#w25

A classic racing machine from Mercedes-Benz.

Dita Von Teese

W25

[W25 Body] main modpack: Body meshes for Midlander-based male player characters in W25 and Q25 sizes; Griffes25 meshes and required files; W25 piercing required files.

[W25 Textures] modpack: W25 FTM support; DT scales for Au Ra; TBSE/ W25/ Wet mask styles with fully rebaked channels.

REQUIRED MODS: 1) The Body SE (lower priority) or W25 Textures (in "Variant" drop-out, also required for FTM leg options)

2) Illusio Vitae Custom Skeletons (located in TBSE-X download folder, any priority) or use direct link here 3) Custom physics - provided with TBSE-X (lower priority). W25 DOCUMENTATION AND DEVKIT FILES: Google Drive folder Main download link (Heliosphere) Refits list: Link

Throughout this course, we have touched on many things such as privilege, accessibility, learning types and more. All these things have helped me grow as a nature interpreter in so many ways. As a daughter of immigrants, I grew up in a household where my parents worked their very best to provide me with a better life than they had. I am very fortunate to have grown up in a country where I could go on hikes, learn about nature in school and watch birds and animals in my backyard. I had the opportunity to turn on a television, watch the Discovery Channel, and see and learn about amazing animals and wonderful ecosystems all around the world. I was able to go to places like the ROM and other museums that showcased dinosaur bones or paintings of wild landscapes that had me immersed. I distinctly remember a school trip in which we went to a high school known for its performing arts and watched a dramatic play about Shakespeare, a midsummer night's dream and many scenes took place in a forest. 

Art in this way shaped my understanding of nature interpretation at a very young age. Now, after taking this course, I learned that art can help others connect to nature too, as it can help them relive memories of them in the wild through dance or song, or learn about nature through visual and performing arts (Chapter 10: Arts in Interpretation, pg. 229). My tour guides during my summers in Madagascar would use storytelling as a way to explain the things we saw and in a way, that is how I first learned to appreciate nature beyond just observation. Storytelling made the environment come alive, it gave animals' personalities, landscapes their own histories, and ecosystems a sense of interconnectedness. They would often share their own experience and interactions that they had and it would leave me feeling excited to go back out into the forest every single day, no matter how tired I was. One story in particular struck a chord with me. The story tells of a king who drowned himself in a lake to avoid capture by his enemies. This act made the lake sacred, and as a result, hunting crocodiles there became strictly forbidden. Today, the once-endangered Nile crocodile population has rebounded, along with native turtles and fish, all thriving under the lake's protected status. 

Picture taken of a baby Nile Crocodile in Lake Ravolobe as my tour guide told me the story of why this lake is Sacred.

Experiences such as these have shaped my ethics as a nature interpreter. I believe that nature interpretation is not just about facts and figures but about fostering an emotional and personal connection to the natural world. My experiences as a child have shaped my perception and love for nature and now as I have learned ways to help others too connect to nature, my ethics and beliefs revolve strongly around accessibility and privilege. Somehow we have turned nature into a commodity, and many people around the world cannot access it. Whether through scientific communication that bars people due to education or through the assimilation of various Indigenous cultures, we have forced the disconnection of nature onto many, many people. As a nature interpreter, I believe it is my responsibility to break down these barriers and create opportunities for people to reconnect with the natural world. Nature is not something to be owned, bought, or restricted to those with the means to experience it. It is a shared resource, a fundamental part of human existence, and something that everyone should have the opportunity to engage with, regardless of their background, education, or socioeconomic status.

One of the biggest challenges we face is the way nature has been framed within academic and institutional spaces. Scientific language, while valuable, can often alienate those without formal education in the field (Unit 5: Nature Interpretation Through Science. By simplifying concepts, using storytelling, and incorporating diverse cultural perspectives, we can make nature interpretation more inclusive and engaging. Creative writing has always been a passion of mine and since coming to the University of Guelph, I have found it to be a powerful tool to connect science and academics to the public. I am currently immersed in op-ed writers such as Naomi Klime or authors such as Dr. Kerrian McGoogan who are using their skills in writing to interpret to a much, much broader audience than academia could ever reach.

Dr. Kerriann McGoogan's book, Chasing Lemurs is one of my favourite creative non fiction books and is a very important one due to the biodiversity crisis Madagascar is currently facing.

Through their writing, they make pressing issues relatable, accessible, and urgent, ensuring that knowledge is not reserved for the few but shared with the many. This approach is most suitable for me as I find reading about others' experiences with nature often helps me connect to them as well. Writing the script for my podcast also helped me realize my love for writing can be a powerful tool and a bridge between people and the natural world. Through storytelling, I can make complex environmental issues more accessible, weaving together personal experiences, scientific insights, and cultural narratives to create a deeper sense of connection. Moving forward, I plan to integrate writing into my work as a nature interpreter, using it as a tool to reach those who might not otherwise engage with environmental topics. Whether through personal essays, advocacy pieces, or podcast storytelling, I want my words to not only inform but also evoke emotion, spark curiosity, and inspire change.

