Sarah Pye

When complimented by effective interpretation, experiential wildlife tourism has been identified as a pathway to potentially transform tourists’ environmental knowledge and attitudes. However, such powerful engagement capacity is often diluted post-experience and the opportunity for its translation to behavioural change is lost. Utilising non-traditional forms of conservation-related messaging has the capacity to broaden the conservation potential of wildlife tourism by extending learning and prompting behavioural change. This paper explores the power of long-form nonfiction narratives to extend the learning from on-site interpretation and broaden conservation engagement. It is illustrated by the case study of collaboration between Dr Wong Siew Te, founder and Director of the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre, and Dr Sarah Pye’s author of nonfiction narratives based on Dr Wong’s experiences.

The traditional role of biographer as 'silent witness' has been replaced by a spectrum of subjective authorial points of view which include that of omniscient narrator and authorial fictional character. This essay argues that the lesser discussed perspective of 'interpreter' is more effective in scientific and conservation biographies which aim to elicit environmental engagement from the reader. It uses the interdisciplinary scholarship of environmental interpretation, which 'involves translating the technical language of a natural science or related field into terms and ideas that people who aren't scientists can readily understand' [Ham. 1992. Environmental Interpretation: A Practical Guide for People with big Ideas and Small Budgets. Golden, CO: North American Press, 3] and examples from my own research into the life of Malaysian ecologist Dr Wong Siew Te to explore this perspective.

Without significant adaptation and response to climate change and environmental destruction, human behaviour has the capacity to lead to our eventual demise. However, in our fast-paced media world, conservation messages and warnings are often ignored by the public, politicians and commercial concerns. This article proposes that long-form nonfiction narratives are an important communication tool for the dissemination of conservation science in the Anthropocene. Furthermore, it suggests that future-focused nature biographies have the capacity to present science in a way that is accessible to a non-specialist audience, evoking the necessary responsibilities and stewardship outside of scientific circles. This article compares biographical exemplars with the author's practice-led research exploring the life of Malaysian biologist and tropical ecologist, Dr Wong Siew Te.