Rooted in Nature

My name is Katie Schankula, and I am a 21-year-old girl who grew up in North Bay, Ontario, Canada. I am attending the University of Guelph because I have the privilege to do so. Because I grew up in a country that allows me to do so, with a family that supported me, and access to a high school education. I was able to go camping as a child, I had clean lakes to swim in, and Ontario Parks to hike through. That is my backpack, and I now see how much privilege it holds (Gallavan, 2005). I now more thoroughly understand the privilege I have and have an uttermost respect for the people who are underserved (Beck et al., 2018). I will not let my privilege of having access to an education and the ability to understand interpretation go to waste. That is my promise to my fellow classmates, my professors, and the people I interact with every day.

When Richard Louv suggested that no matter what your motivation is to do this job, you have a responsibility to future generations, this really sunk in for me. It emphasizes the idea that we may all come from different backgrounds as interpreters, we have different reasonings for taking this class, and different interests, but in the end, we share a common passion. And that passion runs so deep that it brings us all together and connects a diverse group of people with one common goal, to share our love of nature with others.

My responsibility as an interpreter is to do exactly that, to share my love of nature with others. Because I had the privilege to obtain a university degree from an environmental program that is well recognized, I have a role to share that knowledge with the public. Even if I do not obtain a career strictly as a nature interpreter or in that field, I have a responsibility to connect people to nature through the scientific education I have obtained. I now have the tools in my pocket to be able to take heavy material and create a fun and engaging program for all audiences. I recognize that some people do not have the access to provincial parks or the means of travel to attend a guided hike. For them, I will use communication and word of mouth to spread my stories. I will listen to other’s stories and help keep the art of storytelling alive. As Beck et al. (2018) mentions, storytelling is able to encapsulate entire cultures. It is inexpensive and just as effective, as even younger audiences can appreciate a good story.

I had the privilege of obtaining many certifications such as white-water canoe training, basic canoe training, wilderness first aid, basic CPR and first aid, and a pleasure craft operators’ card. I know the trade-offs between risk and reward, and I am responsible to ensure that I am encouraging safe behaviour in the environment for both the person and the ecosystem (Beck et al., 2018).

What do I believe? I believe that no matter the age, no matter the ethnicity, beliefs, or background, everyone has the right to enjoy nature. I think people are quick to picture children as enjoying nature, playing in a puddle, or getting covered in the mud. But why shouldn’t and adult be able to do that too? I want to create an atmosphere around interpretation that makes everyone feel comfortable being themselves and connecting to nature in whatever way that makes them happiest. I want to provide people with the tools to do so. That could be helping someone identify a bird call, or simply pointing out where to look for dragonflies.

I am an able-bodied person who is passionate about the outdoors and has worked as a nature interpreter in the past at Marten River Provincial Park. When I approach nature interpretation, I think I would personally be better suited in an outdoor setting. I don’t necessarily mean in a structured sit-down lesson, or a pre-determined game. This could be as simple as suggesting going for a hike with a friend when I am bored. I have learnt that interpretation can be found in everything. There are people that are better at engaging groups in more of a classroom setting, and people that are better at creating podcasts, but I am better suited outside being exposed to the sounds and beauty around me. I am sure lots of people feel this way, and I would be capable of running a program indoors or online, but my element is outside. And there is nothing wrong with accepting where your strengths lie.

If there is one thing I could work on as an interpreter, it is supporting fellow interpreters. Attending interpretation events at the university, or seeking community held events. Although interpreters are trying to create a sense of community with the public, I think it is also important to create that sense of community with each other. Because as I mentioned, as well as Richard Louv, we all have the same responsibility and together, we can create an even larger community.

I want to take a moment to thank the teaching staff at the University of Guelph and for the ENVS*3000 “Nature Interpretation” course for providing me with the tools and the education to spread my knowledge to others. And thank you to my classmates who interacted with my posts and started creating that sense of community between interpreters. To have the ability to interact with so many other people with the same passions as me has been awesome and I have learnt so much from you all! I hope to keep spreading your stories and inspiring others to do the same!

Best of luck moving forward to you all!

-       Katie Schankula

One last photo of my trip to Hawaii! Go explore what Earth has to offer! 

References 

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

I was really impressed reading your final blog post. It was not only very well written, but you made some very insightful points. You also come across as very confident in your passion for nature interpretation, and how you are going to carry the lessons you have learned with you as you navigate the nature interpretation world. I never thought about how I can support other nature interpreters, but I will also be mindful of attending more events in the future. I also think there is a lot to learn from how other interpreters engage and teach their audience, and that these opportunities allow us to learn how to teach. I also can very much relate to your point about wanting to be outside when interpreting nature. While it is very important to have multiple methods of interpretation for when we can’t make it out for a long hike, I also feel most connected and immersed when I am able to use all my senses to interpret the nature around me. But as you touched on about accessibility, many people are not able to get out into nature, whether that means not being able to go for a hike due to a physical disability or not being able to afford to drive out to a nice trail outside of the city. So it is so important, more than I realized before this course, to have many methods of interpretation so that everyone can have access.

