scholarly journals ‘My new routine’: Assessing the impact of citizen science on climate adaptation in Bangladesh

2019 ◽  
Vol 94 ◽  
pp. 245-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Bremer ◽  
M. Mahfujul Haque ◽  
Saifullah Bin Aziz ◽  
S. Kvamme
Keyword(s):  
Citizen Science ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
The Impact

scholarly journals COVID-19 Pandemic Turns Life-Science Students into “Citizen Scientists”: Data Indicate Multiple Negative Effects of Urbanization on Biota

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 2992
Author(s):  
Jens Schirmel
Keyword(s):  
Citizen Science ◽  
Online Teaching ◽  
Teaching Strategy ◽  
Ecosystem Functions ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Ecological Data ◽  
Pollinating Insects ◽  
Impact Of Urbanization ◽  
Data Collections ◽  
The Impact

The COVID-19 pandemic and its restrictions strongly affect the higher education community and require diverse teaching strategies. We designed a course where we combined online teaching with independently conducted ecological data collections by students using a “citizen science” approach. The aim was to analyze the impact of urbanization on biota by comparing urban and rural grasslands. Seventy-five students successfully conducted the data collections and the results provide evidence for prevailing negative effects of urbanization. Individual numbers of ground-dwelling invertebrates (−25%) and pollinating insects (−33%) were generally lower in urban sites. Moreover, animal and seed predation were reduced in urban grasslands, indicating the potential of urbanization to alter ecosystem functions. Despite the general limitations of online teaching and citizen science approaches, outcomes of this course showed this combination can be a useful teaching strategy, which is why this approach could be used to more actively involve students in scientific research.

scholarly journals The impact of data quality filtering of opportunistic citizen science data on species distribution model performance

2021 ◽  
Vol 444 ◽  
pp. 109453
Author(s):  
Camille Van Eupen ◽  
Dirk Maes ◽  
Marc Herremans ◽  
Kristijn R.R. Swinnen ◽  
Ben Somers ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Data Quality ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Species Distribution ◽  
Species Distribution Model ◽  
Model Performance ◽  
Distribution Model ◽  
Science Data ◽  
Quality Filtering ◽  
The Impact

scholarly journals Citizen Science Tools Reveal Changes in Estuarine Water Quality Following Demolition of Buildings

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 1683
Author(s):  
Nandini Menon ◽  
Grinson George ◽  
Rajamohananpillai Ranith ◽  
Velakandy Sajin ◽  
Shreya Murali ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Dissolved Oxygen ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Secchi Depth ◽  
Lake Water Quality ◽  
Demolition Waste ◽  
Water Colour ◽  
Water Quality Variables ◽  
The Impact

Turbidity and water colour are two easily measurable properties used to monitor pollution. Here, we highlight the utility of a low-cost device—3D printed, hand-held Mini Secchi disk (3DMSD) with Forel-Ule (FU) colour scale sticker on its outer casing—in combination with a mobile phone application (‘TurbAqua’) that was provided to laymen for assessing the water quality of a shallow lake region after demolition of four high-rise buildings on the shores of the lake. The demolition of the buildings in January 2020 on the banks of a tropical estuary—Vembanad Lake (a Ramsar site) in southern India—for violation of Indian Coastal Regulation Zone norms created public uproar, owing to the consequences of subsequent air and water pollution. Measurements of Secchi depth and water colour using the 3DMSD along with measurements of other important water quality variables such as temperature, salinity, pH, and dissolved oxygen (DO) using portable instruments were taken for a duration of five weeks after the demolition to assess the changes in water quality. Paired t-test analyses of variations in water quality variables between the second week of demolition and consecutive weeks up to the fifth week showed that there were significant increases in pH, dissolved oxygen, and Secchi depth over time, i.e., the impact of demolition waste on the Vembanad Lake water quality was found to be relatively short-lived, with water clarity, colour, and DO returning to levels typical of that period of year within 4–5 weeks. With increasing duration after demolition, there was a general decrease in the FU colour index to 17 at most stations, but it did not drop to 15 or below, i.e., towards green or blue colour indicating clearer waters, during the sampling period. There was no significant change in salinity from the second week to the fifth week after demolition, suggesting little influence of other factors (e.g., precipitation or changes in tidal currents) on the inferred impact of demolition waste. Comparison with pre-demolition conditions in the previous year (2019) showed that the relative changes in DO, Secchi depth, and pH were very high in 2020, clearly depicting the impact of demolition waste on the water quality of the lake. Match-ups of the turbidity of the water column immediately before and after the demolition using Sentinel 2 data were in good agreement with the in situ data collected. Our study highlights the power of citizen science tools in monitoring lakes and managing water resources and articulates how these activities provide support to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets on Health (Goal 3), Water quality (Goal 6), and Life under the water (Goal 14).

