#unit 05

~ Valkyrie Connect Evangelion Collaboration ~ 

Asuka & Unit-02 

Rei & Mark.09 

Misato & AAA Wunder 

Shinji & Unit-01 

Kaworu & Mark.06 

The Nature of Things: where journalism and interpretation meet

As I have mentioned in previous posts I am a journalist and I love telling stories. As such, I like having little sayings and expressions for things, neat little sentences that tie everything up, they don’t need to capture everything  but at least point you in the right direction where you can find out more. One of these sayings I have come up with is this: journalism and academic writing are two sides to the same coin, journalism is about taking the most complex things and making them as simple as possible while academic writing is taking the simplest things and making them as complex as possible. 

Somewhere on this spectrum between simple vulgarizing and complex accuracy is interpretation! That’s what excites me, it’s about finding that balance, and maintaining it as you build a narrative that is exciting, informative, and accessible. Going through the readings week after week I see parallels between good nature interpretation and good journalism. Good journalism should also inspire people to go out and learn more, be critical, become engaged with the people and places around you. Good journalism should make you care about what’s important and make you want to protect what is important - just like nature interpretation. 

One of the areas many journalists struggle with is science journalism. Science stories become sensationalized, or vulgarized to the point they are no longer fully accurate. And that’s where nature and science interpretation can come in to help the field learn how to make some of these more abstract concepts understandable, to increase the general population’s ecological knowledge, to get more people to be curious and care about the natural world.

As far back as I can remember the Nature of Things with David Suzuki has been one of my favourite programs. Suzuki blurs the line between journalism and interpretation, the cold bias of the news is removed and replaced with a friendly (but stern) guide who will lead us with wisdom and connections to a variety of environments. Along with some of the best camera operators in the world capturing the beauty of the Land,  the Nature of Things makes you feel like you have a connection with the places they visit. The issues discussed from DDT to clear cutting, to salmon runs, all feel pressing and important. Very often the stories will also include people’s relationships with the local environment. 

The program brings together art, science, and interpretation to provide environmental education at home across the country to thousands of people. The science behind Suzuki’s interpretation is used as an exclamation point to spotlight how a particular plant, animal, or ecosystem is important to the whole.