Storytelling & Biomimicry
This project explores storytelling through a biomimetic lens.
Orcas were studied as a model for transformations in communications.
This project looks at how stories are taught and learned in a community to motivate behavior changes that benefit the community and the ecosystem that the community lives in. The focus is on the function of communicating those stories using nature as our guide to success. Orcas are studied as models of communication modification for more effective learning. Orcas exhibit the ability to receive new information and adapt their linguistic behavior to best fit their environment, this is know as “vocal learning”. Since humans are also a highly social species, lessons from orcas could be applied to our own approaches towards communication and learning. Their willingness and ability to adapt shows that when in a new social context, it may be valuable first to listen to how the group is already sharing information, then incorporate that style into your own communications.
Photo: Mike Doherty Unsplash
Systems Thinking, MASD Spring 2020
The System Explored
A new story arises from the need for change through crisis, new connections, successes, and changes in nature that require changes in our behaviors to survive, this perpetuates change. Change is a constant in nature. A seed takes root and grows and then dies. New seeds grow but under new circumstances. Our stories must change to fit our new circumstances and to allow for new visions for the future of people and the planet. A new story has many elements but as this map depicts one of the strongest can be a shared change in values which can change many other aspects of a culture. A shared belief in a new story ultimately creates a new future. The pink lines show changes a story makes and the green lines show new things a story creates.
This project focuses on the function of successfully teaching and learning a new story to create behavior change as indicated by the dark circle.
DIAGRAMMING THE FLOW: NEW STORY TO NEW FUTURES
The boundary of stories are those that hear the story. That boundary has expanded exponentially with the advent of technology allowing for stories to be more impactful which can be good or bad for our collective future, depending on the story told and the values and authenticity of that story. Some cultures have more access to these tools than others which means the boundary is different depending on geography and socio-economic status.
Biomimetic Exploration
The Function:
Communicating a new story that teaches and fosters learning to drive beneficial behavior change.
Biomimetic Lens:
How does nature tell new stories that cause beneficial behavior change?
Scoping:
Context Defined: Storytelling and how it has changed over time with new communication tools
Function: Adapt new communication skills that lead to behavior changes through successful teaching and learningMake it stand out
Discovering
Discover/Abstract: Orca’s adapt new communication skills from their surroundings that lead to behavior changes in new environments
Creating
Brainstorm/Emulate: How can we use new tools and techniques to create effective communication that help us to change behaviors to reduce climate change
Nature’s Model: Orcas
To study how orcas may develop distinct dialects a study was done where Orcas were held in captivity with bottlenose dolphins. Orcas changed their vocal patterns to more closely emulate the dolphins’ sounds. They used a higher proportion of clicks and whistles, similar to the dolphins, and fewer pulses. One orca even adopted a sound that was taught to a dolphin by humans, indicating they can learn and use sounds not found in the natural environment.
This ability to learn new communication sounds is called “vocal learning,” and it suggests that orcas can receive new information and adapt their linguistic behavior to best fit their environment. Effective communication is critical to building relationships, which is necessary for animals like orcas who rely on social groups to hunt and move through the ecosystem.
Vocal learning illustrates that communication is not stagnant, but rather evolves based on environmental and social conditions. As killer whales in the wild face disruptive threats through ship traffic, oil drilling, marine debris, and climate change, the ability to change communication strategies to best fit a new social group could be a very important skill. (Spencer)
Humans are also a highly social species so we can look to orcas for lessons that could be applied to our own approaches towards communication and learning. Their willingness and ability to adapt shows that when in a new social context, it may be valuable first to listen to how the group is already sharing information, then incorporate that style into your own communications.
Erin Spencer, “Killer whales use vocal learning to adopt vocalization patterns of neighboring species.”, Ask Nature, October 16, 2020 https://asknature.org/strategy/vocal-learning-makes-communication-style-adaptable
System Function Explored Through Orca’s Lens
Orca’s Teaching and Learning for Beneficial Behavior Change in Response to Changing Conditions:
Communication lies at the core of orca social awareness. Family members are seldom out of hearing range of one another. Their calls, as loud as a jet plane’s engines, echo over many miles in the ocean. Everyone knows where he or she is and where everyone else are. Given the strength of their attachments to each other, this must have a very calming effect on them. Communication is an essential ingredient of the glue that brings harmony to the orca community. Combining this knowledge with the fact that we know that orcas learn new communications it is very possible that orcas are passing along new communications within their group to increase the harmony and well-being of their pod. (Orca Lab)
The details of this illustration show how orca’s environments have been changing with increased drilling, fishing, pollution, shipping, and climate change. With these disturbances in their environment orcas have developed new ways to communicate as new sounds are introduced and these vocal learning adaptations are critical to ensure survival.
This leads to resilience in a new environment as new communication tools and techniques can lead to new behavior changes. A variety of individuals pick up different new communications and teach those to the community.
BE LOCALLY ATTUNED AND RESPONSIVE: When orcas experience readily available effective communication tools they adopt those tools into their own communication toolbox through feedback loops where the new tool is used and then received by another orca the group and a new response with a positive result is recognized and so the new tool is adapted. This is a cooperative relationship within the community of orcas and the surrounding species that the orcas are learning from.
Orcas, https://orcalab.org/orcas/orca-communication/tion-style-adaptable/
Applied to Human Systems:
A biomimetic exploration of changes in orca communication gives insight into how valuable communication is in cultures and how changes in communication techniques that are taught and learned can lead to new norms and strengthen the well-being of communities. In the wild, orcas live in tight-knit family groups that share a sophisticated, unique culture that is passed down through generations, research has shown. (National Geographic) This is similar to humans in that we have tight-knit groups that we share regular communications with that help us to navigate life. As our group changes or priorities change, our behaviors then influence other groups and communities and ultimately determine how we collectively interact with our environments. To create impactful change our communications work best when directed at a target group that then learns and teaches those communications within that tight-knit group.
Orcas, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/o/orca/
