MISSOULA — Think phones disconnect us from nature? Think again.
So often, technology is blamed as the culprit for disconnecting us from nature but a new media company is changing that perception.
A new social media application is looking to change the way we interact with nature. It’s a platform that combines the best worlds of Instagram and Twitch.
Mammalz is a new nature app that’s reimagining what can be done to democratize the nature media industry and reconnect people to nature around the world.
They do this by using the technology available in nearly everyone’s hand -- the smartphone. It’s a nature platform that co-founder Rob Whitehair says originated in Missoula.
“Because of the lifestyle there, and the community is so supportive that I was able to clearly see all of the issues that were happening in the nature media business,” he explained.
In the hands of a Mammalz community member, a smartphone actually becomes an agent for change and the tool to connect people around the globe to nature and one another.
The smartphone proved to be the perfect tool to create the opportunity for people to create and engage with nature content.
“I don’t believe it’s just thousands of people now -- I think there’s millions of people who we could actually hear from around the world,” Whitehair told MTN News. “And all because we have this one thing right here this removes every barrier for entry for being able to communicate.”
The app can utilize the true potential technology has given us to allow people to connect with the natural world.
“I want to harness that power that we’ve been given to actually create a global community of people communicating about nature,” said Whitehair.
No matter where you may reside the plethora of diverse perspectives on the wild areas that surround you allow this platform to grow.
While the science of nature is a universal language the interpretation of that and how we interact with nature and what nature means to us is different everywhere in the world.
“It’s the thing that brings us all together. It doesn’t see age...that’s something that’s not even important. Somebody who discovers something who might be eight years old can totally influence somebody who’s been in nature all their lives and never seen something like that,” Whitehair concluded.
Click here to learn more about the Mammalz app -- as well as how to download it.
