InterSection 4: Media

Media

The magazine of the National Association for

Interpretation’s Sections

Volume 1, Number 4August 2012

InterSection

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NAI SectionsP.O. Box 2246Fort Collins, CO 80522888-900-8283 toll-free970-484-8283970-484-8179 faxwww.interpnet.com

Visit www.naisections.org for more information.

boArd of dIrecTorS

executive committeeAmy Lethbridge, PresidentCem Basman, VP for AdministrationJohn C.F. Luzader, VP for ProgramsAmy Burnett, Secretary Theresa Coble, Treasurer

At-Large representativesK.C. DenDooven David KnottsMike Whatley

region Leadership council representativesTom Mullin (Chair)Kevin DamstraChuck LennoxJohn Miller

Section Leadership council representativesTravis Williams (Chair) Jane BeattieTodd BridgewaterDuane Fast

STAffPaul Caputo, Interim Executive DirectorJamie King, Membership ManagerDeborah Tewell, Events Manager Beth Bartholomew, Business ManagerEmily Jacobs, Certification & Training Program

ManagerCarrie Miller, Certification Program SpecialistSheila Caputo, Administrative Assistant

NAI’s mission is to inspire leadership and excellence to advance heritage interpretation as a profession.

Interpretation is a mission-based communication process that forges emotional and intellectual connections between the interests of the audience and the meanings inherent in the resource.

cILHCultural Interpretation/Living History

cINPCouncil for the Interpretation of Native Peoples

cUA (featured on page 10)College and University Academic

ee Environmental Education

IMInterpretive Media

IN (featured on page 12)Interpretive Naturalist

INTL (featured on pages 8 and 14)International Interpretation

ITInterpretation and Tourism

NcdA (featured on pages 4 and 9)Nature Center Directors/Administrators

ZWPA (featured on page 6)Zoos, Wildlife Parks, and Aquaria

National Association for Interpretation 3

Contents

ON THE COVER: Inexpensive technology helps small sites build media libraries. Photo by Richard Styles. See the story on page 4.

Volume 1, Number 4August 2012

InterSection

4 NCDA

Getting the Word outKate Dittloff

6 ZWPA

connecting Interpreters through Virtual MediaJessica Moore

8 INTL

Musings on the History of Professional Nature GuidingTed Cable

9 NCDA

Interpreter’s road Show 2012

10 CUA

congratulations NAI 2012 scholarship recipients

12 INcollectionsLuetta Coonrod

14 INTL

Adventures in Hawai’i: NAI’s 7th International conferenceChuck Lennox

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Getting the Word out

You have a revolutionary education program, you’re affecting hundreds if not thousands of students in your area, there are endangered animals to talk about and to introduce to folks that otherwise might never see them….. but you have no way of getting the word out. What do you do?

Getting the word out about your organization or facility and its programs isn’t as hard as you might think. If done correctly, it’s actually quite easy, and easy is what it’s all about. You want to make it easy not only for you and your staff, but also for media who might be interested in telling your story.

But you worry that you’ve never been good at catching the media’s eyes; you don’t know how to talk to them or pitch to them, you don’t even have any contacts…. It’s not about what you don’t have, it’s about what you do have that will draw them in. Compelling content. Plain and simple, that’s what media wants and that’s what you can give them in five easy steps.

1. build a database of photos and videos: You may be a small organization or facility, but that shouldn’t stop you from taking photos or videos. In this age of technology, almost everyone

Kate dittloff

Nature Center Directors & Administrators

owns a digital camera or video camera or has access to one. Use them! Document what you are doing at your organization and start to create a database. Start documenting programs, animals, outreach, events, anything and everything you can think of. You might not think what you are doing is exciting, but that’s probably because you’ve been working in the same industry for years.

Remember you are pitching to folks who’ve never been exposed to what you do or how you do it. Great photos and videos tell stories, and the better the content, the more folks will want to see it and share it with their friends. It’s the same with the media. You can tell them about your great organization and what it’s doing, but it won’t hit home unless you have imagery to support it.

