Author Archives: Liz Crew

Citizen science for local schools

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A key part of the Bioblitz is the first part of day one when we involve local schools in identifying wildlife at the site.  It’s important to us that local pupils visit so they get an opportunity to make the most of their nearby green spaces.

It’s well known that people with access to good quality green spaces have better mental and physical health and by having an opportunity to be involved in such a big science project, we hope to encourage the next generation of scientists.

So this month we’ve been starting to make contact with some local schools to secure their involvement in the project.  Early indications are encouraging, but we need to keep in contact to ensure we get the right number of people joining in on the day.

Long in the Planning

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Well here we are, it’s the middle of January and it’s about three and a half months until the day of the Bioblitz.

Organizing an event like this takes more than an afternoon so, despite the recent bad weather, the day sees the main organisers:  Dave and Jules from KWAG, Ben, Matt and Savita from BNHC, Liz from EV, Bill from the National Trust and Michael from English Heritage, stomping around the whole site to work out where activities will be carried out.

We all walked about three miles around the estate, slipping down snowy hills, climbing over stiles and then encountering fallen trees in the woods but at the end of it we all had a better idea of how the BioBlitz would work on site.

Now for the detailed planning.