Sarah Pye

In this project I use practice-led research to construct a historiographic biography of Malaysian biologist and tropical ecologist, Dr Wong Siew Te in order to explore the potential of long-form nonfiction as a communication tool for the dissemination of conservation science. Telling the life story of a non-Western scientist working in his own country offers me the opportunity to delve into cultural discourse around conservation, while using interdisciplinary environmental interpretation scholarship to inform my subjective positioning within the narrative. While incorporating the histories of individual Malayan sun bears (Helarctos Malayanus) to illustrate issues such as habitat loss and fragmentation, poaching and the illegal pet trade, I seek to avoid anthropomorphism and instead to give voice to the ‘world’s forgotten bear’ through informed speculation. Using an ethically collaborative approach, I aim to present science in a way that is accessible to a non-specialist audience and potentially evoke the necessary environmental stewardship outside of scientific circles.