In 2019, history student Rodrigo Gomez learned on social media about a call for volunteers to participate in marine-related science projects by the Institute of Marine Sciences (IMAR-UNIFESP) at the Federal University of Sao Paulo in Santos. rice field. The coast of Sao Paulo, Brazil. He signed up for the project, attended workshops and received on-site training. “I was very fortunate to get in touch with my professor and learn a lot about nature maintenance,” says Gomez, now a citizen scientist. “It makes a lot of sense to continue the project and involve other people.”
It is precisely this integration of science and public participation that the United Nations aims to bring to the decade of marine science for sustainable development, which began in April 2021 and continues through 2030. It was embodied in a study in which Gomez participated, Participatory Monitoring—Citizen Science Approach for Coastal Environments.
This survey was conducted with the support of the FAPESP, with the support of the Public Policy Research Program (PPPP). Articles on research showing how science and citizenship can work together Frontier of oceanology..
As a result, methodologies have been developed to integrate civil society and academia. This includes developing protocols for monitoring coastal biodiversity. Citizen And scientists.
“This project achieved practical results by monitoring the rocky coastal area of ??Santos and created and validated a methodology for use in that area. Citizen science is growing and it There is much debate about what this means, which involves exchanges that provide technology to people, unlike civilian volunteers and collaborations in the collection of scientific data. training And think more deeply about citizenship, “said Ronaldo Christophoretti, a researcher at IMAR-UNIFESP and a principal investigator in the study.
The group aims to develop methodologies, such as training for citizen scientists and marine conservation initiatives, to promote activities that integrate marine science and society. Activities to date include the translation of the UNESCO handbook “Ocean Literacy for All: A Toolkit” (Portuguese version “Cultura Oceanica para Todos”) into Brazilian Portuguese, and “Maré de Ciência” (“Tide of Science”). Will be. A program aimed at facilitating innovative forms of interaction between the scientific community, society and public policy.
According to biologist Paula Kasten, who trained during the project, the next step was to train new citizen scientists to continue surveillance exercises on Ulbukesaba Island and to other parts of the Santos metropolitan area (Baishada Santista). ) Is to expand. Including Guarja. The island has the only natural rocky coast in the area and was the research site of choice by the group. “One of the challenges is to keep participants interested,” says Kasten.
Gomez also emphasized the difficulty of this effort. “I’ve noticed that there are times when I’m lacking in commitment. Some people complain about their distance from academia, but I don’t necessarily attend when it’s difficult. I go to the scene on Sunday morning to get the data. It’s not easy to collect, but later you’re really happy with what you did, “says a citizen scientist.
“Birth” of methodology
In 2019, five workshops were held for 51 citizen scientists, 51% of whom were women. Most participants (62%) were 18-33 years old. They included, among other things, undergraduates, biologists, geographers, specialists in similar disciplines, school teachers, engineers, and retirees.
To develop the protocol, they partnered with the Institute of Oceanography at Bangor University in the United Kingdom through the project “Capturing Our Coast”. The project trained approximately 3,000 citizen scientists in research between 2013 and 2018. Marine life On the rocky coasts around Britain to help understand coastal biodiversity.
The British Council also provided support through the Newton Foundation in the United Kingdom and the National Council for Science and Technology Development (CNPq) in Brazil.
Adapting to the situation in the Santos region, the workshop contextualizes the project and of the group engagement Discussed the role of local communities in participatory monitoring. They also took volunteers to the scene to explain the theoretical concepts related to rocky shore ecology and monitoring methods and to practice the application of the protocol.
This required definition of species habitat and measurement of transects (bounded coastal areas for continuous monitoring and sampling). The main organisms investigated were mussels, oysters, barnacles and algae.
The results of a survey conducted by citizen scientists were compared with data collected by professional researchers.Validation tests show that participatory programs are a reliable source of science data About coastal biodiversity.
Citizen scientists have learned to identify species in much the same way as experts, but researchers adjust protocols to train them to work better, especially with regard to the identification of more complex coastal organisms. It emphasizes the need.
They also proved that they can recognize the major threats to marine biodiversity, regardless of occupation or educational background. The majority detected problems due to water and air pollution (98.4%). Intensive agriculture, deforestation, overfishing (96.7%); human disasters (91.9%) and climate change (62.9%).
They wanted to know more about local marine biodiversity and the different types of conservation activities available. 72% are already working on biodiversity conservation, but want to do more, and 71% say they are affected by biodiversity loss.
As the United Nations begins its decade of marine science for sustainable development, it will focus on the proper management of the ocean, which covers more than 70% of the Earth’s surface and produces at least 50% of oxygen. I urged you.
According to the U.S. Marine and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), biodiversity loss is accelerating in these habitats, especially on the continental shelf, which provides 90% of fishery production and marine biodiversity, while 80% of the ocean Researchers emphasize that it is not mapped and not explored. ..
Another global problem is pollution, especially with plastic waste, which is increasing with economic and population growth. Plastics make up more than 80% of the garbage dumped in the ocean. While many come from cosmetics and other manufactured products, secondary plastics (small fragments from the breakdown of large debris) are a major problem that exists in all organisms, from plankton to the entire food chain. is.
With an 8,500 km coastline and many different ecosystems, Brazil has one of the largest waters in the world. The shore is used as a model for marine biodiversity research to identify ecological patterns and processes. It is also an important environment from the perspective of monitoring and understanding the response to global warming and other biodiversity threats.
Next step
According to Christofoletti, the next step for researchers is to work with the city of Santos to create a citizen science program. This proposal aims to allow citizen scientists to monitor urban biodiversity, climate change, microplastics, and other issues.
Another initiative, which will begin by the end of this year, is training for school children and teachers to monitor the Santos school area. “For example, the idea is that students look for coastal species and the effects of climate change,” he says.
He is also closely involved in the City of Santos-UNIFESP project to integrate science and public policy. Sustainable development (Observatório da Interfaceentre Ciênciae Políticas Públicasparao Desenvolvimento Sustentável).
Quote: Citizen scientists, Coastal Biodiversity Monitoring (2021) obtained on October 20, 2021 from https: //phys.org/news/2021-10-citizen-scientists-quality-coastal-biodiversity.html Helps to guarantee quality (October 20, 2014)
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