Well done this week and I wish you well in your future of nature interpretation!

My personal ethic as I develop as a nature interpreter are always changing. Before this class I never really thought about what it meant to be a nature interpreter. A nature interpreter is supposed to be someone that informs other about the environment and is to make sure that they understand the significance. However, they are supposed to allows the audience to interpreter in their own way but need to point them in the right direction. The reason I volunteer as a nature interpreter is I want to leave the world the world the same way as when I came into it. One of my favorite quotes is by Franklin D. Roosevelt, “a nation that destroys its soils destroys itself. Forest are the lungs of our land, purifying the air and giving fresh strength to our people

If more people are informed on the little thing’s they can do to help the environment, Earth would be in a much better position. To tackle this issue, I try to inform the audience in a way that they can understand. Many articles use words that the average person can comprehend. I try to “dumb down,” the information so that the audience can see the whole picture. An example of this misconception is when scientist say that the Earth is getting warmer. Many believe, “well yeah its summertime.” Then when scientist start to talk about carbon sequestration and other things, they are lost.

I believe that as nature interpreters we should be doing everything we can to help people have access to nature. The United States has mandated the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, to eliminate discrimination against people with disabilities (Beck 2018). This helps people with all different disabilities, physically or mentally. Allowing people that can physically access these places will allow for a more well-rounded population. Similarly, as a nature interpreter we should help to eliminate all economic, cultural, and communicative barriers for people to understand nature and the environment around them. Even though parks are, “on the social front, the parks provide one of the few truly democratic facilities for enjoyment and inspiration of all the people. To the extent that we become inclusive in our welcome, understanding, accommodation, and interpretation of all constituent populations, we reduce fragmentation and strife.” I personally believe we can only strengthen our abilities to become better nature interpreters, but in doing so, we all need to personally reflect on what works and doesn’t work and adjust accordingly.  

One of my favorite quotes is ,“time spent among trees is never time wasted,” by Katrina Mayer. I view this quote as saying that anytime you spend outdoors in never a waste and you shouldn’t take it for gratinated as it can be taken away at a moment’s notice. This also reminded me of the saying, “don’t waste your time, it is too short, valuable, and irreplaceable” (Beck 2018). In particular, time is short and valuable.  Therefore, my take away from this is that we can waste our time being a nature interpreter, or find ways to be more effective at it to add real value. As I reflect on this course, it helped to provide me ways to reflect on how I can be a better, and more effective, nature interpreter.

References:

Well done this week, I think you made some very insightful points for your final blog post. I also did not think about nature interpretation or what it means to be a nature interpreter, but I realize now how important it is. 

I definitely agree with your point regarding accessibility of nature interpretation. In my post I addressed financial barriers as I referred back to unpacking our invisible backpacks, but I didn’t think about the many people living with disabilities who are not as easily able to/may not be able to go out for hikes, etc. This is where different methods of interpretation really come into play, and how providing multiple different methods and platforms to interact with nature and learn about our surroundings is very important. 

To add onto your comment about economic barriers, what are your thoughts on admission fees in conservation areas? While I think it is very important to maintain and protect our natural landscapes and understand that this costs money, I wonder if it is a barrier at times. Many families may not be able to afford to pay admission fees for 2 adults, let alone for their children. There are places to hike that don’t require admission fees, but it seems that more and more trails have fees nowadays. Should we make nature more accessible by increasing government funding for conservation areas, allowing lower or no fees and therefore allowing more people to access these areas? 

Thank you for sharing your thoughts, and have a good rest of your semester!

There are so many amazing and interesting things about nature, so it was very difficult to settle on one thing, so I decided to talk about both a plant and an animal that I find very fascinating. 

Firstly, I thought I’d talk about the mudpuppy, an aquatic salamander, which I had the opportunity to observe first hand here in Ontario. You may have heard of the axolotl, the endangered aquatic salamander from Mexico. Mudpuppies are very morphologically similar but are actually very distantly related. They both possess the unique feature of external gills, but the mudpuppy does not undergo metamorphosis and the they occupy very different climates.

A picture of a mudpuppy taken by my mom on “Mudpuppy Night”, showing off its red external gills it uses to breathe.

