Together, we will move the world forward.
We all share the same, single beautiful planet, as this image from Apollo 17 reminds us. As we inch closer to the distant light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel, it’s easier to appreciate how every single one of us contributes to the millions of acts of love and sacrifice to protect each other. Pretty amazing.
Citizen science invokes a similar spirit of collective action. Through citizen science, we collectively protect the planet and all of its guests.
The beauty of citizen science is that it provides pathways so we can re-examine our world — from microbes in our bodies or on our phones, to insects in our homes, to animals and plants in nature, to emerging galaxies in space — and re-discover our place in it, all while helping scientists answer questions they cannot answer without us.
Below, our editors feature 10 ways to get started. Find thousands of events and projects on SciStarter.org leading up to, during, and after Earth Day on April 22.
Here’s to you for all you do!
The SciStarter Team
Join one of THREE projects from home to help scientists fight COVID-19. Learn how to identify behaviors that influence risk; crowdsource the COVID-19 pandemic in real time; and play an online game to fold and design proteins for scientific research!
Don’t worry! The project scientists joined Discover Magazine and SciStarter to explain their projects and step you through instructions to join and participate. Find the video of their discussion and links to their projects on SciStarter.org/COVID-19.
Monitor light pollution by counting stars above you, track streaks in the sky from satellites, or trace galaxies to help astronomers measure how tightly wrapped spiral arms are (it’s easier than it sounds).
Each of THREE project scientist joined Astronomy Magazine and SciStarter to explain their projects and provide step-by-step instructions to get involved from home. Find the video of their discussion and links to their projects on SciStarter.org/AstronomyMag.
It’s Citizen Science Month AND National Library Week! Libraries are quickly becoming community hubs for citizen science…even online!
Librarians from the National Network of Libraries of Medicine and from public and research libraries will highlight ways to access free resources from your library, online, including the Field Guide to Citizen Science ebook and Earth Day materials.
April 21, 5 PM ET
Go on safari from your couch to view online images from camera traps and help scientists identify and protect the animals you see!
Princeton University Library and SciStarter invite you to join us for this online event with the project’s scientists who will talk about her project to monitor wildlife populations and help us get involved in real-time.
April 22, 12 PM ET
Join the NY Botanical Garden and learn how to create your own Wikipedia account, and then get busy improving the biographical information on important female scientists!
Then, view and help curate the contents of the NY Botanical Garden’s digital herbarium, set up your own local phenology site for Nature’s Notebook, and join EcoQuest Challenges with iNaturalist.
We’ll talk you through each step, in real-time! Create your free SciStarter account before this event.
April 25, 2 PM ET
Join Jill Nugent from SciStarter and Mary Ford from National Geographic Education to learn about projects you and your family can do from almost anywhere.
These projects include free resources to support science learning.
The event will feature 2019 NatGeo Education Fellows who have created How To videos to make it easier than ever to fully participate in ciitzen science!
April 30, 8 PM ET
This new frame let’s you share your love for citizen science AND help your Facebook friends easily find opportunities to get involved in thousands of projects leading up to, during, and after Earth Day!
Tag “@SciStarter” on Facebook and use the #CitSciMonth and #CitizenScience hashtags for a chance to win a free copy of The Field Guide to Citizen Science book.
Learn to identify pollinators while coloring. Then, participate in The Great Sunflower project using any flowering plant near you.
Discover more citizen science on the SciStarter calendar. Did you know your SciStarter dashboard helps you track your contributions to projects? Complete your profile to access free tools. Want even more citizen science? Check out SciStarter’s Project Finder! With citizen science projects spanning every field of research, task and age group, there’s something for everyone!