Impact of extreme hydrological perturbation on sediment distribution from source to sink, PETM, Spain.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marine Prieur ◽  
Alexander C. Whittaker ◽  
Fritz Schlunegger ◽  
Tor O. Sømme ◽  
Jean Braun ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Depositional Environments ◽  
Lead Author ◽  
Current Increase ◽  
Sediment Distribution ◽  
Current Climate ◽  
Source To Sink ◽  
The Impact

<p>Sedimentary dynamics and fluxes are influenced by both autogenic and allogenic forcings. A better understanding of the evolution of sedimentary systems through time and space requires us to decipher, and therefore to characterise, the impact of each of these on the Earth’s landscape. Given the current increase in the concentration of atmospheric carbon, studying the impact of rapid and global climate changes is of particular importance at the present time. Such events have been clearly defined in the geologic record. Among them, the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) has been extensively studied worldwide and represents a possible analogue of the rapid current climate warming.</p><p>The present project focuses on the Southern Pyrenees (Spain) where excellent exposures of the Paleocene-Eocene interval span a large range of depositional environments from continental to deep-marine. These conditions allow us to collect data along the whole depositional system in order to document changes in sediment fluxes and paleohydraulic conditions. Because hydrological conditions have an impact on sediment transport through hydrodynamics, paleoflow reconstructions can shed light on changes in sediment dynamics. This information is reconstructed from the statistical distributions of channel morphologies, characteristic system dimensions including bankfull channel depth and width, and grain-sizes.</p><p>With this approach, our aim is to provide both qualitative and quantitative assessments of the magnitude and extent of the perturbation of sedimentary fluxes along an entire source-to-sink system during an episode of extreme climate change. This will lead to a better understanding of the impact of abrupt climate change on earth surface systems in mid-latitudinal areas, with possible implications for current climate adaptation policy.</p><p>This research is carried out in the scope of the lead author’s PhD project and is part of the S2S-FUTURE European Marie Skłodowska-Curie ITN (Grant Agreement No 860383).</p>

scholarly journals The impact of outdoor lighting on ecosystem function – gaining information with a Citizen Science approach using a questionnaire

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Schroer Sibylle ◽  
Felsmann Katja ◽  
Hölker Franz ◽  
Mummert Stephan ◽  
Monaghan Michael ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Citizen Science ◽  
Ecosystem Function ◽  
Science Approach ◽  
The Impact

Promote Nature-Based Solutions to adapt the environment to climate change – The LIFE ARTISAN project

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre-Antoine Versini ◽  
Daniel Schertzer ◽  
Mathilde Loury
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
Low Flow ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Adaptation To Climate Change ◽  
Relevant Alternatives ◽  
Institutional Contexts ◽  
Research And Education ◽  
The Impact

<p>Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) appear as some relevant alternatives to mitigate the consequences of climate change. For this reason, they are promoted for the implementation of the national plan for adaptation to climate change (PNACC) in France, in line with the Paris Agreement, the strategy of the European Union for adaptation to climate change and the French national strategy for biodiversity.</p><p>Nevertheless, this ambitious goal of democratizing NBS poses some institutional and technical challenges because many obstacles remain to their implementation. Overcoming these shortcomings is the objective of the LIFE integrated project called ARTISAN (Achieving Resiliency by Triggering Implementation of nature-based Solutions for climate Adaptation at a National scale). Coordinated by the French Biodiversity Office (OFB), its consortium regroups several local authorities, technical, research and education institutes.</p><p>For this purpose, ARTISAN is creating a framework promoting the implementation of NBS by improving scientific and technical knowledge about them, then by developing and disseminating relevant tools for project leaders (for the design, sizing, implementation and evaluation of ecosystem performance).</p><p>To demonstrate that NBS can respond to a diversity of climatic, ecological and institutional contexts, 10 pilot sites will be monitored in metropolitan and overseas France. The concerned issues are for example the reduction of urban heat island by the de-waterproofing of the public space, the limitation of the impact of cyclonic episodes on the urbanized coastline overseas by promoting the restoration of the mangrove, and the decrease of agricultural water stress during the low flow period by the hydromorphological restoration of wetlands. These pilot sites will serve to develop, improve and validate operational tools, methods and trainings devoted to practitioners.</p>

Uncertainty and sensitivity analysis for natural risk and adaptation appraisal modeling with CLIMADA

