The WCS Information Sheets provided general background about some of the projects that the Wildlife Conservation Society in New York is working on. I think the sheet did a good job outlining the projects, and by creating an interactive version of it would be engaging.
On the other hand, the 2012 Tegner Report provides a lot of useful information. For creating the webpage, I think it would be better if the home page is more simple, otherwise, there would be too much information for the audience when they open the webpage. By categorizing the different data, it would be easier for the audience to navigate through the webpage and access the information. For example, by categorizing the different areas (such as Montauk, New York, to Cape May, New Jersey, to the coasts of New York and New Jersey, New York Harbor, the lower Hudson River, the East River, and Long Island Sound) by map. Also, by going through the resources and cutting down information and limiting it to only the most useful information would make the webpage neater as well.
“The Ainu: Beyond the Politics of Cultural Coexistence” was an interesting article that covered the historical background as well as the challenges they face as new reforms emerged. While reading the article, it was unfortunate to see the fight that the indigenous people had to put up, as the Japanese government attempts to assimilate them into modern Japanese society. This reminded me of a minority group that I worked with this past winter break. I volunteered in Chiang Rai, Thailand to work on a coffee entrepreneurship project. The coffee shop I worked for was located in the mountains and far away from downtown. The owner of the coffee shop is part of the indigenous Ahka group, who were not seen as Thai citizens. Due to their circumstances, a lot of the local Ahka people lived in poverty. Instead of speaking Thai, the Ahka people have their own language and are separated from the rest of the Thai community. It was interesting to see the parallels between the Ahka people and the Ainu people while reading the article. Minority groups often face challenges in embracing their own culture while assimilating into contemporary society with pressures from the government in an attempt to modernize. While in Thailand, I was able to create some videos along with my peers for the Ahka people. We filmed and interviewed them to help others better understand their culture and story. Therefore, I think that helping the Ainu produce content that will negate some of the stereotypes that they didn’t want would be impactful for them, by portraying who they really are.