In 2019, history student Rodrigo Gómez 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 So Paulo in Santos. Rice field. Coast of Sao Paulo, Brazil. They signed up for the project, attended workshops and received on-site training. “I was very fortunate to be in touch with my professor and learn a lot about the maintenance of nature,” says Gomez, who is now a citizen scientist. “It means a lot to keep the project going and get other people involved.”
It is this integration of science and public participation that the United Nations aims to bring about in the Decade of Marine Science for Sustainable Development, which began in April 2021 and continued through 2030. This was included in a study Gomez participated in, Participatory Monitoring – Citizen Science Approaches to Coastal Environments.
The survey was conducted in collaboration with the Public Policy Research Program (PPPP) in association with FAPESP. Articles on research showing how science and citizenship can work together oceanography frontier..
As a result, methodologies have been developed to integrate civil society and academia. This includes developing protocols for monitoring coastal biodiversity. citizens and scientists.
“The project yielded practical results by monitoring the rocky coastal area of Santos and building and validating a methodology for use in that area. Citizen science is on the rise and there is much debate about what this means, including These include exchanges that provide technology to people, as opposed to civilian volunteers and collaboration in the collection of scientific data. Think more deeply about training and citizenship,” said a researcher at IMAR-UNIFESP and one of the studies. Principal investigator Ronaldo Cristoforetti said.
The group aims to develop methods 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 edition “Cultura Oscica Para Todos”) into Brazilian Portuguese and the “Mare de Cienia” (“Tide of Science”). Will happen. A program aimed at facilitating innovative forms of interaction between the scientific community, society and public policy.
According to Paula Kasten, a biologist trained during the project, the next step was to train new citizen scientists to continue monitoring exercises on Ulbuksaba Island and other parts of the Santos Metropolitan Area (Bayshada Santista). ) to expand. Including Guarja. The area has the island’s only natural rocky shoreline and was the research site of choice by the group. “One of the challenges is keeping participants interested,” says Kasten.
Gomez also stressed the difficulty of this effort. “I’ve noticed that sometimes I lack commitment. Some people complain about my distance from academia, but I don’t necessarily attend when it’s difficult. I’m at the scene on Sunday mornings It’s not easy to collect, but you’re really happy with what you did afterward,” says a citizen scientist.
“Birth” of Methodology
In 2019, five workshops were conducted for 51 citizen scientists, of whom 51% were women. Most of the participants (62%) were 18–33 years old. They included, among other things, graduates, 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 “Capturing Our Coast” project. The project trained nearly 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.
Adapted to the situation in the Santos region, the workshop refers to the project and the role of local communities in overseeing group participation is discussed. They took volunteers to the scene to explain theoretical concepts related to rocky coast ecology and monitoring methods, and to practice the application of the protocol.
This requires the definition of the species’ habitat and the measurement of areas (encircling coastal areas for continuous monitoring and sampling). The main organisms examined were mussels, oysters, barnacles and algae.
The results of a survey conducted by citizen scientists were compared with data collected by professional researchers. Validation trials show that participatory programs are a reliable source of science data about coastal biodiversity.
Citizen scientists have learned to identify species in the same way as experts, but researchers have adjusted protocols to train them to work better, especially with regard to the identification of more complex coastal fauna. It stresses the need.
They also proved that they could recognize major threats to marine biodiversity, regardless of occupation or educational background. The majority traced the problems to water and air pollution (98.4%). Intensive agriculture, deforestation, excessive fishing (96.7%); Human disasters (91.9%) and climate change (62.9%).
They wanted to learn more about the local marine biodiversity and the variety 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 Oceanography for Sustainable Development, it will focus on proper management of the ocean, which covers more than 70% of the Earth’s surface and produces at least 50% of its oxygen. does. I requested you.
According to the US Marine and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the loss of biodiversity is accelerating in these habitats, particularly on the continental shelf, which provides 90% of fish production and marine biodiversity, while 80% of ocean researchers are concerned. But insist that it is not mapped. and did not search. ..
Another global problem is pollution, especially from plastic waste, which is increasing with economic and population growth. Plastic accounts for more than 80% of the waste thrown into the ocean. While many come from cosmetics and other manufactured products, secondary plastics (small pieces from the breakdown of larger debris) are a major problem present in all organisms from plankton to the entire food chain. Is.
With 8,500 km of coastline and many different ecosystems, Brazil has some of the largest water bodies in the world. The coast 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 Cristofoletti, the next step for the researchers is to work with the city of Santos to create a citizen science program. The proposal aims to allow citizen scientists to monitor urban biodiversity, climate change, microplastics and other issues.
Another initiative to be launched by the end of this year is training for school children and teachers to supervise 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 involved in the City of Santos-UNIFESP project to integrate science and public policy. Sustainable Development (Observatorio da Interferentre Cincia Politicas Publicsparao Descenvolvimento Sustantavale).
for more information:
Paula Kasten et al, Participatory Monitoring – Citizen Science Approaches to Coastal Environments, oceanography frontier (2021). DOI: 10.3389/fmars.2021.681969
Citation Helps to guarantee quality obtained from: Citizen Scientist, Coastal Biodiversity Monitoring (2021) October 20, 2021 at https://phys.org/news/2021-10-citizen-scientists-quality-coastal-biodiversity.html is (October 20, 2014)