Provisional Program for “Wild Tails”
Keep checking – details may change!
Tuesday 5th to Thursday 7th November
Field trips TBA
Tuesday 5 November 2024
9.00am Welcome, opening Ronda Green (Araucaria Ecotours, Chair Wildlife Tourism Australia).
9.05am Official opening of Conference. Chris Cherry, Mayor of Tweed Shore Council
9.15am Design of participative environmental interpretation in White Sands New Mexico, USA Manuel Ramon Gonzalez Herrera (Autonomous University of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico) online
9.30am Researching for a children’s story about wildlife Sarah Pye (University of Sunshine Coast) and Maree Kerr (Bat Conservation Society, vice-chair Wildlife Tourism Australia)
9.45am From nature connection to healing: Creating the wellbeing experience through wildlife storytelling Aise Kim (University of South Australia, secretary Wildlife Tourism Australia) online.
10.00am The Gowonda project: a story of dolphins, marinelife conservation and cultural knowledge. Liz Hawkins (Dolphin Research Centre)
10.15am The value and variety of story-telling (exact title TBA) Noel Scott (University of Sunshine Coast, WTA committee)
10.30am Interpreting Cape York Wildlife Greg Clancy (Councillor, Clarence Valley, retired ecologist)
10.45am Enhancing Geotourism through Engagement with Wildlife Angus M. Robinson (Leisure Solutions)
11.00amMorning Tea
11.25am Importance of training for tourism guiding (keynote) Jennifer Waithman (Interpretation Australia)
12.05pm Invert Interp – promoting our smallest natural wonders Colleen Foelz (eye4insects)
12.20pm Building narratives (interactive discussion) Sarah Pye (University of Sunshine Coast)
1.00pm Lunch and poster session (see list of posters below)
1.50pm Interpretation through Flow Learning. Dale Treadwell Dale Treadwell (Ecosure)
2.05pm Visitor Information Centres and wildlife tourism Maree Kerr (Bat Conservation Society, vice-chair Wildlife Tourism Australia)
2.20pm Storytelling in presentations Sian Mulhall (Moonlit Sanctuary)
2.35pm Wildlife education for the public: online and conventional media, guided walks and other (interactive discussion) Scott O’Keefe and Ronda Green
3.10pm Afternoon tea
3.40pm Tour of Marine Discovery Centre
4.25pm Mind the gap: Animals, guiding, storytelling and you (keynote) Jonathon Spring online
5.10pm Sentient shark tourism. Tony Isaacson and Jim Abernethy
5.40 Close
6.00pm TBA – informal get-together
Posters (mostly available to peruse throughout the conference) – more to be added soon
- Reaching different audiences: example from signage in a Wildlife Ecology Centre Ronda Green (Araucaria Ecotours, Chair Wildlife Tourism Australia)
- Using all senses during tours Sonia Underdahl (tour guide)
Wednesday 6 November 2024
7.20am Catch bus for field excursion
8.00am Interpretive forest walk at Bangalow with experienced Aboriginal tour guide Delta Kay
9.00am Interpretive visit to fruitbat colony at Bangalow with Claudia Caliari
9.30am Visit to Byron Bay Wildlife Sanctuary (Explore Sanctuary with its collection of native mammals, birds, frogs and reptiles in a lovely forest setting. Staff will explain their interpretation philosophy. which includes emphasis on seeing each wildlife species as part of a functioning ecosystem. Also hear about the work of the adjacent wildlife hospital.
