasible. I have had the privilege to explore and drive way out into the wilderness without having to question how I could possibly get there. All of these things have major impacts on one's interpretation of nature because it most often has a major impact on the amount of time that one gets to experience in nature while growing up.

A nature interpreter must understand that everyone has different backgrounds and experiences with nature, and that there may be a lot of restrictions for those who are not so privileged. As a nature interpreter, it is their job to ensure everyone can feel equally wanted, included, and safe.

Questions:

Have any of your friends growing up had far less experience in nature than you? If so, why do you think that may be?