2. Get on social media! Believe it or not, when I worked as a TV news producer, I would scour social media sites for great news stories. Often times they would come from folks just tweeting or posting about something cool that they did at their facility or on the job. What they didn’t realize, is that media would be interested in it as well. If it’s enough to catch your attention, then it’s probably enough to catch the media’s


attention. Get your organization on social media and share your stories. People are a lot more interested in what you do than you think. The more interest they have, the more they will be willing to support you, both by visiting the facility and by making financial contributions. When it comes to media, the more compelling the content you share, the more they’ll follow your organization looking for those great human interest and animal related stories to share with the world!

3. Get contact information and make some friends: I believe the biggest mistake that an organization can make is sending out a press release or email blast to a bunch of folks. It’s like telling a story in a room with 100 people and expecting everyone to not only listen to you but also to be able to hear you. It’s not going to work! Find out who in your area tends to specialize in stories related to your organization. How do you go about doing this? Well, you’ve got to do a little bit of legwork. Read your local newspapers and find out who covers the education or environmental beat, watch your local TV news and find out which reporters tend to do more feature stories or those based on education. Those folks are the ones who will listen when you’ve got something to share. That’s because this is an area they are already invested in and are likely looking for good content to fill their broadcast or newspaper.

Once you figure out who it is, call the media outlet and ask for their direct contact information. When you have that, pick up the phone and give that person a call. Let them know who you are, what organization you represent and why the reporter or writer should care. Share with them links to your social media sites and be sure to let them know that you are always posting new information, photos, videos and content. By doing this you are establishing a relationship with this person so that when you have something of interest to them, they not only know who you are already but they are also more likely to listen.

4. communicate, communicate, communicate! After coming from the TV news world and into the non-profit

aquarium world, the first thing I noticed was that there were a lot of stories that were not being told. To this day I’m still finding out about cool things and programs we do here at the Aquarium. This is where communication comes in, not necessarily with the media, but instead with staff. Have a get together with staff and let them know you are interested in what they are doing. Let them know you want to hear about projects they may be working on, animals they may be caring for, funny things that happened while on the job. Often staff doesn’t share because they don’t think others are interested, let them know you are! If it’s something that catches your eye, more times than not, it’s going to catch the eye of someone who works in media.

5. Make it easy! So now you have all the tools; you have the photos and videos, you have the stories that go behind them, you have contacts in the media, now what? Now you make it easy! Send them your pitch with some good visuals, make sure that when you do send that pitch that it’s timely. For instance, don’t send them something a month out and expect them to remember the date. Instead, give them a heads up about a month out, and then a day or two before the event send a reminder with more detailed information.

Make sure that you have everything they need in a “one stop shop” type of format. That means make sure everything is ready to go when they arrive and appropriate folks are on hand for interviews if needed. If for some reason they can’t make the event tell them you’d be happy to send video and photos for them to use. Chances are, they’ll take you up on the offer and your story will makes it to TV or in the paper!

Kate Dittloff is the Public Relations Manager for the South Carolina Aquarium. She spent more than 7 years working as a television news producer in Charlotte North Carolina and Charleston South Carolina. She has been working in PR for the Aquarium since 2010. She can be reached at [email protected].

Even small sites can build a video library.

SA

NJA

GJE

NERO

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connecting Interpreters Through Virtual Media

As the summer flies by, many of us find ourselves in need of a little professional pick-me-up; a shot in the arm of interpretive energy to get us through the final weeks of the busy season. On August 15th interpreters from across the country and around the world joined together virtually for an energizing day of learning during the 4th annual Zoos, Wildlife Parks, & Aquaria InterpNet Conference. This year’s conference focused on “Interpreting Complex Issues” and kicked off with an inspirational keynote presentation by John Pastorelli, manager of Ochre Learning in Australia. The day continued with sessions by Jessica Reese (Chicago Zoological Society/Brookfield Zoo) & John Anderson (New England Aquarium), Nicole Cann (Vancouver Aquarium) and Paul Caputo (National Association for Interpretation). Attendees and presenters alike enjoyed the ability to make connections with interpreters from four different countries and over a dozen different states. One attendee commented “All of the sessions including the keynote addressed the topic of the conference well. I feel that each session prompted me to start a conversation with my co-workers.” If you didn’t get a chance to attend the

Jessica Moore InterptNet conference, you can watch Paul Caputo’s session by clicking on the link on the next page.

