What does the collaboration with Mistra Environmental Communication mean to you?

It is really good food for thought for me. It’s very good to have this transdisciplinary network with people working in different subjects. When I meet different people from the programme, we learn from each other, because we ask questions and we have to explain things so that we can understand each other. So, as a biologist, I have learned to ask myself: Am I always aware of my language use? I would say that was an eye-opener for me. It’s good to reflect on that and get challenged a bit by others who are not nature interpreters like me. And of course, everything that comes with having transdisciplinary conversations, such as reading articles outside my usual field, having other kinds of discussions, taking part in a range of workshops, all of that is very beneficial for me.

What was an event or project you worked on recently?

Last autumn we started a project around storytelling about large carnivores: wolves, bears and lynx. Stories have always been crafted around large carnivores, and often exaggerated stories or horror stories are those that stick in people’s memories. We want to use the power of stories to try and see what happens when we tell the positive stories instead. For me, as a nature interpreter, it is not a neutral issue. I care about how people view and feel about wolves. I believe in coexistence between wildlife and humans and I want to share this view with others.

In what ways do you share these stories?

We invited four people who have met these animals, to tell their stories. They prepared with a professional storyteller to work on the craftmanship of storytelling, to carve out the essence of their stories. A good, short, and rich story is memorable and so these positive stories can spread. Later, I sat down with a researcher from the programme, and we talked about this storytelling project. I really like being able to work more closely with others in the programme – it is a luxury to have somebody else who is not from Biotopia take the time to sit down with you. It was a very fruitful conversation, because you have somebody who sums up your thoughts in the way they understood it and asks you questions that stimulate your own thinking. In the end, we had a very good draft of what we wanted to do. I think that is Mistra Environmental Communication at its best, getting practitioners and researchers together.

How has being part of the programme influenced your work?

I have been to the storytelling conference and several workshops, and I always bring back something new to my colleagues at Biotopia. It’s a useful network and I always gain insights from meeting other people in the programme. When we meet, we want to understand each other. But sometimes, this can still be tricky, even if we want to. These experiences make me reflect more about how I talk to people with different experiences and perspectives from myself, and how we can reach some sort of common understanding. Without this understanding it can be hard to work together or inspire others – an insight I have also gained from working within the programme.

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This text was originally published in Mistra Environmental Communication Annual Report 2025.

Photo: Biotopia