Shadowing Practice: Land of the Lions | Making Nature: How we see animals - Learn English Speaking with YouTube

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Over the last century, the way zoos have created their environments for the animals has changed dramatically.
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Over the last century, the way zoos have created their environments for the animals has changed dramatically.
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As we developed and our knowledge of animal care developed,
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making much more stimulating habitats for the animals,
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enriching the environments became very, very important.
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Now we are moving very much into creating habitats that still have that enriched environment for the animal,
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but also the enriched environment for the visitor,
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so that we have moved from commercial to medical and care to actually now it's very much about connection.
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We are connecting people through our animals and through our animal's environments.
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Animals bring the best out of people.
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Zoos have a great way to bridge that.
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Immersive exhibits have been done for some time in zoos
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but what's different about Land of Lions is the link that we provide from the zoos to the wild.
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It's been very very important to us to make that fundamental link
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that ZSL is working with animals and caring for animals in the zoo
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but also caring for animals in Gujarat and the stories that we put around
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here in the zoo about lions are from India
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and how close they live to people is vitally important in terms of the messaging
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and indeed the conservation work that we are doing.
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We understand our world for our five senses so from what we see,
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what we touch, what we smell, what we taste.
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And so the no-barrier design process is very much about cutting out all barriers.
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So, for example here, we've got vertical cables.
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So once you're standing face to face with the animal,
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you don't see the barrier at all.
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But also, you smell the animal,
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you can feel that low bass rumble,
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which is truly transformational as a human to another animal.
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Traditionally, spaces have been given over to visitors and operations more so than animals,
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but that's moving dramatically over towards the animals.
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And by creating immersive environments that we have here,
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by the nature of visitors being inside the spaces,
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but in the very nature then the animals have more space and all those benefits that come from there.
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But when you get that virtual circle of the humans,
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the visitors and the animals absolutely enjoying the environments together and
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that enjoyment may also be a little bit of terror as well because we are hardwired to fear and vice versa,
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which is interesting.
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It's not meant to be a sort of a walk in the park as it were.
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If you come face to face with a lion,
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something should happen to you and something should happen to the animal.
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So again, those things are very much considered with the balance of space
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but particularly in urban zoos where you have this almost limited defined space
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that becomes really a you know a primary consideration at the
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very start of any project the other thing of course is
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that you see animals from different vantage points
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and that's a different experience altogether I mean we love being
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even two meters higher as humans you know we ground well so being just high
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that spectacular which is why we always want to stand on our toes and look.
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But the other important thing we've tried to do here is actually get visitors in actually shot.
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So it's not just an animal theatre as it were,
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you've got actually people you know behind the animal and in
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that way it sets off a very very different experience
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and then again it comes back to that you know we're in the animals world as opposed to vice versa.
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We do spend a lot of time
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designing an environment that is flexible because animal personalities they do certainly have personalities
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but they change so the important thing in every environment
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that we design is flexibility
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so the animals can choose where they go they can choose
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the different substrates they want to be on they can choose
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which area they want to be on they can also choose whether they want to be on show
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or not if they want to get away from the visitors they can do one of our main
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learning outcomes was that the UK audience understand how closely people in Gujarat,
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in the Giyah forest, live alongside lions.
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You can wake up in the morning with a lion in your backyard.
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You really can.
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But people live alongside them.
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That is huge lessons for us in the UK.
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If people in India can live alongside lions,
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surely we can live alongside badgers.
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Surely we can live alongside hedgehogs and not destroy their habitats but promote it.
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So working to live alongside animals in a cooperative way,
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we've got lessons to learn from elsewhere.
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The vital role that zoos play in conservation is now recognised by conservation bodies across the globe,
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and it is essential.
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We are organisations that care not just for lions and tigers,
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but for the freshwater fish,
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for the snails, for the species that sometimes get ignored.
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But zoos have an immense role to play in just connecting people with nature.
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that ability to evoke emotions that people who might come to the zoo for a day out,
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they leave just loving animals a little bit more.
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And that is a huge,
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huge role, especially when most of our zoos are in urban environments.

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Context & Background

The dialogue presented in the video "Land of the Lions | Making Nature: How we see animals" discusses the evolution of zoo environments and their impact on both animals and visitors. The speaker emphasizes the shift towards creating enriching habitats that connect people to nature, enhancing the overall visitor experience while ensuring the well-being of the animals. This transformation in zoo design includes innovative features that allow for a direct connection between humans and wildlife, enhancing understanding and appreciation through sensory experiences.

Top 5 Phrases for Daily Communication

  • "Creating immersive environments" - This phrase highlights the effort of designing spaces that engage visitors and animals alike.
  • "Connecting people through our animals" - This illustrates the aim to foster relationships between humans and wildlife.
  • "Face to face with the animal" - A phrase denoting the proximity and connection between visitors and animals.
  • "Experience together" - Indicates the shared experience that enhances understanding.
  • "Natural instincts and responses" - Refers to the innate reactions humans have toward animals, such as awe and fear.

Step-by-step Shadowing Guide

To effectively use the shadowing technique for this video, follow these steps to improve your English speaking practice:

  1. Set Up Your Shadowing App: Use a shadowing app or player that allows you to easily replay sections of the video. Make sure you have a quiet environment for this exercise.
  2. Listen and Understand: Play the video and focus on understanding the context. Pay special attention to the phrases mentioned above. Note any unfamiliar vocabulary or structures.
  3. Practice Shadow Speech: After listening to a segment, pause the video and repeat what you heard. Aim to mimic the speaker's intonation, rhythm, and pronunciation. This will help you become more fluent and natural in your speech.
  4. Rehearse in Chunks: Break down the video into smaller parts. Repeat each part several times before moving on to the next. This chunking method makes it easier to master complex sentences.
  5. Reflect and Record: After completing your practice, record yourself speaking the phrases. Listen back to identify areas of improvement. Focus on your pronunciation and compare it with the original audio.
  6. Incorporate into Daily Conversations: Finally, make it a point to use the new phrases in your daily communication. This will reinforce your learning and help you build confidence.

By applying the shadowing technique and utilizing the shadow speech methodology, you can enhance your English speaking practice effectively while deepening your understanding of the fascinating world of wildlife as described in the video.

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.

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