In early 2010, I was involved in an environmental education weekend at TerraPi (Kouga catchment, Baviaanskloof Mega-Reserve). We were taking a nature walk of the area with underprivileged street children from Port Elizabeth. Whilst the kids were enthusiastically chatting and exploring, I was at the back of the group deep in thought and troubled about the direction I needed to take for this PhD research. At that stage, I felt I was firing blanks. I was bumped out of that state by the sight of a scrambling mantis across my path, somehow avoiding the trampling of 14 pairs of passing feet. And that lifted my spirits.

It was also a moment because I had never seen such a stunning mantis since living in South Africa. I gently picked it up and showed the children who became equally mesmerized, many wanting to let it rest on their hands. One child (pictured) was particularly absorbed. I obviously decided to grab a photo but without the explicit intention of capturing the child gazing like he is.  So it was quite a surprise afterward to find this and another image capturing the richness of the moment through his expressions. It has come to define a meaningful nature experience. And relevant too since I am based in the Dept. Conservation Ecology & Entomology (i.e. study of insects).

We had a little portable printer and printed out this and other photos of the weekend so the children and guardians could take them back to PE as memories of the beauty in nature which can appear unexpectedly – and bring hope and purpose.

Text: Matthew J. Zylstra

In the coming months, eyes4earth.org will publish photos of meaningful nature experiences which have been encountered during the past three years of carrying out this research. Most images and stories will be personal, some will be from others who have shared the experiences at one time or another.

Naturally, the meaning is made in the mind. The photos themselves cannot recount that full story or convey the personal meaning. So where appropriate some explanatory text will be added to provide the context – that should not be judged as a desperate attempt to justify why the experience was important.

You may ask: “If you have experienced these moments yourself, does this not bias your research with layers of personal subjectivity which may seek to reconfirm personal beliefs or seek certain outcomes?”  Yes… and no. I am using a phenomenological analysis which acknowledges upfront that all our experience is embedded in – and clouded with – subjectivity.  The approach therefore is to transparently “suspend” or “bracket” out those prior experiences or beliefs before commencing a study. One also then critically reflects on how they may influence analyses and conclusions. In any case, for most research questions, this research does not primarily seek causal explanations; rather it will attempt to dip down and describe the lived experience of these profound encounters, to explore the depth of meaning, the inter-subjectivity and the emerging essence as it appears for individual to individual.

These weekly images serve as precursor for that.

People are then free to draw their own causal inferences. But no doubt, I’m sure I’ll have a few words to say about it all along the way… :)

Text: Matthew Zylstra

Following on from the previous news post about presentations given at the ICCB,  it is now possible to download a pdf version of the oral presentation I delivered at the conference.  The talk outlined the rationale for investigating meaningful nature experiences, preliminary results from the online and street-based questionnaires,  common themes emerging from stories, and potential implications for how we conceptualization education for sustainability.   I have added a couple of additional slides as well as one or two amendments from that which was presented at the ICCB.  Trust you find this to be of interest and use.  Feedback welcome.

In other news, the write up results continued with an aim to have thesis completed by July 2012 (pending supervisor and examiner approval).  There are some novel ideas in the pipeline for more socially engaging dissemination of results; but this is unlikely to be released until end 2012/early 2013.   Just make sure you tell the Mayans to wait until I am done.

Download ICCB Presentation (PDF – 6.8MB)

Text: Matthew Zylstra

The 25th International Congress on Conservation Biology (ICCB) in Auckland (NZ) ran with the theme “Engaging Society with Conservation.” Matthew Zylstra delivered an oral and poster presentation about his ongoing doctoral research (linked to eyes4earth.org) which critically examined how meaningful nature experiences might inform education aimed at achieving this theme. The audience was invited to question, firstly, whether we should also be thinking more in terms of engaging conservation with society (rather than only vice versa), and secondly, in response to Matt’s preliminary research results, the need to open up dialogue on conservation education’s role in reconnecting society with nature, particularly when there is little consensus or even scientific discussion on what “reconnecting” implies in practice.

Matt fielded a number of questions both after his oral presentation and during the poster presentation session.  Audience questions covered topics of implications of meaningful nature experiences across diverse age and cultural groups, the role of traditional knowledge and value systems, the shortcomings of modern tertiary conservation education to include sufficient field-based learning, and a call for fellow conservation practitioners to share their own meaningful nature experiences – as a source of inspiration for what may well have gotten us walking this path of planetary passion in the first place.

