Our children must be able to test our technologies against our stories so our tools help maintain sustainable community. Later, Chris Wells, who had studied festival development and tribal celebrations while living in South America, brought the All Species parade idea to Santa Fe, New Mexico. There, with the aid of teacher John Mcleod, elements were added to turn it into an educational program for school and community. In 1987, Stan Slaughter and I brought the idea to Kansas City where we formed the Heartland All Species Project. The All Species process is an attempt to build a sense of community and understanding of the natural world through the weaving together of old and new ideas from art, science, anthropology, counselling, theater and any other area that seems applicable.
Children seem to come with an innate rapport with other creatures.
Judging by the cars with animal names and the use of outdoor settings in commercials, marketing experts know that this enthusiasm for wild creatures lingers with us into adulthood. This natural rapport is a great motivational tool, and a very powerful way to foster it is by making masks. Mask making is a nearly universal human activity. Masks are used in celebrations all over the world from Halloween in North America to New Year's celebrations in China to Carnival in Latin countries. Making masks which represent a chosen species evokes emotional ties and leads students to want to know more about their species.