Six Citizen Science Projects to Help Monitor the Environment Around You

Photo: USFWS

You can play a key role in environmental monitoring. Our editors highlight six projects, below, to help you get to know your part of the world.

Find 1,000 more opportunities to make the world a better place through science!  See SciStarter‘s Project Finder.

Photo: Paul Hamilton, Biodiversity Group
Biodiversity PEEK
PEEK stands for photography, empowering, and educating kids, and this project does just that by using inquiry-based lessons to engage students in studying and protecting their local biodiversity.

Get Started!

Photo: Opal
Opal Air Quality
This one is for you, England! Air quality can affect the presence of lichen and fungi on trees, and you are needed in England to examine trees for their presence.

Get Started!

Photo: Sarah Ayling
Drought Risk and You
Drought can have profound consequences on a landscape, and researchers in the United Kingdom need volunteers to understand those effects. By surveying grasslands and trees, you can increase our understanding of drought.

Get Started!

Photo:PlusUs
The WQI Project
When you purchase a WQI kit, you’ll receive resources and instruction for monitoring the water quality in your area. The project also offers classroom curricula, making it a great teaching opportunity.
Get Started!

Photo: Habitat Map
AIRCasting
AirCasting users purchase a handheld sensor that records the levels of fine particulates in the air. The data can be used to track pollution hotspots.
Get Started!

Photo: Patrick Tegart
Long Term Marine Ecology Project
As ocean temperatures rise, the diversity of marine life along the coast of Australia is expected to change. Everyone along the coast of New South Wales is invited to collect biodiversity data when snorkeling or scuba diving.

 

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Categories: Chemistry, Nature & Outdoors, Newsletter, Ocean & Water

About the Author

Arvind Suresh

Arvind Suresh

Arvind Suresh is science communicator and a former laboratory biologist, he has a Master’s degree in Cell Biology and Molecular Physiology from the University of Pittsburgh. He enjoys reading, teaching, talking and writing science. Connect with him on Twitter @suresh_arvind.