The poster presentation covered the “science, art and action” of eyes4earth.org.  Its novel feature was the launch of eyes4earth audio (“vibes4earth”) – mp3 soundtracks which creatively mix interviewee’s meaningful nature experiences (stories as retold by them) with inspirational ambient grooves.  Thanks to Andrew Zylstra for music composition and production.

Stay tuned for the public release of these audio tracks in 2012.

Without Thought from Ollie Banks on Vimeo.

“I think there is the potential for everyone who is in a deep state of flow or is having a peak experience to feel so connected to the environment in which they are. And often these experiences happen in nature, that afterwards you feel a moral obligation to the world. You feel a sensitivity; it is not so ‘other’  anymore, it is not just resources to be harvested – it’s almost the body in which our consciousness is emerging… it is as if it is a living thing.”

“So I think in that experience is the seed for the possibility of a different consciousness in terms of how we steward our planet, and that gives me a sense of great hope…”

Excerpt from ”Without Thought” – a film by Ollie Banks / Dan  Crockett / John Eldridge

Narrated by Dr. Richard Moss

eyes4earth.org newsletter previewing preliminary research insights on meaningful nature experiences as well as a summary of recent news, weblog posts and upcoming events. Enjoy!

» Read online here!

Despite being privileged to have just an amazingly unique encounter, Brian’s story contains quite a few commonalities with what has been learnt through the research supporting eyes4earth.org. Many of the reported peak and profound wildlife encounters are with large charismatic animals where close proximity, extended periods of eye-contact are a key part of what makes the process meaningful. There is a sense of reciprocity in that the animal may also appear to be curious about us, possibly approaching unexpectedly and displaying what would normally be considered unusual behaviour. We may interpret this as some kind intelligence or desire for interaction – or even communication – on behalf of the animal… and that deeply moves us. We can feel diminished and humbled in its presence. In Brian’s case, he eventually got to share the experience with a colleague – and that can make the whole event even more special.

Numerous people who submitted their most meaningful nature experiences to eyes4earth.org have actually had their encounters whilst feeling vulnerable or even fearful in a vast ocean.  Brian Skerry tells another story about his scary night dives with giant squid…

http://www.dogwork.com/owfo8/   (longer clip, can see more of the owl’s approach)

http://www.youtube.com/user/vurtrunner#p/u/4/Ji_x8RU4zIo  (shorter clip, can see more of  ’the grab’ and is in higher definition)

]]> http://eyes4earth.org/eagle-owl-in-action/feed/ 0 http://eyes4earth.org/skimming-or-dipping/ http://eyes4earth.org/skimming-or-dipping/#comments Fri, 21 Oct 2011 11:59:44 +0000 eyes4earth http://eyes4earth.org/?p=2898 I feel like one of those flat skimming stones

Whom across the surface of life I’ve been thrown

With force and speed I skip and skim the water’s skin

Not wanting to lose momentum for fear I’ll fall in

To the depths below for I know not what they hold

Darkness, emptiness, stillness or so I’ve been told

So I skim over life not ever wanting to miss a beat

Not reaching the other side is a sure sign of defeat

And every skip on the surface feels like another year

The skips still quicken so that the gaps now disappear

Between hitting times of activity and pure times of rest

Frantically chanting the chant “I’m just doing my best”

I am that skimming stone with 66 skips I’m flat out

But I’ve lost my pace, sputter sputter, I begin to doubt

If I’ll really make it to the pond of life’s edge after all

What is there anyway except for a hard bumpy fall?

As I begin to slow, I dare to dip in, down and beneath

The surface of life; oh, quiet time and space to breathe

And what peace lies down here; how I wish I had known

For my next life, may I return as a rock & not a skim stone.

By Matthew Zylstra.  “Skimming or Dipping” (2010)

During the course of seeking out meaningful nature experiences, a few individuals have rightfully expressed concerns about the implications of belief systems which hold that certain animals may act as a ‘sign’ or ‘omen’  for certain events. In other words, the appearance of a creature at a particularly moment is perceived to carry a meaningful message for the perceiver.

This idea is quite prevalent amongst indigenous and non-Western cultures. I guess I was first exposed to its potency when spending time with Aboriginal Australians a few years back. Or at least it was something I was forced to reflect on more seriously than I had done before.