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chahan M. Kropf ◽  
Alessio Ciullo ◽  
Simona Meiler ◽  
Laura Otth ◽  
Jamie W. McCaughey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sensitivity Analysis ◽  
Green Infrastructure ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
Damage Model ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Natural Risk ◽  
Impact Function ◽  
Uncertainty And Sensitivity Analysis ◽  
Global Uncertainty ◽  
The Impact

<p>Modelling societal, ecological, and economic costs of natural hazards in the context of climate change is subject to both strong aleatoric and ethical uncertainty. Dealing with these is challenging on several levels – from the identification and the quantification of the sources of uncertainty to their proper inclusion in the modelling, and the communication of these in a tangible way to both experts and non-experts. One particularly useful approach is global uncertainty and sensitivity analysis, which can help to quantify the confidence in the output values and identify the main drivers of the uncertainty while considering potential correlations in the model. Here we present applications of global uncertainty analysis, robustness quantification, and sensitivity analysis in natural hazard modelling using the new uncertainty module of the CLIMADA (CLIMate ADAptation) platform.</p><p>CLIMADA is a fully open-source Python program that implements a probabilistic multi-hazard global natural catastrophe damage model, which also calculates averted damage (benefit) thanks to adaptation measures of any kind (from grey to green infrastructure, behavioral, etc.). With the new uncertainty module, one can directly and comprehensively inspect the uncertainty and sensitivity to input variables of various output metrics, such as the spatial distribution of risk exceedance probabilities, or the benefit-cost ratios of different adaptation measures. This global approach does reveal interesting parameter interplays and might provide valuable input for decision-makers. For instance, a study of the geospatial distribution of sensitivity indices for tropical cyclones damage indicated that the main driver of uncertainty in dense regions (e.g. cities) is the impact function (vulnerability), whereas in sparse regions it is the exposure (asset) layer. </p><p>CLIMADA: https://github.com/CLIMADA-project/climada_python </p><p>(1) Aznar-Siguan, G. et al., GEOSCI MODEL DEV. 12, 7 (2019) 3085–97<br>(2) Bresch, D. N. and Aznar-Siguan., G.,  GEOSCI MODEL DEV. (2020), 1–20.</p>

scholarly journals Crop adaptation to climate change as a consequence of long-term breeding

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rod J. Snowdon ◽  
Benjamin Wittkop ◽  
Tsu-Wei Chen ◽  
Andreas Stahl
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
Major Gene ◽  
Stress Constraints ◽  
Crop Productivity ◽  
Yield Stability ◽  
Adaptation To Climate Change ◽  
Conventional Breeding ◽  
The Impact

AbstractMajor global crops in high-yielding, temperate cropping regions are facing increasing threats from the impact of climate change, particularly from drought and heat at critical developmental timepoints during the crop lifecycle. Research to address this concern is frequently focused on attempts to identify exotic genetic diversity showing pronounced stress tolerance or avoidance, to elucidate and introgress the responsible genetic factors or to discover underlying genes as a basis for targeted genetic modification. Although such approaches are occasionally successful in imparting a positive effect on performance in specific stress environments, for example through modulation of root depth, major-gene modifications of plant architecture or function tend to be highly context-dependent. In contrast, long-term genetic gain through conventional breeding has incrementally increased yields of modern crops through accumulation of beneficial, small-effect variants which also confer yield stability via stress adaptation. Here we reflect on retrospective breeding progress in major crops and the impact of long-term, conventional breeding on climate adaptation and yield stability under abiotic stress constraints. Looking forward, we outline how new approaches might complement conventional breeding to maintain and accelerate breeding progress, despite the challenges of climate change, as a prerequisite to sustainable future crop productivity.

scholarly journals Citizen as Sensors' Commitment in Urban Public Action

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 42-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gwendoline l'Her ◽  
Myriam Servières ◽  
Daniel Siret
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Urban Air Quality ◽  
Urban Air ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Action ◽  
Quality Issue ◽  
Data Analyses ◽  
The Impact

Based on a case study in Rennes, the article presents how a group of urban public actors re-uses methods and technology from citizen sciences to raise the urban air quality issue in the public debate. The project gives a group of inhabitants the opportunity to follow air quality training and proceed PM2.5µm measurements. The authors question the impact of the ongoing hybridisation between citizen science and urban public action on participants' commitment. The authors present how the use of PM2.5-sensors during 11 weeks led to a disengagement phenomenon, even if the authors observe a strong participation to workshops. These results come from an interdisciplinary methodology using observations, interviews, and data analyses.

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