Amateur Research

Having just recently returned from our first Walt Disney World family vacation, we were thoroughly impressed with the incredible organization and overall pure dedication of all the “cast members” to making sure that you have a “magical experience.” It is also great to know that the company has an equally pure dedication to supporting regional and worldwide environmental citizen science opportunities.

The Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund has recently focused on ten Florida-based efforts from their 2010 round of $1.5 million in global funding initiatives. The funding works toward supporting the sustainability of endangered species around the world, and this year is helping with the restoration of coral reefs, sea turtles, and the scrub-jay bird in Florida.

The scrub-jay project is particularly interesting here because it is part of a citizen science program from the Nature Conservancy’s Jay Watch. The funding will bring about the recruitment of volunteers who will work across the state of Florida inventorying and mapping the bird’s habitats.

Learn more about how the DWC is supporting this citizen science program, and although the training is closed for the summer session, you may still consider taking part if you happen to be lucky enough to live near the Magic Kingdom.

“Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund Announces 2010 Florida-Based Program Grant Recipients” :: Chip & Co. :: July 26, 2010 :: [ READ MORE ]

Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund :: The Nature Conservancy’s Jay Watch

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) has been given funding to increase its efforts to more accurately estimate the deer population throughout the state. Since 1960, the department has only used it’s staff and official employees of the state to help with the counting, and the breadth of the coverage has never been enough to calculate meaningful population estimates.

But, now, they are requesting the help from citizens to volunteer their observational skills and report what they see during August and September. Citizen Science makes its way into Wisconsin!

If you live in Wisconsin, and you would like to connect with the WDNR to help with the summer counting, visit the site linked below and get ready to keep a close eye out for those deer in your headlights beginning August 1!

“Citizens asked to survey deer afield” :: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel :: July 24, 2010 [ READ ]

Summer 2010 Operation Deer Watch from WDNR [ VISIT ]

The Global Warming effort has been growing for many years now, and the youngest generation is being raised with a fundamental awareness of the concern. As many teenagers around the country become more active in their schools and communities, we might end up with an overwhelmingly disparate and random nation-wide picture for environmentally-active youth.

It is exactly this problem that a new mobile social networking application has been developed to address. The “iMatter 2.0” app for the iPhone, developed by match2blue, is a new platform to help connect the under-18 year community actively working for a future with a more secure climate.

Supported by the “Kids vs Global Warming” youth organization–founded by a 16-year-old–the app will allow connected youth activists to participate with citizen science observations, create their own local projects, and connect with other activists around the country who match their interests and efforts, all in real time.

“Launch of iMatter 2.0” :: openPR.com :: July 7, 2010 :: [ READ MORE ]

Kids vs Global Warming :: [ LEARN MORE ]

[ Download ] the iMatter App

As the oil creeps closer to the delicate shorelines of the Gulf Coast, conservationists are frantically trying to get a clear picture of the specific status of wildlife. A reasonable baseline of population levels will be valuable when comparing to the aftereffect of nature’s interaction with the invading oil slick.

Typical news media images focus on birds soaked in oil, and efforts are already underway to update counts of our feathers friends (learn more from the National Audubon Society). There are, of course, many other creatures lurking in the beautiful white sands of the Gulf, and they, too, will likely be challenged by the oil.

Drew Wheelan of the American Birding Association has established a methodology for reporting populations of the Ghost Crabs, which are a critical element of the food chain along the coast. Monitoring the oil’s influence on these little creatures should also help develop a better understanding of how the entire ecosystem will deal with this disaster.

Citizen science volunteers from the Gulf Coast are needed immediately to support these counting efforts… so, if you live in the area please learn more and find out how to help now…

“The Ghost Crabs Of The Gulf” :: Gulf Coast Oil Spill blog from the American Birding Association :: June 21, 2010 :: [ READ ]