Mudpuppies are nocturnal amphibians, hunting for their prey at night. Despite being cute little salamanders, they are carnivorous and like to eat things such as small fish, insects, and worms. As I mentioned before, mudpuppies have external gills which protrude from the sides of their faces. They rely mostly on these gills for gas exchange, however they also have lungs which they use mainly for buoyancy. You may be wondering why they are called “mudpuppies”, and the reason is that they are known to “bark” or squeak in such a way that they sound like dogs! This is why they are sometimes called “waterdogs”. The thing I found most surprising about the mudpuppy is that they are active in freezing cold waters throughout the winter. They prefer areas with highly oxygenated water, such as at the base of dams or waterfalls. I was able to join a group of researchers that guide an interpretive “Mudpuppy Night” in Oxford Mills (near Ottawa), where you can see dozens of mudpuppies in their natural environment. We had to go out in winter gear and hip waders, using flashlights to spot the little salamanders hiding under the ice and in rock crevices.

I also wanted to mention the “walking tree” (Socratea exorrhiza), a kind of palm native to Central and South America, which I was able to see on a trip to Costa Rica many years ago. On a guided hike, our interpreter told us about a tree that is able to “walk”- not the same way or speed we do, but they are able to slowly move in a direction of their choosing over a long period of time. They grow their roots in the direction they want to go (usually towards a better patch of light), and the roots behind them slowly lift off the ground and into the air so the tree can continue to move.They can walk up to 20 metres per year, or up to 2-3 centimetres a day.

A walking palm tree, with its many roots it uses to displace itself.

References

Common Mudpuppy. (2022). In Wikepedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_mudpuppy

Thanks for your reply to my post! I’m glad you found it interesting. To answer your question, I believe the reason they are called mudpuppies is that they are often found hiding in the mud bottoms of aquatic systems like rivers, etc. Good question :)

Best,

My father was born and raised in the town of Nazaré, which is located in the heart of Portugal. Many others refer to it as “surfers paradise,” which is a more accurate description. I’ve been going to Nazaré, Portugal, for as long as I can remember. The area is well-known for its massive waves, which are both distinctive and unpredictable. As a matter of fact, it has been the site of multiple Guinness World Records, including the greatest wave ever surfed and the largest wave ever surfed by a woman. The summer is normally the best time to visit, however the biggest waves have been observed during the winter season, between October and March.

Surfers from all over the globe are always present, and the number of tourists is increasing. Thousands of people have already spent the season of enormous waves at Nazaré, and if there are waves, they will surf, which is also beneficial for visitors since it gives them a better sense about how big the waves are. In addition, there are several Surging Challenges that take place in Nazaré. One of these competitions is the World Surf League Nazaré Tow Surfing Challenge.

You may be wondering if my dad surfs, and the short answer is no. He claims to have attempted it as a child, but that the danger was just too great, particularly on the enormous waves of Praia do Norte, often known as North Beach. Regardless, he and his friends would always gather by the Nazaré lighthouse to watch the waves. Even though he wasn’t surfing himself, he explains that, as a lover of the water, he was awestruck by the sea’s immense power. “I was amazed every single time I watched,” he says. It is, without a doubt, the place where the Atlantic Ocean demonstrates its full might! Nature is a beautiful thing.

I’ve also never tried surfing, but if I did, I don’t believe I’d do it on North Beach since it’s too dangerous. To be quite honest, it can even get a little frightening to watch the surfers. Even though they are professional and skilled, the waves may be quite hazardous. Maya Gabeira drowned in Nazaré in 2013 and was resuscitated on the beach (Lock, 2021). Following this, the Nazaré Surf Rescue Organization was formed in order to avoid worst-case situations from occurring (Lock, 2021). Since the accident in 2013, Maya has returned to Nazaré and, in 2020, she set a new female world record for the largest wave ridden in  Portugal. 

Nazaré is definitely an experience of awe. Awe-inspiring experiences, according to the textbook, generate wonder, curiosity, perspective, purpose, and creativity (Beck et al., 2018).  The textbook suggests that Keltner describes awe as, “elicited especially by nature, art, and impressive individuals or feats,” (Beck et al., 2018). At times, just being at a park or museum and absorbing the experience is sufficient, with no need for interpretation (Beck et al., 2018). The same may be true of Nazaré; even without explanation, the waves evoke a reaction. I hope that one of you reading this, have the opportunity to visit Nazaré, Portugal. If you’ve gone, I’d love to hear about your experience!

I really liked reading your post, you made use of facts and information as well as personal experiences and sentiment which made it a delight to read. I am really interested in surfing but have never had the opportunity to try. I was supposed to be going to Australia for a semester abroad but due to COVID-19 it was cancelled twice, which spoiled my plans to get really into surfing as I would be staying near the coast. I also got into snowboarding last winter and have fallen in love, so I feel like surfing (while very different) must be just as fun! So thank you for reawakening this goal of mine, I will have to make plans to go somewhere to surf now that travel is picking back up again! Maybe somewhere with waves that are a little more beginner friendly, haha. I definitely do not blame you or your dad for not wanting to surf at this Nazaré beach. 

