City Nature Challenge: Boston Area - Participating organizations: don't forget to register!
Claire O'Neill
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Hello CNC Boston Area Participating Organizations!
The City Nature Challenge: Boston Area Steering Committee is super excited as we gear up for this year’s CNC, which has become a large global effort! If you haven’t connected with us this year about participating, please do so via this Google form. In 2021, we are again taking a place-based focus encouraging everyone to document biodiversity encouraging a stay-local focus. In 2020, while we had fewer overall observations, we increased the number of species documented by 200 species!
This year’s CNC will run from April 30 - May 9, with April 30 - May 3 being the observation phase and May 4 - May 9, 2021 being our time to help improve identification in the CNC. We will once again be documenting biodiversity within the I-495 corridor, out to Stellwagen Bank, and include Cape Cod and islands.
For 2021, we will build on the success of a place-based focus to document biodiversity and encourage you to keep it local and safe! Go slow and steady to explore in detail the biodiversity near you. We will continue to use iNaturalist to record observations and tally results. However you participate, we want to support your efforts.
Resources: We have science quests to delve deeper, an Education Toolkit to help you engage others, and attached are some sample flyers (See below for Promotional Guidelines please use the organizer logos from our international organizers). Our website has been updated for 2021 and is ready to list your group as a participating organization - just let us know! Check the 2021 videos explaining What is the City Nature Challenge? And How to use iNaturalist for the 2021 CNC - A Beginner’s Guide.
Ready to join as a participating organization? Please register your organization with us by completing this google form (if you haven’t already) to let us know you are participating. Here are a few examples of how you can become a participating organizations in the 2021 CNC in the Boston Area:
Spread the word! Send out information about the CNC to your member or volunteer lists.
Plan an event or incorporate the CNC into your existing events. Encourage involvement virtually or in safe ways as outlined by your organization respecting local health guidelines. While we aren’t hosting an event calendar this year - feel free to tag us on social media and we’ll help spread the word. (@bostoncnc on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram)
Help make IDs during the observation (April 30- May 3) and the identification periods (May 4 - May 9). The more observations we identify to species level, the bigger our tally!
Make use of the data collected by the CNC to help your conservation, management or research efforts. Check out this quick video from Dr. Corey Callaghan highlighting how data from the CNC: Boston Area has been used so far!
If you’re an educator (formal or informal) let us help you get youth involved with our Education Toolkit! This includes NGSS-aligned pre-, during, and post-event materials.
Join the 2021 Boston Area iNaturalist project today and stay tuned for more information. If you have any concerns or suggestions for this year, please contact us. We look forward to hearing from and working with you! Please fill out the google form to register as a participating organization as soon as you can! Feel free to reach out directly to me with questions.
Virtual Events: We plan on hosting daily zoom meetings during the CNC hosted by members of the Steering Committee and Participating Organizations. The registration links for those interested will be available shortly. If your organization would like to host a zoom let us know!
Promotional Guidelines: We are so thankful for your participation in the CNC. Feel free to adapt any of the materials found here (and attached) for your own needs. When accessing the google folder, please make a copy of any of the editable files prior to customizing (a PDF is attached). We’ve included the CNC: Boston Area logo for use in your promotional materials. The only requirement in advertising is that you please include the international organizer logo lock-up on any thing you produce. The lock-up features the logos of the California Academy of Sciences and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles (CNC_International-Org-Lockup_BW.jpg). As the originators of this great event - please give them credit. We would love it if you can also use the Steering Committee logo banner - but no worries if there just isn’t space for so much organizational love.
Otherwise be well, keep an eye on the natural world, and share your observations on iNat!
The 2021 CNC Steering Committee
Colleen Hitchcock, Brandeis University
Claire O’Neill, Earthwise Aware
Rob Stevenson, University of Massachusetts Boston
Courtney Ready and John Anderson, Zoo New England
Peter Burn, Suffolk University
Pam DiBona, MassBays National Estuary Partnership
Stan Rullman and Mark Chandler, Earthwatch Institute
