Bridging the nature gap: can citizen science reverse the extinction of experience?

Abstract

Opportunities for people to interact with nature have declined over the past century, as many now live in urban areas and spend much of their time indoors. Conservation attitudes and behaviors largely depend on experiences with nature, and this “extinction of experience” (EOE) is a threat to biodiversity conservation. In this paper, we propose that citizen science, an increasingly popular way to integrate public outreach with data collection, can potentially mitigate EOE. Our review of the literature on volunteers’ motivations and/or outcomes indicates that nature‐based citizen science (NBCS) fosters cognitive and emotional aspects of experiences in nature. Although these experiences can change participants’ behaviors and attitudes toward the natural world, this field remains largely unstudied. As such, even though NBCS can complement efforts to increase opportunities for people to interact with nature, further research on the mechanisms that drive this relationship is needed to strengthen our understanding of various outcomes of citizen science.

Engagement in science through citizen science: Moving beyond data collection

“…They also may engage in activities such as knowledge acquisition, use of social media, community involvement, and/or interaction with scientists. With growing claims about the learning outcomes that result from engagement in citizen science (Bonney, Phillips, Ballard, & Enck, ; Schuttler, Sorensen, Jordan, Cooper, & Shwartz, ), empirical research about what constitutes engagement in citizen science is needed.…”

Genetic tagging in the Anthropocene: scaling ecology from alleles to ecosystems

“…), stimulating public interest in wildlife conservation, while offering a powerful approach to democratize science in a widespread manner (Schuttler et al. ).…”

“…Definitions: Camera [No ID], camera trap with unmarked individuals; Camera [ID], camera trap with identifiable individuals; Min.Invasive, minimally invasive sampling; A. Connectivity, apparent connectivity; R. Connectivity, realized connectivity). now collecting hair from a network of bear rub trees in North America's Rocky Mountains Boyce 2016, Lamb et al 2017a), stimulating public interest in wildlife conservation, while offering a powerful approach to democratize science in a widespread manner (Schuttler et al 2018).…”

Artenschwund trotz Naturschutz

“…Die in der Bevölkerung weit verbreitete Liebe zur Natur kann bei der Kommunikation über Naturschutzziele helfen, hierzu muss jedoch der abstrakte Naturbegriff konkretisiert werden, um identifikationsfördernd zu wirken. Besonders Jugendliche und junge Erwachsene benötigen ein breites Naturerfahrungs‐ und Umweltbildungsangebot sowie Möglichkeiten der Freizeitaktivitäten in der Natur, damit gerade die jungen Menschen schon früh die Natur kennenlernen und wertschätzen .…”