What is Citizen Science?
Citizen science is where the public volunteers time to assist scientists in their research. Citizen scientists can support professional researchers in a lot of ways – by submitting data, sharing experiences or spreading valuable information. Scientists benefit from having a lot more data to analyze and a pool of volunteers willing to help.
Citizen science programs vary in type and scope. You might prefer to work on a local level – like collecting data on the nutrient levels in an area stream. Some of the more popular citizen science projects are nationwide. Many of the large scale citizen science projects have websites where you study up and learn protocols before heading into the field.
Learn more about citizen science:
National Wildlife Federation
Arizona Experience
The photo below shows how citizen scientists can help the US Forest Service track how the ecosystem responds to a fire over time:
Citizen science is where the public volunteers time to assist scientists in their research. Citizen scientists can support professional researchers in a lot of ways – by submitting data, sharing experiences or spreading valuable information. Scientists benefit from having a lot more data to analyze and a pool of volunteers willing to help.
Citizen science programs vary in type and scope. You might prefer to work on a local level – like collecting data on the nutrient levels in an area stream. Some of the more popular citizen science projects are nationwide. Many of the large scale citizen science projects have websites where you study up and learn protocols before heading into the field.
Learn more about citizen science:
National Wildlife Federation
Arizona Experience
The photo below shows how citizen scientists can help the US Forest Service track how the ecosystem responds to a fire over time: