Getting Youth involved in Citizen Science
Citizen science describes programs that train non-scientists to collect and report data, which is then used for research. There are many succesful, long-standing examples of citizen science, with one of the oldest being Project Feeder Watch, an initiative through the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
A number of citizen science projects have grown to involve youth either through school enrichment or family involvement. Citizen scientists of all ages describe their experience as being “valuable”, and “time well spent”, and as a result of their involvement they report that they feel better connected to science…just what we are looking for.
Find out more about Youth Citizen Science activities connected to Cornell:
Project FeederWatch
Celebrate Urban Birds
Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network (CoCoRaHS)
Lost Ladybug Project - Searching for ladybugs everywhere
The Great Backyard Bird Count
Galaxy Zoo - Where you can help astronomers explore the Galaxy
Viburnum Leaf Beetle Citizen Science Project
Vegetable Varieties Investigation
Garden Mosaics – Connecting Youth and Elders to investigate…science
Bird Sleuth: Exploring Bird Behavior