It is really interesting that humans go to such lengths and dangers to follow their passions, like Maya Gabeira. Even though she had a near death experience, she was able to return and set a world record. Its almost like the morbid curiosities that humans have with strange or dangerous parts of nature, and the rush that many people get in the face of risk. Some people interact with nature from a distance out of fear, some people co-exist, and some people just throw themselves right into nature’s unpredictable forces. While I definitely I could never do what Maya Gabeira did, I respect her ability to master such an incredible sport.

Well done and I look forward to reading more of your posts!

First of all, what is music? It is defined as the arrangement of sounds in time which provides emotional expression and beauty of form. By this definition, I think there is music everywhere in nature. It is in the sound of rain through the trees, bird songs, squirrels chattering, leaves rustling, and really in every natural sound. When I think of standing in a forest, I can hear the overlapping noises from all of the living things coming together to create “music”, which provides relaxation and calmness. When I think of swimming in the ocean, I can hear the crash of waves, the cry of seagulls, overlapped with the humming silence which happens each time my head goes under the water.

The sounds from a natural landscape were probably the inspiration for early human beings to create their own music from voices and instruments. There is archeological evidence that Neanderthals created musical instruments out of bone and stone, and throughout time many fables and stories from cultures around the world were told through music to be remembered. So, where is nature in music? I believe that nature was the foundation on which music was built, and as time has passed the actual sounds of nature in music have decreased but the foundation will never change, and nature will always be a part of music.

One example of how nature and music are intertwined is in whale songs. Whales create songs which are similar in length to those of human songs, have similar song structure, and seem to use rhyming devices just as humans would (Gray et al., 2001). My point from this is that whales and humans create similar music, and therefore when humans listen to whale songs they likely feel moved in a similar way to typical human songs. This could be why humans have been particularly moved by one whale who’s calls are at 52-Hertz, a different frequency from other species (blue whale 10-39 Hz, fin whale 20 Hz) (Fessenden, 2015). This whale has been called the “world’s loneliest whale”, because it is singing at a frequency that the other whale’s do not use, and many musicians have created songs inspired by this whale (Fessenden, 2015). Although the thought of a whale alone in the ocean and unable to communicate with other is heartbreaking, there is a theory that the 52-Hertz songs are from a group of hybrid whales, which would mean that the whale is not alone after all (Fessenden, 2015). Let’s hope that’s the case!

One song that reminds me of nature is The Night We Met by Lord Huron. It reminds me of camping with my friends during summer years ago and laying under the dark sky of stars. In all honesty though, this whole album by Lord Huron reminds me of being outside in nature throughout the summer weather.

I really enjoyed reading your post this week because I found it most relatable. I feel like similar things crossed our minds upon reading this week’s blog prompt, however you were able to describe it in such a way that it captured my definition of sounds and music in nature perfectly. It’s as though there is a symphony of different sounds that alone would not be music but together makes a song. It’s interesting how we find these sounds so comforting that many people cannot fall asleep without nature sounds in the background. I remember when I was young, my mom got me a noise machine that played the sounds of crashing waves, rain, and other calming nature sounds and I was able to sleep so much better. It’s as though our bodies have not adapted to the silence we escape to in our houses, so we have to bring a piece of nature and its music with us. 

I also thought of the “world’s loneliest whale” when thinking of different animals that make “music”. I think you described very well an example of what connects us humans to other animals through music, as Gray et al. (2001) ponder with the question: “Do musical sounds in nature reveal a profound bond between all living things?”. Even though we cannot necessarily communicate with animals, the language of music is universal and can bring people and animals together that are otherwise unable to communicate with words.

Great post this week. I look forward to reading more of your posts!

Hello everyone, hope you all are keeping well. In this week’s blog I will attempt to unpack the following quote:

“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)

To begin to unpack the first part of the quote, “there is no peculiar merit in ancient things…”, I think that this refers to the fact that objects only have meaning because we assign meaning to them - they have history, they have a story to tell. I think that is what is meant by “…but there is merit in integrity, and integrity entails the keeping together of the parts of any whole…”. The whole refers to not just having all the physical parts of the object but the story that it carries with it.

I took these pictures during a guided tour of the colosseum my family and I went on in Rome, Italy (2020). The colosseum is known to have so much history and significance it would be hard to grasp without the information. One could simply think of it as "just another old building" but it really is so much more.

I really resonate with the last part of the quote as it brings to light how naïve it sounds when we only live in the present without recognizing the past and future. In the analogy, it is obvious that the train station existed before the train arrived and would still be present after the train has left. Thus, only acknowledging the existence of the station when we have interacted with it is self-centered and dismisses a huge chunk of context from the past.

The textbook further delves into the reason why we need to interpret history and that is to remember. I think that we tend to focus on the positive stories, however, despite how controversial and how hard it is to talk about some topics are, it would be ignorant to ignore our history as human beings on this planet as it is scattered with tragedy, war, atrocities, and discrimination. By recounting these events and finding inspiration in these stories of survivors, people will be more inclined to seek a better future and hopefully be able to relate to their own lives. My dad introduced me to the quote: “Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it” by Winston Churchill – and it is something that has stuck with me. How are we expected to grow as individuals, as humans, as a society - if we keep don’t recognize our failures and learn from them? This could also be related back to the Temiskaming Tragedy mentioned in the previous units. Because we have reflected on that event, we can learn from our mistakes and be more cautious when there is a lot of risks involved.

When reading chapter 15 in the textbook, one thing that surprised me was that when interpreting history, the existence of a lack of accuracy. I thought accuracy would be the number one priority and so I was surprised when it was being influenced so heavily by the tourism sector. One quote that stood out to me was when Beck et al. 2018 stated that “the goal should be to make the truth more entertaining than the myth”. I like this quote as one reason why myths are so intriguing is that they elicit a sense of wonder and curiosity through storytelling that seems almost impossible. People will often fib the truth to make their story more interesting, however, if the truth can be delivered in an engaging yet meaningful manner, I believe that should always be the standard.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog this week, let's learn from our past mistakes so that we can create a better future!

Best,

Ashley

References

Very interesting take on the quote by Edward Hyams! I completely agree with the points you touched on while unpacking it. I think there is a great responsibility in remembering and educating others on pieces of our past, no matter how uncomfortable it is. If we were to cherry pick the stories and parts of history that were all positive and happy, we would miss a lot of important lessons. Honestly, I think for the most part, our society and education system has a good balance of stories and lessons on history that are about negative events. We have days dedicated to remembering tragedies (such as 9/11 or Holocaust Remembrance Day) which is very important, but there are many uncomfortable parts of Canadian history that have been seemingly swept under the rug. The national Truth and Reconciliation Day was only just created to honour the survivors and lost children of the residential school system after many graves were discovered all across Canada. The horrible Japanese internment camps were something I never learned about until high school, and even then it was only briefly mentioned (if anyone had a different experience, let me know because I’m curious if this was the same for most of us). As Canadians, our identity is very centered around peace, human rights, cultural acceptance, and just being really nice. It is certainly uncomfortable to acknowledge that our country has a very dark past, but in order to make it a place that is safe and accepting to all ethnicities and religions, we as a nation need to remember the mistakes of our past and learn from them.

Thanks for sharing your insight!

“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)

What I love most about this quote is how it can be applied to so many different areas of life, not just nature interpretation. The power of integrity as defined in this quote is essential to ensuring success in any sector, yet as a society we seem to have stopped prioritizing it. How are we expected to move forward successfully if there is no regard for the past, as both a tool for learning and as a reminder to respect the work of those who came before us.

This is especially true in the field of environmentalism, a core driving factor behind nature interpretation. The quote perfectly encompasses the mindset of many when it comes to this subject. Since environmentalism focuses largely on plans for the future while condemning the mistakes of our past, we often forget to acknowledge the important people and forces behind the initial movement. We chose to remain on our theoretical “train”, oblivious to the other trains, stations, and conductors that are not a part of our current “field of view”.

This “content ignorance” about the past of environmentalism is especially important to discuss currently during Black History Month, as the movement is commonly misrepresented as a white movement. With “superstar” environmentalists like Greta Thunberg and David Attenborough, most mainstream headlines about climate change and environmental activism focus predominantly on white contributions. But like many areas of society, those whose voices are heard most often are not necessarily representative of the whole. The reality is that black communities have been fighting for environmental justice for countless decades, and are credited for beginning the environmental justice movement. Racial and environmental justice are deeply connected as black people have always been disproportionately impacted by pollution, climate change and lack of access to green space. This exact issue was brought into the national spotlight in 1982 when a landfill in Warren County, NC (the only majority black county in the state) became the proposed site for dumping toxic chemicals. In response, the black community staged a sit-in to protect their community from harmful pollution, sparking a global movement.

Rev. Benjamin Chavis at Warren County PCB Landfill Protest – Photo from the United Church of Christ 

Since then, POC have been shouldering the burden of environmentalism, calling out racist environmental groups such as the “Group of Ten” and developing principles of environmental justice that serve as the basis of the movement to this day. In Unit 06, we were asked to reflect on who/what benefits from sharing stories linked in history, and how this might impact others in the future. It was mentioned that survivors of horrific events share their stories so that the events will not be forgotten. Thinking on this, it is clear that as a white society, these stories have not been shared enough, as I myself had to do a good deal of research to learn anything about black environmentalism. It has practically been erased from the modern narrative; a “train station” that we never seem to pass through. As interpreters, we have a unique opportunity where we can share this forgotten history and shape the future. With this in mind, I ask everyone that has read this post up to this point to honor the legacy of black environmentalists by taking five minutes to look into this history, share a black environmental activist that has inspired you, and keep them in mind as you continue your nature interpretation journey. Don’t let these stories die out more than they already have!

