We examine human-animal encounters as the generative source of affective knowing and learning to study the role of affect in the implementation of nature conservation. The study is based on ethnographic research following the embodied practices of biological field surveyors working with Siberian flying squirrels (Pteromys volans) in land use planning in Finland. The case is characterized by radical uncertainties due to the elusive life of flying squirrels, the strict conservation standard of the EU, and the pressure of urban development. The surveyors can use only indirect clues to detect these nocturnal animals, but are required to produce accurate and unambiguous ecological knowledge to planners. We found that affective learning enables knowing and increases the reliability of knowledge in such conditions. Affective learning results from alternation between constant encountering of clues and changing intensities that produce feeling states and a sense of the forest where the animals live. Ethical consideration and personal differences are important in affective learning and shape the surveyors as participants in standard development. Finally we discuss the possible implications of affective learning for standard design in nature conservation.

Zoos nowadays often claim that their main objective is nature conservation and that they strive to educate the visitors on this subject. A considerable amount of research has been undertaken on conservation education in zoos. This overview performs a qualitative meta-analysis of the methodology, concepts and results of research articles on zoo visitors, particularly regarding learning, education and conservation. Our main finding is that most of the research uses quantitative methodologies and the qualitative, lived experiences of zoo visits remain under-researched. Based on the articles analyzed, “nature conservation” (the substance of conservation education in zoos) becomes implicitly defined as captive breeding and far-off conservation projects, distancing the visitors and their daily lives from nature and issues of conservation.

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Unlearning is drawing attention in sustainability research. Unlearning old beliefs and assumptions is needed to tackle wicked problems and to make space for learning. We introduce a framework for examining the potential of unlearning as a group process for transformational change. We integrate conceptual elements of unlearning with framing research and analyze 1) factors that facilitate unlearning, 2) the moments of doubt where unlearning and reframing takes place and 3) how unlearning can be operationalized in the analysis of discussion material. We demonstrate the framework by using a conflict situation-the conservation of Siberian flying squirrels in the Tampere urban region in Finland-as a case study where the participating actors had to unlearn dominant beliefs and assumptions to make space for a more strategic, comprehensive and proactive approach to collaborative conservation. A predictive habitat model of the regional flying squirrel population helped the process, but the decisive support for unlearning was a facilitated dialogue process with diverse assignments. The framework is tailored to experimental group processes by which innovative unlearning and reframing can be initiated and supported for organizational and interorganizational change. identity and goals, feedback processes, structure, and functions (Wilson et al., 2013). Such a profound shift likely strengthens the features of wicked problems (Rittel & Webber, 1973) in urban biodiversity governance. Wicked problems refer to planning and design problems that defy technocratic solutions, and attempts to resolve them can lead to unintended consequences. Typical features are indeterminacy in problem formulation, non-definitiveness in problem solution, non-solubility, irreversible consequentiality, and individual uniqueness (Xiang, 2013). Our aim in this paper is to complement recent research on wicked problems in socio-ecological systems (see the Special Issue of Landscape and Urban Planning, 2016, vol. 154) by focusing on unlearning. Unlearning as a research concept is seldom used in studies of social-ecological systems, and if used (Cumming et al., 2013; Rogers et al., 2013), these studies typically lack empirical analysis on unlearning. The perspective of unlearning is better known, and increasingly adopted, in the research of organizations, industry, management, and business. We examine unlearning in the context of urban biodiversity governance. Our argument is that unlearning certain existing routines and beliefs may be the necessary first step in tackling wicked problems in complex socio-ecological systems. The purpose of unlearning is not to solve the problem (because wicked problems are unsolvable), but to expand the problem space so a wider range of option for action emerges (Rogers et al., 2013). We consider both organizational (Tsang & Zahra, 2008) and individual (Hislop et al., 2013) unlearning important in this effort and examine how these two interconnected but different processes work in a facilitated project of collaborative conserva...

Non-human nature is often unpredictable and continues to surprise us. How can we take this into account and use it in ways leading to more robust conservation strategies? We analyse the emergence and implications of surprises in the context of conservation of strictly protected Siberian flying squirrels in Finland. Nocturnal, arboreal flying squirrels keep surprising surveyors, planners and landowners by their flickering presence. We use field interviews and other material to analyse surprises as relational and affective phenomena -both the surprised observer and an unexpected event are needed to create a surprise. We argue that surprises can help to reconsider situations and identify new knowledge about non-human nature, and hence improve conservation strategies.