Citizen-Science | Growing Data Foundation

Helping the dolphins

Fri, 01 Jan 2021 00:00:00 +0000

In the last few years I have taken a keen interest in the Port River Dolphin Sanctuary and it’s 30 resident dolphins. The dolphins are doing an amazing job of surviving and breeding in a busy river port but it has not been without its fair share of tragedy and loss.

The tech

There is scope for TTN and GDF to step in and set up an environmental monitoring and surveillance system that will measure water quality parameters including temperature, dissolved oxygen and pH. If Marine Rangers and the Port community are able to have real time data on when water quality drops or if a pollution event occurs, they will be able to respond quickly to any harmful events.

A way to help

There have been reports of people actively harassing and hurting the dolphins and some of these magnificent animals have been found with wounds on their bodies from bullets, spears and impacts with fast moving objects such as boats and jet ski’s.

There is also evidence of dolphins dying from living in a heavily polluted environment. That being said, the Port River is definitely a lot healthier and less polluted than it has been in the past, but there is still plenty of room for improvement.

I am hoping there is group of similarly concerned people out there who would like to work on this project so we can help protect the Port River Dolphins. We certainly have the technology to get this project happening – we just need a core group of committed people to kick start the project. Who’s in?

Thanks
Sam

What Grows Here – Best for Bees

Fri, 01 Jan 2021 00:00:00 +0000

What Grows Here — Best for Bees extends the original What Grows Here? flora identification project with a focus on plants that support native bee populations and other pollinators.

Building on the app developed for the 2014 GovHack competition, the Best for Bees initiative adds curated plant data identifying species known to provide habitat, forage and nesting resources for South Australia’s native bees. The project supports home gardeners, land managers and schools in making planting decisions that benefit local pollinator communities.

The project

Users can search for native plants suitable to their location that are also recognised as pollinator-friendly. Plant records are drawn from the State Flora Catalogue and the Atlas of Living Australia, with additional bee-habitat data sourced from research partners.

The tech

The project uses the open What Grows Here? data platform, extended with pollinator trait data. All data is published openly and the application source code is available on GitHub.

About

Native bees are critical pollinators for Australian ecosystems and agriculture. Unlike European honeybees, most Australian native bees are solitary and depend on diverse native plant communities for survival. The Best for Bees project aims to make it easy for anyone to contribute to native pollinator conservation through informed planting choices.

What lives here?

Fri, 01 Jan 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Old trees with hollows that animals rely on are disappearing and as a result some species are dying out. Providing nesting boxes is a start but to truly protect threatened species we need to know more. We use technology to monitor, measure and return data to inform future decisions.

Connect with nature

Biophilia is a human condition that refers to our deep connection to nature. Rather than using technology to disconnect, we are using it to satisfy and strengthen connections of human with nature.

The tech

In tandem with this project, we are looking at setting up an Adelaide LowRaWAN™ network (The Things Network). The advantage of this technology for Maker and citizen science projects is that it allows ‘things’ to talk to the internet without 3G or WiFi – no WiFi codes and no mobile subscriptions – meaning that if a box is located in a remote area; data can still be obtained on conditions, effectiveness… or whatever it is you are measuring/monitoring.

About

Biodiversity underpins everything we do. The world is rapidly urbanising. The environments and homes that organisms share with humans are changing.

Councils and non-government organisations install nesting boxes at great cost. Nesting boxes can provide homes to animals like possums and birds. But – how do where the nesting boxes are being used by these animals? How do we know we have we installed the boxes in the best places? Nesting boxes are only the first part of the story.

We will use sensors and technology to monitor and measure if the boxes are being used. This data will also inform how we set up nesting boxes in the future – and where we place them. To ensure that nesting boxes are doing their job, we will use software, databases and hardware technology like: sensors; bluetooth; LowRaWAN™; wireless networks; Raspberry Pi; andWioLink.

People will be able to see if animals are using the nesting boxes in parks, urban environments – and in their own back yards. Data collected from the nestings boxes will be made available openly for others to use in their own prjects, learning – or out of curiosity.

Scientists and citizen science projects will be able to use the data to inform and plan their projects. Schools could use the nesting boxes and resulting data for projects and learning – for example in science, mathematics, geography.

Helping the dolphins

Thu, 01 Aug 2019 00:00:00 +0000

The tech

A way to help

Thanks
Sam

What lives here?

Mon, 01 Apr 2019 00:00:00 +0000

Connect with nature

Biophilia is a human condition that refers to our deep connection to nature. Rather than using technology to disconnect, we are using it to satisfy and strengthen connections of human with nature.

The tech

About

Biodiversity underpins everything we do. The world is rapidly urbanising. The environments and homes that organisms share with humans are changing.