Nature is full of so many wonders all around the world. Intricate balances in ecosystems always leave me in awe. However, I want to share with you the importance of lemurs. Lemurs were an animal I grew up watching on T.V. Whether it was the movie Madagascar or the show Zaboomafo, I have always loved these animals. However, it was not until I came to the University of Guelph that I began to know how important these animals are to ecosystems, people and the delicate biodiversity of Madagascar.

Take a second and imagine you walking through a dense, misty forest at sunrise. The air is thick with the scent of damp earth and blooming flowers. Suddenly, the trees around you rustle, and from the canopy above, a lemur leaps effortlessly from branch to branch, its long tail trailing behind like a ribbon. But here’s the most amazing part, this tiny acrobat isn’t just moving through the trees; it’s planting a future forest.

As seed dispersers, they play a vital role in regenerating forests, ensuring the survival of countless plant species that other animals rely on. Without them, Madagascar’s already threatened forests would struggle to recover from deforestation and habitat destruction.

Beyond their ecological importance, lemurs also hold cultural significance for the Malagasy people. Many local communities have deep-rooted traditions and folklore surrounding these primates, viewing them as sacred or symbolic animals. Protecting lemurs is not just about conservation, it’s also about respecting the cultural and ecological connections they have fostered for centuries. For example, the Indri, the largest of the lemurs, has a loud haunting call that is the centre of many myths about protectors of the forest. 

I took this picture of an Indri in Andasibe National Park, Madagascar.

And if you think this one lemur is cool, then I think one of the coolest things to ever happen through evolution and nature is the diversification of the lemurs. There are currently more than 110 lemur species, and they range from the smallest primate ever, which is the mouse lemur that can fit on your palm, to the Indri which can weigh up to 9 kg.

The intertwinement of music and nature is a beautiful thing to listen to. What draws me to some of my favourite hobbies like birdwatching, hiking and camping is the chance to listen to the beautiful noises of nature. The rustling of leaves in the wind, the rhythmic crashing of ocean waves, and the melodic calls of birds are all examples of nature’s inherent musicality.

Throughout history, cultures around the world have drawn inspiration from nature to create music. Indigenous communities, for instance, often incorporate the sounds of animals, water, and wind into their music as a way to connect with the environment. Instruments such as wooden flutes, hand drums, and rattles mimic the sounds of birds, rainfall, and rustling grass. Even in contemporary music, many compositions integrate natural sounds to evoke certain emotions, transporting listeners to forests, mountains, or oceans. Indigenous songs can also reveal traditional ecological knowledge, as many songs share stories of seasonal changes, animal migrations, and sacred landscapes. These musical traditions serve as both a means of cultural preservation and a way to pass down vital environmental knowledge through generations. For example, a song by Kwaxsistalla Wathl’thla  from an Indigenous tribe revealed a song called Dog Children, where they mystery of clam gardens, which we now know is over 3500 years old (https://theconversation.com/indigenous-song-keepers-reveal-traditional-ecological-knowledge-in-music-123573). When songs such as these ones are sung, it is a way to pass down sustainable practices. In this way, nature is present in music in many ways, but music can be present in nature as well.

The calls of birds create intricate melodies that human compositions are based on, and the rhythmic patterns of rain, waves, and rustling leaves produce beautiful harmonies. Many animals use sound not just for communication but for expression, whether it be the songs of whales, the rhythmic drumming of woodpeckers, or the chirping chorus of frogs at dusk. In the broader sense, the natural world is filled with symphonies, both intentional and unintentional, that humans used to create music. Music from nature also helps us as interpreters connect others to the natural worlds. The beauty of the whale sounds can help generate awareness for their conservation even if we have never seen them in real life. The harmony of birdsongs can help motivate people to protect bird species and maintain diverse ecosystems. 

Nature interpretation can be viewed through many lenses. This week, the lens of choice is history, which is a powerful scope. Naturalists have been cataloging and recording the biodiversity in the natural world for centuries, laying the foundation for how we understand and connect with nature today. Their meticulous observations, often documented in journals and sketches, helped establish a rich history of ecosystems, species, and landscapes. By looking at nature through a historical lens, we not only appreciate the current state of the natural world but also gain insight into how it has evolved over time, shaped by both natural forces and human activity. This historical perspective deepens our connection to the land and informs our responsibility to preserve and protect it for future generations.

Therein lies the true message of the quote we are meant to analyze. The first part of the quote speaks on the merit and keeping together the things scattered through time. I think of this as treating all events as connected and no matter how far back in Earth's history we go, we have the duty to catalog as much as we can to pay homage to the ecosystems that stand today.

For example, what comes to mind is climate change and how we model temperatures from years and years ago to show that the increases in global temperatures are an anomaly caused by anthropogenic effects. Without this historical data, it would be difficult to understand the scale and urgency of the issue. The past provides crucial context, reminding us that the land and the climate have been shaped by both natural events and human actions, and it’s through this lens that we can begin to address the challenges of today and tomorrow.

A graph depicting average temperatures from 1880 and how it shows the massive increases we see today are caused by anthropogenic activity (https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-global-temperature).