The virtual conference and meeting format is becoming a very useful tool for NAI Regions and Sections. With members stretched across the country, it is often very taxing on our time and budgets to get people together for workshops, conferences and meetings. The Microsoft Live Meeting software has been successfully used by the ZWPA for the InterpNet conference and by Region 10 who hosted a combined virtual and in person workshop in April to connect members from Alaska, Washington and Oregon. In November, the National Interpreters Workshop will be using the software to make a handful of sessions available virtually to expand the workshop to those members who are unable to attend in person. If you are interested in learning more about how your Region or Section can try out the Live Meeting software for free and incorporate a virtual component into upcoming trainings please contact Jessica Moore at [email protected].

Zoos, Wildlife Parks, and Aquaria


Paul Caputo presented on using social media for interpretation. You can download his presentation here:www.interpnet.com/download/Social_Media-Caputo.zip(Open the “ReplayMeeting.htm” file in a web browser to view.)

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Musings on the History of Professional Nature Guiding

Many of you know the story of how Mr. And Mrs. Charles M. Goethe witnessed nature guiding in Switzerland in the first years of the 20th century. They were so impressed that they returned to establish interpretation at resorts around Lake Tahoe and to promote and fund interpretation in the early national parks. Since reading about the efforts and generosity of the Goethe’s, I have been curious about what they experienced in the way of interpretation in Europe that so impressed them. As I began to investigate this question, it led to a broader interest in the history of the profession of nature interpretation. Most of us look to Enos Mills as the first professional nature guide who earned money by serving guests/tourists at leisure. When I have asked colleagues in both North America and Europe who the first professional interpreter was, they all have pointed to Enos Mills. However, my informal explorations of this topic have led me to hypothesize that Enos Mills was not the first professional nature guide.

As a point of clarification, and in the context of the general history of interpretation, my specific interest is not in the storytelling that took place

Ted cable around tribal campfires, interpretation associated with ancient museums, interpretation associated with religious relics, icons and pilgrimages in the Middle Ages, or the intellectual/educational tourism of the Grand Tour. Nor is it the history of environmental education. Although this exploration did lead me to outdoor education teachings and activities such as the writings of Liberty Hyde Bailey and the kindergarten movement as well as the Wandervoegel (Wandering Birds) in Germany. Like all educational endeavors, these programs and activities probably exhibited elements of interpretation. However, I was looking for the earliest professional interpreter serving what we think of as a typical audience at leisure in an informal nature-based setting. Moreover although recognizing their important contributions to the profession of interpretation, my definition of nature guide (interpreter) eliminates explorer-naturalists, educational theorists and philosophers. Also, the number of people who have interpreted nature through the written word are legion and beyond the scope of my search.

Instead I am searching for the answer

International


Interpreter’s road Show 2012

The 2012 Interpreter’s Road Show is right around the corner. Register soon to claim your spot in this wonderful behind-the scenes tour. We will visit a fantastic mix of local, regional, state and national sites, featuring both natural and cultural history interpretation and management. This year’s tour includes Sandy Bottom Nature Center, the Virginia Living Museum, Newport News Park, Jamestown Settlement and the Victory Center at Yorktown.

This pre-workshop is open to all interpreters and provides a behind the scenes tour of each of the locations. You will have the chance to talk with staff and learn how they manage volunteers, develop programs, design their facilities and exhibits, plan for future growth and much more. Participants will also have the time to discuss things they see along the way with their fellow participants during meals and travel time between locations. The Road Show enables you to network and learn from your fellow NAI interpreters and administrators.All transportation, entrance fees, lunch both days and dinner Monday night are included in this trip. There will be no off-site, overnight lodging during this trip. Participants should make sure they reserve lodging for Monday night at their choice for the NIW. There is limited space on the Road Show, so be sure to reserve your spot early!

to this question: “Who was the first professional (e.g., paid) interpreter to interpret to people on vacation or out for a day in nature?” (i.e., that for which Enos Mills is given credit) Did professional nature guiding really begin with Enos Mills at his Trail School near Estes Park, Colorado?