12.00noon Lunch Byron Bay Wildlife Sanctuary (Includes options involving the indigenous macadamia nuts )
1.00pm Return to Hastings Point via Arakwal NP, one of the few Australian sites on IUCN’s Green List
2.15pm Explaining the blue economy to wildlife guides and tourists in Sri Lanka. Madura Thivanka Pathirana (Edith Cowan University, Sri Lanka)
2.30pm Discussions from four days of Wildlife guiding workshops, Kinabatangan, Sabah (Borneo) Ronda Green (Araucaria Ecotours, Chair Wildlife Tourism Australia)
2.45pm Importance of good interpretation in wildlife tourism:some insights from Sabah (exact title TBA) Albert Teo, Borneo Ecotours
3.00pm Teaching “Wildlife Tourism” in Japan: Reflections from a new practicum Thomas Jones (Asia-Pacific University, Japan)
3.15pm Afternoon tea
3.45pmDeveloping effective interpretation design for communicating animal welfare messages to tourists in free-ranging settings in Japan: A preliminary investigation Rie Usui, (Asia-Pacific University, Japan), Remi Suga2 andMeng Qu
4.00pm Interpretative signs at Iruka jima dolphinarium in Tsukumi City Higashi Miku Sheli Kawazoe, Isogai Kurisu (Asia-Pacific University, Japan) online
4.15pm An exploratory study of snake cafes in Japan: From the perspective of animal welfare. Dai Ikeya (Bangor University, UK) online
4.30pm Proposed Japanese chapter of WTA and other possible expansions, Rie Usui (Asia-Pacific University, Japan), Thomas Jones (Asia-Pacific University, Japan) Ronda Green (Araucaria Ecotours, Chair Wildlife Tourism Australia),
4.45pm *Poster viewing session* (could authors of papers please be present for this: the posters themselves can be viewed at other times, but this session will facilitate questions for the authors)
6.00pm Conference dinner Asian buffet
Thursday 6 November 2024
7.45am breakfast and WTA AGM [breakfast at own expense. All welcome to AGM during breakfast but only financial members can vote]
8.45am Is interpretation effective? Effects of personal interpretation on park visitors’ satisfaction, knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours in Alberta, Canada Glen Hvenegaard, Elizabeth Halpenny and CJ Blye (University of Alberta, Canada. online
9.00am Links between wildlife farming and wildlife tourism: Towards a reduction of greenwashing and an increase in sustainable wildlife tourism Jessica Bell Rizollo (Oregon State University, USA) online
9.15am Citizen science in accessible tourism Vikki Schaffer (University of the Sunshine Coast)
9.30am Best Practices for Designing Interpretive Experiences: Presenting to varied and mixed audiences. Bill Reynolds and Mike Mayer, (Experiential Interpretive Design) online (keynote)
10.10am Shark Dive and Hologram Zoo: Two Case Studies of Virtual Animal Encounters as Possible Models for Sustainable Wildlife Tourism Rebecca Scollen (University of Southern Queensland)
10.55am Positive ecotour experiences: Enhancing conservation outcomes by encouraging pro- environmental behaviour. Leah Burns (Griffith University, committee member Wildlife Tourism Australia)
11.10am Kangaroos Alive – Building the Kangaroo Walks & Talks Program Ric Allport and Craig Thompson, Kangaroos Alive
12,00 noon Interpreting roadkill (interactive discussion) Elleke Leurs, University of Tasmania
12.40pm A flying-fox roost as the destination Matthew Mo Maree Kerr, Sera Steves, Nicholas Colman
12.55pm Lunch
1.55pm “Learning to give a flying fox about bats”: Exploring ways to affect positive behaviour change towards a maligned species Tyron de Kauwe (Sunshine Coast Council, Environmental Operations)
2.10pm Koala Guardians: Empowering tourists to protect an Australian icon. Katrin Hohwieler (University of the Sunshine Coast), Romane Cristescu (University of the Sunshine Coast), Liz Foote (Griffith University), Cathryn Dexter, (Redland City Council), Elizabeth Brunton (University of the Sunshine Coast) and Kye McDonald,
2.25pm TBA
2.40pm Afternoon tea
3.00pm The value of interpretation and guide training: examples from South Africa (keynote) Anton Lategan (Ecotraining, South Africa) online (keynote)
3.45pm TBA (wildlife trafficking) Simin Maleknia (Tetratherix Medical Devices, treasurer Wildlife Tourism Australia)
3.50pm How science can identify and trace illegal timber from wildlife habitats, and discussion on raising public awareness Victor Deklerck (World Forest ID, Belgium) online
4.25pm Plenary discussion: Where to from here?
5.00pm Close of conference
Friday 8th – Sunday 10th November
Friday Field trip with bird ecologist Greg Clancy. Details TBA
Possible field trip from the conference venue visiting coasts and forest and ending at the Gold Coast airport or Brisbane. Details TBA
Cultural Field Trip Fingal Head:
Be led through the beautiful coastal village of Boonyingbah (Fingal Head) and learn from local First Nations people to see the environment as a cultural landscape that has continually sustained a cultural way of life since time immemorial. Learn about the strong cultural connection to the saltwater country and how local First Nations people have a cared for and used this place in special and unique cultural ways. Be captivated by cultural story, cultural methodologies, and a cultural way of life. Learn from the Tweed Byron Local Aboriginal Land Council Land and Sea Rangers and the Dolphin Research Australia team that work to collaboratively care for the surrounding marine environment and how the dolphin plays a strong role in cultural life and cultural knowledge systems.
Duration: 2.5 hours (easy walk, short staircase, well-formed bush/ beach pathways)
Cost will depend on numbers. Probably around $120.
*** Please let us know if you are interested in any of the above ***
You can also do your own exploring.
Byron Bay is a short drive away, where you can see Cape Byron (the most easterly part of Australia), beautiful beaches, a variety of restaurants, and the nearby Arawkal National Park : “Arakwal was the first protected area in the world to be IUCN Green Listed. Achieving Green List certification means the protected area has good governance, sound design and planning and effective management. Together these factors support successful conservation outcomes.” Cape Cape Byron State Conservation Area is also part of IUCN’s Green List .
There are many other great places in the district to explore: national parks, Tropical Fruit World, art galleries featuring wildlife art, river cruises, horse-riding, kayaking, snorkelling…