2023-09-28 14:46:10 +00:00
|
|
|
abstract: 'Amateur naturalists have played an important role in the study and
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
conservation of nature since the 17th century. Today, naturalist groups
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
make important contributions to bridge the gap between conservation
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
science and practice around the world. We examined data from 2 regional
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
naturalist programs to understand participant motivations, barriers, and
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
perspectives as well as the actions they take to advance science,
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
stewardship, and community engagement. These programs provide
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
certification-based natural history and conservation science training
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
for adults that is followed by volunteer service in citizen science,
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
education, and stewardship. Studies in California and Virginia include
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
quantitative and qualitative evaluation data collected through pre- and
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
postcourse surveys, interviews, and long-term tracking of volunteer
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
hours. Motivations of participants focused on learning about the local
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
environment and plants and animals, connecting with nature, becoming
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
certified, and spending time with people who have similar interests.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Over half the participants surveyed were over 50 years old, two-thirds
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
were women, and a majority reported household incomes of over \$50,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(60\% in California, 85\% in Virginia), and <20\% of those surveyed in
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
both states described themselves as nonwhite. Thus, these programs need
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
to improve participation by a wider spectrum of the public. We
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
interviewed younger and underrepresented adults to examine barriers to
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
participation in citizen science. The primary barrier was lack of time
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
due to the need to work and focus on career advancement. Survey data
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
revealed that participants'' ecological knowledge, scientific skills, and
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
belief in their ability to address environmental issues increased after
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
training. Documented conservation actions taken by the participants
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
include invasive plant management, habitat restoration, and cleanups of
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
natural areas and streams. Long-term data from Virginia on volunteer
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
hours dedicated to environmental citizen science show an increase from
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
14\% in 2007 to 32\% in 2014. In general, participants in the naturalist
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
programs we examined increased their content knowledge about ecosystems,
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
had greater confidence in conserving them, and continued to engage as
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
citizen scientists after completing the program.'
|
|
|
|
|
affiliation: 'Merenlender, AM (Corresponding Author), Univ Calif Berkeley, Dept Environm
|
|
|
|
|
Sci Policy \& Management, 137 Mulford Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Merenlender, Adina M., Univ Calif Berkeley, Dept Environm Sci Policy \& Management,
|
|
|
|
|
137 Mulford Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Crall, Alycia W.; Prysby, Michelle, Virginia Tech, 460 Stagecoach Rd,Suite E201,
|
|
|
|
|
Charlottesville, VA 22902 USA.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Drill, Sabrina, Los Angeles Ventura Counties, UC Cooperat Extens, 669 Cty Sq Dr,
|
|
|
|
|
Ventura, CA 93003 USA.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ballard, Heidi, Univ Calif Davis, Sch Educ, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA 95616 USA.'
|
|
|
|
|
author: Merenlender, Adina M. and Crall, Alycia W. and Drill, Sabrina and Prysby,
|
|
|
|
|
Michelle and Ballard, Heidi
|
|
|
|
|
author-email: adinam@berkeley.edu
|
|
|
|
|
author_list:
|
|
|
|
|
- family: Merenlender
|
|
|
|
|
given: Adina M.
|
|
|
|
|
- family: Crall
|
|
|
|
|
given: Alycia W.
|
|
|
|
|
- family: Drill
|
|
|
|
|
given: Sabrina
|
|
|
|
|
- family: Prysby
|
|
|
|
|
given: Michelle
|
|
|
|
|
- family: Ballard
|
|
|
|
|
given: Heidi
|
|
|
|
|
da: '2023-09-28'
|
|
|
|
|
doi: 10.1111/cobi.12737
|
|
|
|
|
eissn: 1523-1739
|
|
|
|
|
files: []
|
|
|
|
|
issn: 0888-8892
|
|
|
|
|
journal: CONSERVATION BIOLOGY
|
|
|
|
|
keywords: 'diversity; ecological monitoring; natural history; UC California
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Naturalist; Virginia Master Naturalist; volunteers'
|
|
|
|
|
keywords-plus: VOLUNTEERS; KNOWLEDGE; ATTITUDES; BEHAVIOR; HISTORY
|
|
|
|
|
language: English
|
|
|
|
|
month: DEC
|
|
|
|
|
number: '6'
|
|
|
|
|
number-of-cited-references: '34'
|
|
|
|
|
orcid-numbers: 'Drill, Sabrina/0000-0001-8243-7422
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
MERENLENDER, Adina/0000-0002-0681-8642'
|
|
|
|
|
pages: 1255-1265
|
|
|
|
|
papis_id: 8b5ac80d828a35c1c272023ecba71400
|
|
|
|
|
ref: Merenlender2016evaluatingenvironmen
|
|
|
|
|
times-cited: '69'
|
|
|
|
|
title: Evaluating environmental education, citizen science, and stewardship through
|
|
|
|
|
naturalist programs
|
2023-10-01 08:15:07 +00:00
|
|
|
type: article
|
2023-09-28 14:46:10 +00:00
|
|
|
unique-id: WOS:000387229900012
|
|
|
|
|
usage-count-last-180-days: '3'
|
|
|
|
|
usage-count-since-2013: '224'
|
|
|
|
|
volume: '30'
|
|
|
|
|
web-of-science-categories: Biodiversity Conservation; Ecology; Environmental Sciences
|
|
|
|
|
year: '2016'
|