Whiting, K. (2021, February 25). 5 black heroes of the Environmental Movement. World Economic Forum. Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/02/black-environmentalists-justice-climate-change/

I really enjoyed reading your post! It really caught my eye when I saw the title, because honestly I have zero clue about any history of black environmentalism (which is pretty shameful) and I really appreciate the opportunity you gave me to educate myself. I definitely am quite “content ignorant” in this area. Like you mentioned in your reply to my post, I really enjoy reading another interpretation of the quote. You managed to relate it back to both cultural history and natural/environmental history which is really cool. 

I decided to take your advice and did some research to learn more about black environmentalism. One of the people who really stuck out when I was skimming through various articles was a man named John Francis or the “the Planetwalker”. When he witnessed the tragic oil spill in San Francisco Bay in 1971, he was inspired to discontinue his support of the oil industry and instead walked everywhere he went. He spent many of his years walking across the United States and parts of South America, hoping to share his motivation and inspire others to reduce their impacts on the environment. He also took a vow of silence in order to listen more to what others had to say, which lasted 17 years. All the while he was able to earn a bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate degree in Land Management due to his incredible ability to use non-verbal communication. I thought this was pretty amazing, that as an already marginalized black man, he was able to amount to a very high level of education without the “ability” to speak. If everyone was this brave and passionate about protecting our environment, I don’t think we would be dealing with nearly the same amount of issues we face with climate change today. This is obviously only one man out of many other people of colour that were and continue to be part of the movement, but I found his story very inspiring. His efforts are part of a “train stop” that we should continue to acknowledge as we fight to conserve nature. 

Thank you for this eye opening take on historical interpretation!

-Serena

References

John Francis (environmentalist). (2022, February 1). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Francis_(environmentalist)

I have decided to take the opportunity of this week’s free topic week to talk about what motivates me the most in my connections to nature. When it comes to travelling, the areas that I am driven to see the most are the ones that are known for their beautiful landscapes. To me, a beautiful landscape is the most rewarding after a long hike up a mountain. When you feel the accomplishment of completing an extensive physical task, it adds another level to the beauty of nature. Standing at the top of a mountain gives you immense perspective on how beautiful the world we get to live in is. I have a personal bias for the most beauty existing in the western provinces as I spent lots of time with family out there, so the beauty has more than surface-level value. Nature has this beautiful way of connecting you with friends and family as there is always an aspect that everyone you are with can relate to and appreciate. When you get to the top of a mountain with a group of friends or family, you are all sharing this unified experience that connects you closer to nature and each other

Another primary motivator to connect me to nature is my pets and my friend’s pets. The unfiltered joy that our pets experience sparks so much joy within me. I find it provides me with a new perspective, as I can get so caught up in all the tiny aspects of life being out in the snow or a new park with my dog reminds me of all the small things there are to be grateful for in life. I feel there are so many lessons that we can learn from our pets and how they interact with nature they can indulge without overtaking, and that is a lesson that I think everyone can connect to. Going on walks with my dog allows me to disconnect from the stressful aspects of my life and recenter. Stopping and allowing her to experience the different smells at the park and play with her friends (corgi’s her favourite) reminds me of how we are so similar without communicating with each other directly. When we share these experiences, it makes me so grateful that I have the privilege of having a pet who loves me so much and that I can allow her to explore her love for nature as well.

Great post this week! It’s so nice reading a post that puts my exact feelings into words. I can relate strongly to your thoughts about feeling joy vicariously through your pets. The excitement I see in my dog on hikes is a huge part of the fun and what motivates me to get outside. Things you love feel so much better when you have someone to share it with. Dogs have such a different relationship with nature than us, where getting outside is the highlight of their day in many cases because they have much fewer sources of entertainment and stimulation compared to humans. We have work, TV, books, games, etc. that many will turn to for leisure instead of going outside for a hike, but dogs crave these expeditions more than we could understand. Seeing this incredible appreciation motivates me to appreciate every moment like they do. 

I can also relate to how beautiful landscapes motivate your connection with nature. I also am very drawn to places with breathtaking scenery. It’s almost euphoric to be standing before something so beautiful that your eyes can barely process what’s in front of you. It’s a great reminder of how important it is to protect it, because we have fewer and fewer of these landscapes as we continue to develop cities and expand industrial or agricultural practices. I also try to be careful that I don’t get too caught up in what’s to come and focus on things along the way that are also beautiful, because there are many things like little frogs or cool fungi that can easily be missed if you rush along. But it’s hard when you know there’s a view ahead like your pictures in the mountains, or this view from my trip to Plitvice Lakes National Park in Croatia!

