Nacho House Cat - A Journey Into Children’s Book Publishing
Nacho House Cat - authored by Ashley Moseley!
From my early days of producing science reference books for libraries, to years of authoring lab manuals as a program director, to my current role as the author of the Mader/Windelspecht textbook series at McGraw Hill, I’ve worked on a lot of book projects.
I actually never considered that I may be the science consultant for a children’s science book about jaguars. However, the past past 6 months have been an incredible experience and one that holds a special place in my heart for so many reasons.
The Next Generation of Authors
This vision for this book is all Ashely Moseley’s credit. Ashley has been working with Inspire EdVentures for years as our Marketing Director, and in that capacity has sat through numerous virtual tours of the Belize Zoo, presentations on jaguars, and orchestrated numerous campaigns to promote our goals of enhancing wildlife conservation education.
Through these experiences Ashley fell in love with jaguars, a completely understandable thing that has happened to almost everyone on our team. To see the majestic nature of these animals, their strength and beauty, is immediately inspiring.
One day she told me of her dream to produce a children’s book about why jaguars are NOT house cats, and why they belong in the jungle. The concept was brilliant, and I agreed to act as the science consultant. We talked for weeks, and then I introduced Ashley to her inspiration - Filly.
Filly - A Jaguar at the Belize Zoo - Photo by zookeeper Roxana Lemus at the Belize Zoo
Filly is a young female jaguar currently enrolled in the Human Jaguar Conflict Program (HJCP) at the Belize Zoo and Tropical Education Center. While the name of the program may sound ominous, it is actually a very successful program that to date has rescued over 25 jaguars from situations where they were in danger because of conflicts with human society. Jaguars are not a threat to humans, so these “conflicts” usually involve human incursions into their territories.
To tell you more about this project, we recently invited Jamal Andrewin-Bohn, Conservation Director at the Belize Zoo, onto our podcast to explain the origins and importance of the Human Jaguar Conflict Program.
Filly is also the ambassador for a very special project we have undertaken at Inspire EdVentures (IE), the #Habitats4Jags Project, to work with the Belize Zoo to build a state-of-the-art rehabilitation and rescue facility for the HJCP. Filly is an amazing jag, full of energy and curiosity, and a symbol of everything we want to see for her species throughout their range. Please take a moment to learn more about how you can help support this program below.
In addition to being an educator, as an author myself I always wanted to be a mentor for future writers who were willing to take on the challenge of exploring the boundaries of science education. Unfortunately, the publishing landscape is, at best, confusing and in many cases not necessarily operating in the best interests of the author. Luckily, I know a little bit about publishing, and after seeing Ashley’s passion for this project, I helped her identify a great publisher, Palmetto Publishing, and a fantastic illustrator (David Taylor), to build this book.
Learn more about Ashley and David’s journey by listening to our first episode of Season 2 of the Inspire EdVentures podcast below.
I could not be more happy with the result of this project, and I strongly suggest you check out Ashley’s book on any of the major online sites. When you do so, you will be making a difference in wildlife conservation, helping to promote science education for children, and maybe even saving the life of another Filly.
A Footnote from Me
When I started out in science education, I challenged myself not to conform to the science regimes I had experienced, but rather to push the boundaries of science communication and learning to reach learners of all ages. Nacho House Cat is another step in that direction.
My passion is shared by Eric and Dave, the other co-founders of Inspire EdVentures. Together we constantly working to develop innovative science-based edventures for anyone with curiosity. From pre-schoolers to retirement communities, college classrooms to the jungles of Belize, we build learning experiences. You can learn more about us, and join us on this journey, by clicking on the link below.
But before you go …. just one another moment with Filly - who literally owes her life to the HJCP.