SeasonWatch: A citizen science project building awareness about the world around us by observing trees.
As published in Nature inFocus on 30 May, 2019.
How perceptive are we of the changing natural world around us?
The obvious changes, like the change in seasons or temperatures, certainly grab our attention. But apart from these, our world is continuously expressing itself through smaller, seemingly invisible acts. For example, we may notice that the trees on our route to work have flowered. But if someone were to ask us – “Did the trees behave similarly last year?” or “Have the number of flowers changed over time?”, would we be able to give a conclusive answer?
These questions may sound strange, but their intent is far from it. Did you know that nature’s most sensitive responses to climate change manifest themselves in the form of these subtle events like the flowering of trees and migration of birds? This is why phenology, the study of seasonal, natural phenomena with respect to plant and animal life is considered a “leading indicator” of climate change.
If the concept of phenology interests you, then you will be pleased to know that there is a way in which you can contribute to building a repository of information about trees in our country. SeasonWatch, a citizen science programme, encourages people to monitor trees in their nearby areas, and record their observations on the SeasonWatch website or using the SW app. SeasonWatch is a three-way partnership between Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF), National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS) and Wipro Applying Thought in Schools (WATIS). The programme was initiated in 2010 and has so far collected data on 41306 trees. Not only has the programme managed to get citizens noticing the trees in their backyards, but it has also reached out to students in 627 schools across the country, instilling environmental awareness in these young minds.
Read the complete article here.