Thanks for sharing, I loved reading your post!

I am so glad that we are discussing nature through art. I have loved art my whole life, and abstract landscapes are some of my favourite paintings to make. I’m not sure if it’s because drawing people is hard haha. But there is something about staring at a sunset photo or painting of a lake that just feels like home.

A photo my sister took last summer (2021)

I have always been drawn to paintings, photos, etc., of nature that are full of colour. It amazes me how vibrant and expressive nature can be. When you look at a painting of a sunrise, and it is filled with colours ranging in warm tones, you can almost feel the warmth on your face. Paintings of nature have a special way of transporting you to the place they capture.

A painting I did for my grandparents (2020)

I have stated before how I find peace in nature, and when I stand alone and close my eyes in a forest, I feel a sense of calm as I listen to the birds and the wind. Paintings and photographs have the same effect when I take in the art I am transported and can feel the sense of peace the artist felt when they took the photo. It is incredible that without including people or any clear expressions, you can still feel the emotions and tone of the work pouring out.

A quick painting I did for my leopard geckos tank background :P (2021)

We are so fortunate to live in a time of cameras and the internet, it seems silly to say, but we have such incredible access to places and nature all over the world that we would have never been able to witness if it weren’t for the artist who captured the moment. I am forever grateful to have seen places of the world through paintings and pictures that I may never get the chance to visit but still be able to interpret the nature they witnessed through the screen.

A photo I took on my trip to Alaska (2017)

Firstly, I have to say your paintings are amazing. I am so jealous you are able to not only create something that beautiful, but you have found a way to capture nature and the feelings you get when experiencing it in the flesh. That takes talent!

I can strongly relate to the effects nature has on you, as well as nature paintings and pictures. I have never felt more at peace than when I’m on a lake in a canoe, or walking through a deserted forest. I guess that’s why people like to decorate their homes and rooms with art that they find makes them feel the closest thing to that peace they find in nature. We cover our shelves in plants and sculptures, or cover the walls in photography and paintings in an attempt to mimic that sense of peace. This makes day to day life more easy and pleasant, especially during pandemic times when we are stuck inside working or learning all day!

Thanks for sharing :)

Nature and art. Nature in itself is an art full of complete textures, colours, shapes, the list goes on. We humans have noticed the immense beauty of nature and have tried for hundreds of years to capture it. Whether that be through stories, paintings, carvings, drawings, sculptures, poems, dances, and music. The beautiful thing is, we all interpret nature in a unique way and thus, no piece of art is identical.  

Just like when in nature, creating art brings a calm over me. In a way, it’s a form of meditation that takes your attention away from everyday life. It’s kinda dangerous, especially when a lecture is not quite catching your attention and there is a nice white margin in the notebook just asking to be filled. Time just melts away and suddenly, I am just there with my own thoughts focused on what my right hand is creating.

I like to draw and it’s always the battle between trying to capture all the details in a picture, while still trying to make it possible to draw an image. It’s almost impossible the beauty of nature on a piece of paper, there’s just too much going on! Then there’s the fact that the beauty of nature is just not limited to one sense! But then, maybe that’s the point to capture what is important to you, what speaks the most to you. That’s why it’s also so interesting to look at other’s pieces of art. To see what they see and how they see the world. I am always interested in the process of making apiece of art. What was going through their minds? Where did they start? Where did this idea come from? How does it make them feel?

A new way of portraying the beauty of nature that I have been exploring is the creation of mini environments through setups like paludarium or any rimless aquarium. The creators always try their best to replicate the nature look, while still trying to give the piece a sense of atheistic that is pleasing to the eye. The one thing that I have noticed by watching videos of people’s creations is that everyone has a built-in idea of what is aesthetically pleasing to them. Like when you place something at the perfect angle that makes you feel like “man, that looks perfect just the way it is”. Is that what the gift of beauty is about? The idea that beauty is a self-imposed idea that cannot be replicated by anyone else and how everyone has a different idea of what looks good to them.

Your blog post caught my eye because I can relate to many of these ideas you discuss. Especially the doodling in notebook margins! My margins are full of little designs which have distracted me during my lectures. Funnily enough they are almost always nature doodles- waves, flowers, leaves, etc. Like you, interpreting nature through this little form of art is very relaxing for me.