My Activities to dateTo try to understand the story in North America I did the following:

1) I have read the Goethes’ autobiographical book “Seeking to Serve.” This book references travel to Europe but does not specifically identify an interpretive experience as being the motivation for their commitment to interpretation upon their return.

2) I exchanged several correspondences with the late Howdy Weaver, an authority on the history of the profession and author of the chapter “Origins of Interpretation” in Grant Sharpe’s interpretation textbook. Howdy also was a friend of Goethe and in fact served as a pall bearer at his funeral and wrote obituaries and reflections about him at the time of his death.

3) I corresponded with Alex Drummond author of Enos Mill’s definitive biography “Enos Mills: Citizen of Nature.”

4) I read the transcript of a long interview with Loye H. Miller conducted in 1969 at the Regional Oral History Office, Brancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley. In this interview he talks about his role in the establishment of interpretation in the national parks.

5) I recently received a new scholarly book about James Mason Hutchings titled, “The Making of Yosemite.” I have not read it yet, but this book portends to “remove the tarnish from Hutchings’ image” and presents Hutchings as “a key player in the histories of American media, tourism, and environmentalism.” He gave talks to introduce tourists to Yosemite. Maybe this book will turn the spotlight back on Yosemite rather than on the Rocky Mountains as the origin of professional nature guiding in the United States.

regarding beginnings of Nature Guiding in europe:I corresponded with leading interpreters in Europe including Bill Taylor, Michael Glen and Thorsten Ludwig. Bill Taylor’s recommendation of the book Killing Dragons, an account of the opening up of the Alps to tourism, along with Goethe’s original writings about encountering interpretation in Switzerland, pointed me toward the Alps and the mountain guides that led tourists in the 1800s. Along with colleague Dr. Catherine Morgan-Proux from Blaise Pascal University, Clermont-Ferrand, France, I visited museums in Anncey and Chamonix to look at the journals of 19th century Alpine mountain guides to determine if they were interpreting as they hiked or merely were leading people up the mountain. These journals were generally not the writings of the guides, but of the clients

Nature Center Directors & Administrators

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giving recommendations and providing comments about the guide. They functioned as the 19th century equivalent of TripAdvisor.com.

These journals indicate that the guides where knowledgeable about nature, told entertaining stories, imparted interesting information, adapted to the pace and interests of their audiences, and in general did many things that sound like interpretation. Moreover, we learned from these journals that not all hikes were trips to conquer Mont Blanc, but guides in Chamonix also offered a one-hour “promenade” and nine-hour day hikes in the valley. It is easy to imagine that a one-hour guided promenade through the forests and along the streams in the valley would be interpretive.

There is no question that these guides were professional in every sense of the word. In 1878, a guide organization existed with rules, regulations and standards of conduct. In order to become an official guide, the candidate had to read and write. They also had to pass an oral exam to show ability in foreign languages and knowledge of regional localities and curiosities that were worthy of attention. Potential guides had to be “of sound morality” and submit proof of a clean criminal record in the form of certificates from the mayor, a judge and chief of police. They took exams in the town hall in front of a commission made up of the chief guide, government officials, language teachers and the town school teacher. They were tested over knowledge of botany and geology among other things. If the candidate guide passed, the Office of Chief Guide would add his name to a list of approved guides calling attention to their specialties in geology, botany, or foreign languages, and any awards or honors they had received, and the most remarkable hikes that they offer. This list would be posted at hotels and the police station. Knowledge of the local fauna was not tested over, but we were told by museum curators that these guides would have known all of the major wildlife species because most had been hunters before becoming guides. It was therefore unnecessary to test them over that knowledge. (Much like we often find former hunters to be the best guides in parks in developing countries today.) The professional society even offered life insurance to its members in case a guide was killed by a fall or avalanche. That potential guides were tested over plants and geology provides another clue indicating that these guides functioned as interpreters.

