In a time when the rate of extinction is excessively higher than even aggressively estimated background rates (Ceballos, 2015), conservationists are constantly searching for ways to promote environmental stewardship and to engage every member of society.
Despite conservationists best efforts, they have yet to really make a deep impact in altering the root cause of our planetary woes -- behaviors. In order to truly alter individual behaviors, we must tap into deep seated emotions. And what better way to tap into those very emotions than using a medium whose very definition discusses themes of emotional power, that is, art.
Art is not only relatable to the masses, but can also transcend barriers such as illiteracy and language differences (Jacobson, McDuff, and Monroe, 2015). Everyone can look at a picture and feel something or learn something or comprehend something. Can everyone read or understand a scientific journal or a spreadsheet of statistical data?
Art has the ability to reach much farther and just as importantly, much deeper. Impacting people’s hearts is one of the greatest ways to impact their actions (Dewey, 1934), and action is what this planet needs right now.
Ceballos, G., Ehrlich, P. R., Barnosky, A. D., GarcÃa, A., Pringle, R. M., & Palmer, T. M. (2015). Accelerated modern human-induced species losses: Entering the sixth mass extinction. Science Advances, 1(5), e1400253. http://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.1400253. Retrieved from http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/1/5/e1400253.
Dewey, J. (1934). Art as Experience. New York: Minton, Balch & Company.
Jacobson, S., McDuff, M., & Monroe, M. (2015). Using the Arts for Conservation. In Conservation Education and Outreach Techniques (p 155-186). United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.