Visitations by certain birds were said to carry importance (and, as featured on eyes4earth.org last year, research is now underway within indigenous Australian communities to document such knowledge.) I’ve since read about Native American worldviews, saw similar interpretations in India and experienced firsthand such beliefs in South Africa with the Khomani San and Xhosa peoples. It seems pretty universal.

That this exists amongst more traditional cultures is not overly surprising – much has been written in anthropological literature and there are plenty of explanations floating around including:  the close link and dependency on nature for survival; the idea that Man has his/her archetypal symbols; or to human’s innate need for projecting meaning into or onto nature and seeking association with characteristic of animals…be it out of fear-based domination or love-based kinship.

But I was intrigued as to whether: 1. These beliefs are evolving or dissolving as traditional cultures become more Western influenced and diluted? And 2. Whether Western white Caucasians still share similar perceptions somewhere in their collective unconscious?

Well, from what I’ve seen it appears to be ‘yes’ and ‘yes’.  Yes, traditional cultures still foster such beliefs but in many cases knowledge is becoming lost or misinterpreted, misunderstood or simply misused to justify actions which border more on fear-based superstition than respect and reverence.  And, yes, such beliefs were integral to former European cultures (e.g. pagan and Celtic beliefs, Greek mythology) and it is no surprise that many animals have become iconic in meaning-making (e.g. ‘omens’) even in our modern society. Many ‘new age’ or less mainstream (yet often revealing) texts explore this phenomenon and seek to offer pointers for how us sacred-starving humans can use such ‘totems’ to support our own personal development. (South African author Andrea Wansbury provide just one example with her interesting book: “Birds: Divine Messengers”, see: http://andreawansbury.com )

But should this subjective knowledge – or perhaps perceptual delusion – be given (scientific) legitimacy? What are the implications?  What are the societal and conservation benefits for giving weight to such worldviews or ‘ways of knowing’?

When presenting my research proposal some time ago, one prominent South African ecologist confronted me with the very sobering reality of the multitudes (pick any number and add three to five ‘zeros’) of animals  – particularly birds and reptiles – that are killed each year in South Africa due to this very fact of ‘meaning’ being attributed to animals. This person was mainly referring to killings done out of fear or superstition. But animal killings may also be done for traditional medicine (i.e. ‘muti’) or for ritualistic and ceremonial purposes (e.g. wild cat skins).

My mind instantly raced back to images of my first visit to Kruger National Park. There at Sabi Sabi restaurant (I think it was there) was a display of the sad plight of the owls in South Africa. With less-than-pleasant images, a conservation-minded information stand decried their large-scale massacre across many parts of the rural areas of the country. These owls are traditionally perceived (predominantly by Bantu peoples) as bringers of bad luck.   It is said that if an owl is to land on the roof of your house then, sadly, someone will soon die. Even in the Baviaanskloof region, I’ve found both some of the Coloured & Xhosa folk share similar interpretations. It bothered me. Does attributing such a label automatically imply slaughter?

I asked a Xhosa man I know – a local Christian minister and now recently also a ‘sangoma’, i.e. traditional healer (I love this co-existence of traditions by the way).  He said that animals take on different meaning for different people in a community depending on what ‘their’ particular animal is. Should that animal cross their path, yes, some people do seek to kill it. But that’s not how it was meant to be. What then?

I asked another Xhosa chap  – a park ranger  – who whilst not a sangoma himself, comes from a family with a strong lineage of tradition healers and diviners. Sitting in his empty peaceful empty field office, he explains:

“Some of the people they are associated with the elephant. Some of the people are associated with the leopard. Some people interact with animals, and some people are associated with certain snakes. Some certain snakes, they can come and visit. They can come around the house and go and you are not supposed to kill it. Should you kill it, you are supposed to make a ceremony for asking forgiveness.  It is a visit from the ancestors. On my other side, I am also associated with the bees. Because the bees, they are also my family. So there are times when they can visit our home. Last time, it was last year, they visited home, and they gathered and I made some honey. And I am not supposed to chase them. I have to make a traditional beer and talk with them and call some other elders, they will talk with them. And after some time they will go. So it is a visit. After that visit, there will be much pleasure and liking everything.”

That all sounded pretty nice and in support of conservation but what about the owls? Aren’t they supposed to be bad?