conclusionI did not find any examples of professional nature guiding in North America prior to Mills, although the Hutchins book may reveal new information. However, my tentative conclusion is that professional nature guides were operating as professional interpreters in the Chamonix area and maybe throughout the Alps several decades prior to Enos Mills establishing his Trail School and leading hikes up Longs Peak. It is not clear whether Mills was aware of the nature of the guiding taking place in the Alps, but he was keenly aware of the nature-based tourism associated with the Alps. He often made comparisons

congratulations NAI 2012 scholarship recipients

NAI is pleased to announce scholarship recipients for the NAI National Workshop, November 13–17, 2012, in Hampton, Virginia:

Undergraduate Students

Lorrie Crawford Adams State College

Marie Fargo University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point

Graduate Students

Megan Espe University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point

Moriah Istre Arkansas State University

NAI’s scholarship program recognizes students who have the potential to make an outstanding contribution to the field of interpretation. These students are the reason we hold the scholarship auction during the National Workshop, and the auction is supported by the generous donations of workshop participants. (So if you plan to be at NAI 2012 in Hampton this November, please plan on taking an auction item!) For more information about NAI’s scholarship program, visit www.interpnet.com/resources_interp/scholarship.shtml.

College & University Academics


between the Alps and Rockies and even used the Alps when giving examples of the economic impact of nature-based tourism.

This effort is in no way motivated by a desire to minimize the contributions of Enos Mills to our profession. Regardless of whether or not he was the first professional nature guide/interpreter, he probably was the first to write about interpretation as a profession. His eloquent writings and his skilled promotional efforts certainly advanced the fledgling profession and his influence is still felt by those who read his words.

I realize this may not be the most compelling or important issue facing our profession, but if anybody shares my interest, I would be most interested in hearing other thoughts about the history of professional nature guiding. One last caveat — I have only been looking into nature guiding in the Western World. I have not even considered what might have been happening in Asia or on other continents. Anybody have thoughts about the origins of nature guiding in those regions?

—Ted

If anybody has other insights or ideas about the history of nature guiding. Ted can be contacted at [email protected]. Or log on to the forum page at www.internationalinterpretation.org and join in an international conversation on this topic!

PostscriptAfter this article was posted on the International Interpretation website, Ted received several email responses to his request for more information. Below are excerpts from two of those emails which add to the story of early interpreter- nature guides in North America and Europe.

In our book, “Interpretive Centers: The History, Design and Development of Nature and Visitor Centers” we delve into the history of the profession, describing Enos Mills as the founder of the interpretive profession. However, there were “professionals” doing nature guiding before Mills. I would refer you to Richard Bartlett’s 1988 book, “Yellowstone, A Wilderness Besieged”. Funding for park “Assistants” was appropriated in 1883 to stem abuse by visitors. Bartlett describes Assistant George Henderson as:

perhaps the first interpreter. He understood the psyche of the increasing number of tourists coming by rail. Henderson explained, described, visualized, and gave names to things. He installed progressive trails leading from one wonder to another, with explanatory signs along the way.”

In the NPS photo archives in Harpers Ferry, I found a ca. 1883 photo of Henderson talking with a group of tourists at the Spoon Geyser.

Michael Gross, Professor EmeritusCollege of Natural ResourcesUW Stevens Point

The movement that led to the first national parks (1909) and environmental protection legislation in Sweden included two ideas. One was of course to protect nature from humans. The other was to reconnect people with what was considered pure and unspoiled nature or cultural history. Our outdoor museum Skansen in Stockholm was founded in 1891 under the motto “know yourself” - only through knowing our own history we can truly knowing ourselves was the idea. People went to Skansen in their free time to visit the old farms brought there from all over the country. Some kind of guides / interpreters must have been present. Initially full size dolls sat in the houses dressed in typical dresses – they were soon changed to living interpreters.

