Are you up for another guest blog post? My fellow Canadian, Jacquie Gilson, Principal of InterpActiv, has recently published a book, Inspired to Inspire: Holistic Inspirational Interpretation. She conducted a wonderful session at the recent Global Association of Heritage Interpretation (GAHI) and we invited her to provide some highlights as she is challenging the interpretation profession to rethink its core. Her growth mindset sees the field presently being tied down but being on the verge of taking off like a hot air balloon. She poses very practical and thought -provoking questions. Take it away, Jacquie.
credit: Jacquie Gilson
I have been a devoted fan of Steve Van Matre since his books Acclimatization and Acclimatizing came out in 1972 and 1974 respectively. I was fortunate to attend a nature-oriented summer camp in Algonquin Park, Ontario, Canada and Van Matre’s ideas guided the camp program. It was a camp for inner-city kids, and it changed my life. I qualified to be a camper since I was one of five girls being raised by a single mother. After a session there as a camper, I went on to spend four glorious summers working at the camp, while studying environmental education and interpretation at university.
credit: Fran Bires
At summer camp, we did every activity that we could from Van Matre’s book! I recall pouring over the Acclimatization activities, always looking for new and fun things to do with the campers to help them experience the natural world. We even did his Day in the Bog activity from Acclimatization, in which you walk right into the bog. We experienced as many of his other hands-on and engaging activities as we could fit in while the kids attended the camp.
Fast forward 40 years. (I just turned 60, so I'm doing lots of reflection lately!) Here I am with my own book and ideas to share. I've spent my entire career working for various parks as an environmental educator, interpreter and/or interpretive manager. I have led many guided walks, campfire talks, evening programs, school programs, and trainings, and I have always made them as interactive as possible. My belief that exploring nature and culture should be active for audiences has only gotten stronger over the years.
(Special Note: I don’t even like to use the term audience anymore. In today's more active, participatory world, I think we should use the word “engadiences” instead. The word audience suggests that people are there for the audio, i.e., to listen. I prefer to think of participants as being there to be engaged.)
Believing that engadiences/participants of all ages should be involved directly in interpretation, led me to experiment with different techniques over the years. Rooted in the Acclimatization activities I learned from Van Matre’s books, I have tried to make my interpretation as hands-on and involving as possible. I have used, or encouraged my staff to use, experiments, crafts, games, rotating stations, competitions, sharing of costumes and props, and so on. Even adults participating in an interpretive experience like to take part in hands-on activities; why should kids have all the fun?
With the desire to make interpretation more active and aim to inspire audiences of all ages, I developed the framework that is a central part of my book. It is based on my doctoral dissertation research into the concept of inspiration in heritage interpretation, as well as my experiences from the last 40 years.
At the centre of the framework is what I call the entry points to inspiration. I believe that people are inspired through their head, heart and hands, (and sometimes even the feet). People are varied and inspired through more than just information; let’s be sure to give them variety and we will reach more people.
courtesy: Jacquie Gilson
The two swirls in the image above represent the two critical moments in inspiration; what people are inspired by and what they are inspired to.
My research, and experiences since, suggest to me that people are inspired by people, places (plus ideas, events, objects, etc.) and by participation. That’s why I aim to engage visitors, trainees, and workshop attendees in as much participation as possible. I always try to ensure that the participation has purpose and that people know it is perfectly acceptable not to participate if they don’t want to.
And the other swirl, which is equally important, is the idea that people are inspired to something. That something may be action at, i.e., while they are still at the site, or action after they leave. As one of my research participants said, in interpretation we put on our capes and aim to save the world! We need to give people ideas for concrete actions they could take and also invite them to generate their own ideas for actions. People may also be inspired to a non-action, i.e., a change in being or in a way of thinking. I recall loving Van Matre’s more quiet and reflective activities, and I love the idea that we don’t always have to inspire people to take action. Sometimes we all just need to slow down and take some time to think, feel and absorb. This may result in a change in being or in viewing the world a little bit differently. And, of course, it may lead to action later.
courtesy: Jacquie Gilson
In my book, I go through this framework in detail, with lots of examples from my experiences. I wanted to make the framework real and practical for interpreters and I hope the ideas will inspire a new generation of interpreters to think about their craft a little differently. I encourage interpreters to question their base and consider how they could be more holistic in their work. To this end, I provide thought provoking questions with sticky notes to guide reflection. Like…“How might your approach to interpretive programming or design of interpretive media look, if you were aiming to be a facilitator or inspirator, and not just a presenter or instructor?” (BTW- I think I made up that word, inspirator!)
Just as I was inspired by Steve Van Matre all those years ago, I hope you are inspired by these ideas and inspired to act upon them in some way, for the betterment of the world. There’s a lot to be done.
To Steve Van Matre, thank you for the inspiration.
(EID Note: His latest book Interpretive Design: A Dance of Experience is a tour de force for the field).
To EID, thank you for keeping up the dance and inviting me to join in.
Jacquie Gilson has been involved in interpretation, and loving it, for more than 40 years. She received her Doctor of Social Sciences degree from Royal Roads University in 2015 and recently retired from being an Interpretation Coordinator for Parks Canada in Banff National Park. She now runs her own company, InterpActive, named for her philosophy that interpretation needs to be more active. She focuses on interpreter training and her specialty is online training on dialogic and participatory interpretation.
Check out https://interpactiveplanning.wordpress.com/about/jacquie-gilson/ or www.interpactive.ca
Look for her book Inspired to Inspire: Holistic Inspirational Interpretation on https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B08SB3922Y or https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08S6R9177