“I have no special talents,
I am merely passionately curious”
-Albert Einstein
Its April and its Citizen Science Month, so what does that mean?
For us up here in the land of ice and snow and Polar Bears it means being a keen observer to change as we record what we see, process what we collect as data and wonder how it all relates to the bigger picture. That is what science is for- assimilating all the drops in the bucket to see trends and paint a picture around our changing climate and diminishing ice.
Sifting through all the data that is out there on climate change is a bit daunting for all of us. Curiosity is the only ingredient needed to understand the facts- so let us all keep asking the questions as citizen scientists. This is where YOU come in.
Whether it is the rotation of distant planets, stars and moons around one another or the episodes of weather, plants and animals closer to home, observable natural cycles are abundant around us. Nature can be found everywhere- a park, a field, a backyard, a forest or wetland and this is where you connect to the land and this is where you can have hands-on observations of science as a citizen scientist.
Check out: www.CSA.org or www.scistarter.org for some projects- just pick one that seems doable from where you live.
Life and work at Bamsebu
Our life and work here has been challenging with hurricane winds, cold toes and fingers, batteries that freeze quickly, blowing snow, limited visibility and during the aurora photography we have the added challenge of Polar bears in long Polar Night. We had to stay alert and vigilant all the time. We took on 9 projects in 19 months as “citizen scientists” with heavy equipment, detailed protocol to follow for Ice core drilling for UNIS, Phytoplankton & Saltwater collecting for Scripps-Fjordphyto, Drone flights for BCIT, Wildlife Observation & Fulmar Dissection (for microplastics in their stomach) for NPI, Cloud and Aurora observation for NASA in addition to collecting plastic along the shoreline, and Polar Bear poop & kelp samples.
Connecting with youth around the world
We have managed to connect with 100,000 youth around the world through our live video calls joining experts, students and us from our remote Bamsebu to share engaging interactive content on Climate change topics & how Citizen science is for everyone. To stay passionately curious is to stay forever young and relevant. When you start to explore your own backyard and the changes it creates a connection to your community and a desire to look for solutions.
From climate despair into climate optimism
Our goal has always been to bridge the gap in understanding between science and ordinary people, to take people out of Climate despair, a form of depression, and into Climate optimism which is all about hope and action.
The countdown is on
We have 5 live calls left before we leave Bamsebu so please help us spread the word and join us on one of our calls. Hope to see you on one or all of the dates below!
Love from Sunniva, Hilde & Ettra
LIVE SATELLITE CALLS IN APRIL – Mark your calendar:
Read about all the live calls for April here.
Dr.David Suzuki – Scientist, Author
April 8th 12PM EST /9AM PST
Kim Holmen – International Director of the Norwegian Polar Institute
April 15th 12PM EST /9AM PST
Nicole Rycroft – Founder/Executive Director, Canopy
April 22nd 12PM EST /9AM PST
LIVE SATELLITE CALLS IN MAY- Mark your calendar:
Read about all the live calls for May here.
Wade Davis – Ethnographer and National Geographic Explorer
May 6th 12PM EST /9AM PST
Jane Goodall, DBE | Founder – the Jane Goodall Institute & UN Messenger of Peace
May 13th 12PM EST /9AM PST
This will be the FINAL CALL from Bamsebu. Join us for a Global Call to Action!
SIGN UP FOR ALL LIVE CALLS
Sign up and join our calls here
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