During the same time educated and wealthy people started to visit “nature” like the mountain region in the north to explore and learn of the wild. I guess the local guides must have done some interpretation too.

Eva Sandberg, DirectorSwedish Centre for Nature InterpretationUppsala, Sweden

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collections

Collections are diverse things to different people. They range from the stuff in a small child’s pocket to the multi-million dollar conglomerate of internationally-renown museums. Collections are intensely personal, yet as professional as the people who catalog them. Collections can be cultural, natural, or a combination of both. Some of the earliest collections became the first museums the world has ever known. These collections are both curiosities and repositories of knowledge. Some are brand-new, while others have been around for centuries. All draw the visitor in with their unique characteristics and ability to communicate.

Collections can be natural; a person wants to share what they have collected with the rest of the world. They can be

Luetta coonrod living or non-living, breathing or once-breathing, fresh or dried as horticultural specimens. Collections can be cultural; they can tell the story of the past, the present, or the future. Either way, collections are the hook to draw a visitor into the story.

People often see collections as dead, but they are definitely not that. Museums, whether cultural or natural, are a bridge between various people. Cultural collections can tell the story of a time long past, or explain the distinctions of an unknown (or misunderstood) current phenomenon. Even with today’s technology, cultures are varied and uncharted when viewed through the lens of society. Natural collections, whether the living museum of nature centers or

Interpretive Naturalist

Bison graze among prairie plants, an act as old as time.


the historic museum of once-breathing specimens, tell an equally important perspective on life.

Nature centers are as much about collections as any other museum. However, they are often seen as lesser museums because they don’t have artifacts. In reality, these museums are just as crucial to the understanding of the landscape as any other information vault. Nature centers are focused on the currently-living species that depend on the environment in order to survive. Taxidermy specimens are a great way to learn about species such as the passenger pigeon that have disappeared within the walls of time; nature centers allow the visitor to experience the living reality of migratory flight by the local populations.

Living history sites can balance nature centers in profound ways. They can draw the “history buffs” into exploring the current world. The balance between the two can bridge the gap between tree-huggers and history nuts in a way that no other combination can match. So often the distance between history and nature, cultural and natural connections, is viewed as a “them versus us” situation. It doesn’t have to be that way, and

collections are the bridge between viewpoints. Cultural and natural history belong together; you can’t tell the story of one without the other. Collections can connect the two tandems into the cohesive trajectory that they are.

Collections tell the story of people, both naturally and historically. Interpreting those parallel themes is a challenge to most interpreters, yet can be the foundation of amazingly strong stories. Finding the balance between the two, and the key to unlocking the secrets of collectors in our audiences, is an unparalleled drive in the field of interpretation today. Don’t lose sight of the young child emptying his pockets to share his treasured collection with you. See it as the start of a masterwork of knowledge for future generations to share. Keep your awe of collecting, despite the entanglement that it sometimes brings. Rejoice in collecting; it’s fun!

Luetta Coonrod, CIG, is the environmental education assistant and outreach coordinator at Spring Valley Nature Center and Heritage Farm, part of the Schaumburg (Illinois) Park District. Reach her at [email protected].

Two children explore the world around them.

A log cabin nestled among the trees, bearing witness to the past, present, and future.

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Adventures in Hawai’iNAI’s 7th International Conference

As I stepped off the plane when we landed at the small Kailua-Kona (Hawaii USA) Airport, I knew I was in some place different. The warm tropical air enveloped us as we walked down the stairs (no need for a jet way here) and the scent of tropical flowers along with hot sunlight were further reminders of a different climate. Although not an international setting for United States (US) residents, the Big Island of Hawai’i on the Kona coast was a great location to gather interpreters from all over the world – especially the Pacific Rim – and learn from each other.