“Ja, they are associated with the bad evils. There are different deaths. Deaths that are caused by evil. And also there is death, which is in nature, you see. Those evil things that are associated with the owls, they will be a calling that something is going to be happening in the family. So the family is in that bad luck. So those things should not be happening, and eventually somebody is going to die. So those things are very bad luck and death will continue and continue. There are some deaths, which cannot be stopped, you see. It will happen.”

So this was becoming a little clearer to me. And it was also intriguing to see the intercultural similarities. Owls have always been the subject of superstition or symbolism. Many cultures have associated them with either death or wisdom – attributes which can even be found in the folklore of the Mayan peoples of Central America. In ancient Greece, the owl was held sacred to the virgin-goddess Athena whose supreme attribute was divine wisdom.

But I still needed some more opinions on the South African perceptions.

I asked both a Coloured bossiedoktor (bush boctor) and a Xhosa-Khoi ‘sanusi’ (uppermost sangoma). Yes, owls on roof-tops, snakes by the river or water spirits in the pond all carry a powerful message. And do you go out and kill them? No of course not, that would mean trouble…

I asked a lecturer in anthropology who is also inducted into the Zulu sangoma tradition. Same story. In fact, she said killing the animal in question may have greater repercussions with the ‘ancestors’ who were often associated with (or embodied in) the appearance of that animal.

I asked a Coloured friend of mine. He didn’t really believe in all that stuff the older people believed until he was out with some fellow community members and they experienced an incident when a bird foretold a certain negative incident which came true within a matter of minutes. This changed his perception.  So, I said, “Should we kill these birds then?”. His answer was resounding and, in his delightful Coloured accent, it went something like this:

“No man. That bird is just the messenger. If that bad thing is going to happen, it is going to happen anyway. It’s not the birds fault. He is just giving you a warning. He is actually helping you, you see… you don’t kill the messenger!”

So the problem is not necessarily the meaning-making or the interpretation. The problem is a breakdown of traditional knowledge transmission, a problem where the processes and deeper connections are no longer understood, no longer explained and where the values which were embodied and implicit in the stories and traditions have been corrupted, misinterpreted or forgotten. The solution is education – but not just to throw that overused word out there like we usually do…but to understand what that education means in terms of the specific cultural context, e.g. utilizing existing elders or accepted mentors to pass on cultural knowledge complete with the stories and values therein. Mission impossible? Possibly…

If cultures evolve and stories are no longer ‘real’ or relevant, so be it. But then we need new stories which embody the core values and norms which the former beliefs embodied. Whether the icons of sacred forest or the knowing owl are replaced with modern-day signs and omens of malfunctioning cell phones or empty KFC outlets then ok – but can they be tailored to deliver both a respect for nature and fellow human… the interconnectedness of human-nature?

Credo Mutwa, South Africa’s most famous shaman, may have understood it best. This Zulu sanusi expresses the old African belief system quite matter-of-factly:

“We used to believe that in every one of us there lay a spiritual animal, bird and fish with which we should keep contact at all times, to anchor our family upon the shifting surface of this often troubled planet.”*

The Zulus call their great Earth Mother Nomkhubulwane, a name which means ‘she who chooses the state of an animal’* of what we might more commonly refer to as ‘shape-shifter’. Credo Mutwa continues:

“The great Earth Mother is capable of changing her shape into beautiful and gentle birds, animals and reptiles. She is capable of assuming the shape of an animal such as springbok, an eland, an impala, a lizard, or a python…We are taught that the reason that our forefathers told us that our gods and goddesses were capable of changing shape…is that they wanted to instil in the minds of their descendents the oneness of the human being, the animal and the Deity. By making us believe that the highest gods were part animal and part human being, we were taught to look upon animals with great reverence, love and respect.”

So maybe the Earth Mother or African ancestors would still prefer to make their presence known through the owl, snake, monitor lizard, mantis, eland or bird. Maybe they know that that way – more than any other – can deliver a felt understanding of interconnectedness with all life on earth.

Or are we now content to kill off all our messengers?

[Funnily enough, after I completed the first draft of this story and went to bed, I heard the unmistakeable haunting ‘hoo-hoooo’ of an owl nearby. It carried on for a couple of hours. I was in central Stellenbosch at the time – and have never heard an owl in all the times staying there... ]

*Mutwa, C. (1996). Isilwane: The Animal. Tales and Fables of Africa. Struik Publishers. Cape Town.  

Text: Matthew Zylstra

Photo: The owl photo was taken by Lea C. at TerraPi and re-worked by Matt Z.  All other photos by Matt Z.