Project BudBurst

This initiative is designed to galvanise members of the public (of all ages) in conducting research about climate change, and in sharing this information - through the use of an interactive website - with others. In short, by drawing on the participation of people who are privy to potentially useful data (e.g., in their backyards), the thought is that scientists can learn about the responses of individual plant species to climatic variation locally, regionally, and nationally as part of their quest to detect longer-term impacts of climate change.

In-person events were central in "kicking off" the campaign. According to organisers, the 2007 inaugural event "drew thousands of people of all ages taking careful observations of the phenological events such as the first bud burst, first leafing, first flower, and seed or fruit dispersal of a diversity of tree and flower species, including weeds and ornamentals. The citizen science observations and records were entered into the BudBurst data base."

This effort to foster understanding of how the biosphere is changing by bringing local knowledge into scientists' observations is facilitated through an interactive the website. Here, participants can access various guides to provide them with the necessary information to conduct research - such as by beginning to check their plants at least a week prior to the average date of budburst, and then continuing to observe the tree or flower for later events, such as the first leaf, first flower and, eventually, seed dispersal. When participants submit their records online, they can view maps of these phenological events across the United States. The project website suggests more than 60 widely distributed trees and flowers for citizen scientists to observe, with information on each; users may add their own choices. A Project BudBurst email list offers updates and announcements.

In addition to the dedicated student and teacher sections of the project website that provide ideas for classroom activities, the use of rewards and recognition is a feature of this initiative. For instance, during the week of Earth Day (April 22) 2008, Project BudBurst collaborated with the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) to engage children and youth in IGES' Annual Earth Day Photo Contest. Middle school students were invited (through a call for participation on the Project BudBurst website) to take a photograph of the plants that are changing in their local environment, and then to research and write a scientific explanation.

Environment.

Organisers explain that many species are being affected by climate change throughout the world. For instance, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicts that 20 to 30 percent of all plant and animal species that researchers study will likely be at increased risk of extinction, should global temperatures rise by between 2.7 and 4.5 degrees Fahrenheit this century.