I liked your point about how frustrating it is to not be able to capture every detail in a nature drawing. I am not very good at drawing or painting, so having a captured image in my mind of a place in nature I find particularly beautiful and not being able to recreate it and preserve it is very frustrating. It’s funny how sometimes photography is a frustrating way to create art through nature, because you often hear people saying “the picture just doesn’t do it justice”. This kind of goes back to your point about how the beauty of nature isn’t limited to one sense, so why do we try to capture it in only a visual form via photography? Cameras have become far better at capturing nature’s beauty as technology advances which is nice, but nothing beats the real thing. Perhaps this is why nature is depicted in so many ways in art, so that we can attempt to recreate the dimensions and emotions we feel that are associated with places, things, and phenomena in nature.

Great post!

-Serena

I always knew I was privileged growing up but I didn’t know in exactly in what way or the extent it benefited my everyday life. My working definition of privilege is the unearned rights, advantages or immunities granted to an individual. In the article ‘Helping teachers unpack their “invisible knapsacks”’ by Nancy P. Gullavan, describes that the construct of privilege is also defined by the beliefs and practices that are taken for granted by everyone throughout society.  This statement really opened my eyes regarding how oblivious I was to the privileges I had throughout my childhood, and still to this day. Opening up my ‘invisible knapsack’ I was able to unpack the various privileges I have:

Born and raised in a free country (Canada)

Free healthcare

No restrictions on my lifestyle because I am a woman, unlike some third world countries

Always had access to natural spaces

No severe pollution, allowing me to have access to clean air and water

I am white with white parents, and I speak English (as my first language)

I am physically healthy, providing me with no transportation boundaries

I have always owned a vehicle (as well as my parents growing up) allowing me to travel to areas that would be otherwise inaccessible

I could afford my university schooling without the help of third-party loans

Middle-class: I never had to worry about money growing up especially food or bills

I had never really thought about privilege in terms of nature until this class and this unit. As I dug deeper into my knapsack I realized that nature is a significant privilege that many have to live without. In an effort to understand this more I came across a blog regarding this topic. On Trailspace Blogs, Alicia MacLeay, discussed how the outdoors and nature for some people is an escape and a hobby, but for others it is a refuge. This mindset is explained to be ignorant and naïve to what others experience all over the world. Even to access trails there are systemic, racial, and socioeconomic barriers that prevent people from accessing the plentiful benefits nature has to offer. Many barriers exists even if the place is public, there are accessibility, proximity, financial and transportation barriers in every location. One statement that really stuck with me in this blog is that “the physical and mental benefits of nature are well known, diversity is critical to healthy ecosystems and communities, and being outside safely shouldn’t be a privilege” (MacLeay, 2020). To read more of this blog click here.

From this recognition I was able to understand that privilege plays a huge role in nature interpretation. Throughout my childhood I was always privileged with access to natural areas and the ability to explore them through various activities such as canoeing, camping and hiking. But what I failed to realize is the privilege of nature interpretation that I received from the high school I attended. My school had and still has a very strong relationship with the local Conservation Authority. This relationship provided knowledge through festivals, connections and personal involvement that was not offered to any other schools. My school also offered environmental high-skills majors that allowed students to graduate with a red-seal diploma with various certificates and courses related to the environment. And all these opportunities were offered to students for free. My school also offered an environmental leadership program, that I was enrolled in, that offered senior level Interdisciplinary Studies, Physical Education (Outdoor Education) and Co-Operative Education. This program was unlike any other, providing more important certificates such as chainsaw operator certificate and very importantly the ORCKA ( Ontario Recreational Canoeing and Kayaking Association) certificate. The ELP takes many trips to Algonquin and Haliburton throughout this semester. The very first thing we learned about was the Timiskaming Tragedy. After this tragedy the ELP required a swim test and extensive canoe training before the first trip to Algonquin. This course was a high privilege to me as it not only provided me with essential certificates for my future career in environmental conservation, connection to jobs within this field but also essential life saving skills that I would have never got without ELP within my high school.

Trip to Haliburton Forest 

You raised some interesting points in your post. Your point about how we are privileged where we live because we can breathe clean air is something I did not think about. Even just the difference between someone living in the country or a city like Guelph and someone living in Toronto in terms of air quality can be significant. Not only is air quality something to consider when unpacking our “invisible backpacks” and considering how our relationship with nature is privileged, but so is light pollution. Although it is not as important in terms of health, it can be important to one’s ability to enjoy nature. There are many people who live in large cities that rarely see the night sky in all its glory. Some of the memories I hold closest to me are times when I was stargazing at my cottage, where we were able to see meteor showers in the summer and spot different planets. I am lucky that I have access to areas where I can observe the bright stars, or the fact that I do not have to go far to have a clear view.

My high school also had an outdoor education program, but unfortunately, despite my love for nature, I did not enroll. Looking at your picture and the pictures I saw in high school, I’m disappointed I missed out! It sounds like the certificates have been very useful as well.

Thank you for sharing your reflection on your privilege in nature interpretation. It has helped me reflect on mine!