Jim Wharton: How Fostering Empathy with Animals Encourages Conservation

The Empathy Edge

Let me be clear: Humans ARE animals. Empathy for animals is not about thinking they're cute. It's about creating a strong connection where we understand their unique needs and habitats so we can be part of the solution to increase biodiversity, avoid extinction, and promote a healthy planet for ALL of us.

Today, I am delighted to speak to Jim Wharton. We talk about how and why to create stronger connections between humans, animals, and nature at large, why empathy is required to make change, how to make conservation personal, and when and how we can use strategic anthropomorphism (that's when we attribute human traits to animals!) without actually causing harm to them. And Jim shares the amazing 2024 expansion at the Seattle Aquarium featuring animals and habitats from the Coral Triangle which allows them to tell a more globally connected story of ocean conservation. It sounds amazing!

To access the episode transcript, please click on the episode title at www.TheEmpathyEdge.com

Key Takeaways:

• The disconnection to nature is artificial and allows people to externalize conservation and not embrace it as something that affects them as fellow animals.
• The disconnect between humans and nature is an illusion that falsely elevates humans above everything else.
• Anthropomorphism is not necessarily the problem. The real problems come with anthropocentrism - thinking the human experience is the central defining experience leading to humans harming the animals they are trying to care for.

"Developmentally we all start out being deeply, deeply connected to everything around us. We begin our lives looking at animals as anthropomorphic peers, the same as your brother or sister, there’s no difference to you. And then gradually, over time, we have “difference” educated into us and “connection” educated out of us." — Jim Wharton

Episode References:

• Empathy Initiatives at the Seattle Aquarium: seattleaquarium.org/about-us/in-our-community/fostering-empathy-for-wildlife
• Citizens: Why the Key to Fixing Everything is All of Us by Jon Alexander
• Internet of Elephants

About Jim Wharton, VP, Conservation Engagement & Learning, Seattle Aquarium

Dr. Jim Wharton is the Vice President of Conservation Engagement and Learning at the Seattle Aquarium. Jim joined the Aquarium in 2012 from Mote Marine Laboratory where he served as Vice President of Education. He holds a B.S. from the University of Michigan, an M.S. in marine resource management from Oregon State University, and a Ph.D. in educational measurement and evaluation from the University of South Florida. Jim and the team at the Seattle Aquarium have been working with partners to explore how fostering empathy in our audiences can contribute to conservation outcomes. The Aquarium has shared effective practices and strategies for fostering empathy through publications and workshops with over 70 zoos and aquariums with a combined attendance of more than 75 million annually. The Aquarium partnered on a children’s book (and puppet show), Catastrophe by the Sea, that encourages readers to empathize with less traditionally charismatic animals. Jim is also an advocate for diversifying the way we talk about and portray sharks, shark scientists, and shark conservation in popular media.

Connect with Jim Wharton

Seattle Aquarium: seattleaquarium.org

X: https://x.com/jimwharton

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jimmwharton

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