A Guide for Library Explorers: An Adventure in Discovering Biodiversity
After more than three years of work on the LitterNaturepublishing project, theUniversity of Montpellier’sScience Outreach Departmenthas published its book *Guide for Library Explorers*. This book is the latest addition to the department’s range of science outreach initiatives, which aim to explore—in an innovative way, alongside young readers and families—the biodiversity hidden within children’s literature.
Inspired by the traveling exhibitions of the LitterNature project on natural sciences for curious non-specialists, this book introduces us to species of plants, insects, and birds, as well as extinct species: dinosaurs. Throughout the book, characters passionate about biodiversity explain the principles of evolution, species classification, and the survival strategies of certain species using entertaining examples such as: “Why do some flowers smell like a corpse?” All presented in an accessible and easy-to-understand way. This book builds on the work the University of Montpellier’s Science Outreach Department has been doing since 2019, reaching out to young audiences at literary festivals and collaborating with 35 public libraries.
Enriching the imagination
Beyond the book itself, LitterNature offers a true ecosystem for science outreach through its website. The site invites young readers to identify the living species found in children’s literature. All they have to do is upload a photo of the animal in question and fill out the questionnaire. Nearly 1,300 contributions have been made by more than 440 budding library naturalists.
In addition to offering educational activities, the site also serves as a database for several research projects exploring the connections between children’s literature, biodiversity, and behavior. These studies aim to understand people’s sense of connection to nature, as well as how social and ecological transitions can enrich the imagination.
Reach as many people as possible
LitterNature also offers exhibitions that are now available for rent nationwide, yet free of charge for young audiences, allowing them to learn about biodiversity through hands-on activities and interactive sessions. These exhibitions are designed to be easily adaptable and modular so they can be hosted in science education venues and tailored to their specific requirements (space, flexibility). Since the start of the 2023 school year, LitterNature has been opening up to new partners by offering biodiversity training to media librarians, groups of elementary school teachers, and groups of individuals committed to science education. The goal of these training sessions is to make the exhibitions—and, more broadly, the LitterNature ecosystem—increasingly self-sufficient and accessible. The goal is to share knowledge as effectively as possible with as many people as possible—an ambition that the science outreach department makes no secret of.
A nationwide initiative
The current focus of the project is to expand nationwide. The training sessions and traveling exhibitions, which were initially held at the regional level, are now taking place on a larger scale across the entire country. This expansion brings new challenges related to making these exhibitions and the tools provided by the University of Montpellier’s Science Communication Office more self-sustaining. The idea behind this drive toward greater autonomy and ease of use for participants is to foster a wider range of contributions and greater knowledge sharing. A greater number of contributions also means higher-quality scientific results for the ongoing research related to the LitterNature project.
This project is supported by the region and the European Union (ERDF).