This book offers a rational and philosophical approach to environmental interpretation, the educational purpose of which is particularly relevant in an age when specialization tends to distance most people from direct experience of the way the environment works. In reviewing the practice of interpretation, the author emphasises that effective work in this field must be finely tuned. The interpreter must constantly bear in mind the real value and significance of the features interpreted and the needs of the visitors to whom interpretation is addressed.
Foreword by Kenneth Hudson. Preface. Environmental Interpretation - What Is It? Why Interpret? - Aims and Motivations. Insights Offered and Sought - Interpretation's Precedents. The Very Important Feature - Conservation Comes First. Red Carpet Treatment - Understanding the Visitor. Seeking the Message - The Conscientious Researcher. Frog into Prince - Turning Information into Interpretation. Introducing the Feature - First Impressions and Ambience. Systems and Signals - Means of Communication. Some Special Cases - Limitations and Opportunities. The Entertainment Factor - Interpretation and Fun. The Business Angle - Implications for Management and Finance. Strategies to Suit Situations. Planning Interpretation Projects. The Academic Perspective - Assessment and Evaluation. Girding on the Panoply - Professionalism and Training. World Without End Interpretation and the Future. Appendix A - A Check-list for Interpretive Planning. Appendix B - A Simple Scheme for Assessing Interpretation. Appendix C - Recommended Reading. Appendix D - Interpretation Training and Professional Organisations. Index.