Held from May 8-12, 2012, the 7th NAI International Conference was an intimate gathering of nearly 130 interpretive professionals from 9

countries including Republic of Korea, Japan, Taiwan, India, Scotland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the US. With its location within US boundaries, many US federal government employees were able to attend without obtaining official travel permission from their agencies that would have been typical of any international setting.

The International Conference is a favorite gathering for me because of its smaller size and the opportunity to get to know people from around the world in concurrent sessions, at meals and during field trips. This year’s use of mobile labs was an innovative method for conference participants to get to know a local cultural or heritage site and ask questions of tour leaders from

International

chuck Lennox

The view of a Native Hawaiian culturally significant site from the roof of the adjacent Outrigger Hotel’s Keauhou Beach Resort.


A replica of King David Kalakaua’s summer cottage is interpreted through interpretive panels adjacent to the Outrigger Hotel’s Keauhou Beach Resort.

a professional interpretive perspective. Pre-registered ahead of time, we knew which area we would visit and traveled together in small buses or mini-vans to a particular site. For my mobile lab, participants asked in-depth questions about the historical and cultural use of the land and how a corporation backed by native Hawaiian interests could build a hotel on scared lands.

At the end of the day, our group gathered back at the conference hotel and discussed what we had seen and experienced. The opening session the next morning was spent hearing from the different mobile lab leaders summarizing their group’s impressions from the previous day with images and notes. What a unique experience we had! If we had visited these sites as a typical visitor, rarely would we have had this kind of in-depth dialogue.

Two excellent concurrent sessions that I attended included the story of the redevelopment of Pearl Harbor Visitor Center and the USS Arizona Memorial in Honolulu (now part of the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument) and addressing future trends in a globalized world. One of the advantages of the international conference is learning more about interpretive settings around the world.

On one of our conference evenings, we were treated to another one of my highlights of the conference – a special evening of Hawaiian food, music and dance. The luau dinner of traditional Hawaiian foods was served buffet style with tables piled high. Participants had an opportunity to taste Kalua pua’a (pork), Hawaiian poi, baked mahi-mahi and wonderful tropical fruits. (When local Hawaiians commented on the quality of the food, I knew I was in good company.) We were also treated to a wonderful music and dance presentation provided by Ka Pa Hula Na Wai Iwi Ola Halau – a talented young women’s hula group led by a doting but demanding “uncle” (elder). Cameras were held high to get pictures and video of the group.

Due to strong interest in the setting and the conference, attendance was above projection and the conference

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covered its expenses while making a small profit.

The 2013 International Conference on Heritage Interpretation will be held near Stockholm, Sweden in the spring and organized as a cooperative effort between Interpret Europe, NAI and the Sweden Centre for Heritage Interpretation. For more information, please monitor this link: www.interpret-europe.net/top/whats-on.html. Duane Fast, NAI International Section Director, will serve as NAI’s official liaison with Interpret Europe for the planning of this conference.

NAI would like to thank the following sponsors and partners for support of the 2012 International Conference:

• Hawaii Forest & Trail

• Hawai’i Pacific Parks

• NAI Region 9

• NAI Hawai’i-Pacific Chapter

• NAI Council for the Interpretation of Native Peoples Section

• NAI International Section

• Hawai’i Watchable Wildlife Project

• Hawai’i Watchable Wildlife Steering Committee

• Conservation Council for Hawai’i

A special thank you goes to former NAI Associate Director, Lisa Brochu, for her many years of organizing this special event. Many of our international friends have come to rely on her great organizing skills and warm welcomes to these meetings.

Chuck Lennox is the Principal/Consultant of Cascade Interpretive Consulting LLC (www.interpconsulting.com) based in Seattle, Washington. He is an interpretive, informal education and ecotourism consultant and is the Director of NAI’s Region 10 and a new national NAI Board member.

Mobile lab participants listen to an explanation of a culturally significant water hole.

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Interpreting Food

PICTURED: Kye-joon Cho, Olga Diez Ascaso. ABOVE: (Networking) Susan Immer, Jerome Bridges; (Professional Development) Participants in an NAI certification course.

InterSection 4: Media

Documents

Transcript of InterSection 4: Media