Nature Interpretation Lab is an open arena and workspace where research and practice meet in a mutual learning and development process to work and learn together. The lab is based at the Swedish Centre for Nature Interpretation. Together with her colleagues at the Center, Dr. Jasmine Zhang is coordinating emerging questions from researchers and practitioners while also contributes to different focus areas as a researcher.

NiLab contributes to focus area 2 – meaning making, research questions through connecting nature interpreters who work with physical settings and emotions to researchers who wish to understand how outdoor settings (such as a nature reserve), and conversations carried out there may alter the visitor experience.

In focus area 3 – Knowledge, through the lens of stories that are crafted and told in nature interpretation, the Nilab contributes to find cases that are suitable to address the questions such as:

• How are knowledge, emotions and values used and combined in the crafting of stories to be told as part of nature interpretation?
• How are values, emotions and knowledge represented in a story?
• How are these stories received?

Addressing these questions includes a critical analysis of the role of evidence in nature interpretation stories.

Nilab also contributes to focus area 5 – Transformation, through the task “Interactive trails”, exploring how co-creation of interactive trails across landscapes can contribute to nature-based transformations. Here we look at trails as sites that allow us to explore people’s impressions and relationships to landscapes they live in or visit, and how geographically and culturally embedded stories can enable or disable certain experiences, emotions, or imaginaries of sustainable land use futures. Furthermore, the Nilab generally contribute to synthesis and disseminative activities across the whole program, such as workshops, seminars, and podcasts.