Quantifying the value of community science data for conservation

Community science, the public participation and collaboration in monitoring and research, is rapidly emerging as an effective means to collect vast quantities of data in a cost-efficient manner. This may prove invaluable to conservation efforts, as using crowd-sourced data to inform decisions can allow managers to redirect limited funds towards action rather than monitoring. My research investigates how integrating community science data with professional monitoring can improve our understanding of how birds make use of agricultural land during migration. Money saved by using the freely available community science data can then be redirected to compensate farmers for taking part in conservation initiatives to benefit these species. My work will explore how we can augment our knowledge of dynamic ecosystems while reducing the cost to do so, benefiting both farmers and biodiversity.

Faculty Supervisor:

Joseph Bennett

Student:

Partner:

University of Queensland

Discipline:

Life Sciences

Sector:

Sustainability & the Environment; Environmental Science and Technology; Agriculture and Food

University:

Carleton University

Program: