What
Free citizen science workshops on beach litter data collection
Backed by the Ministry for the Environment, and working alongside Department of Conservation and Statistics New Zealand, our multi-award winning charity Sustainable Coastlines is delivering a project to create grassroots solutions to litter in Aotearoa.
As part of this project, we are offering free training workshops for individuals and groups who would like to take part in ongoing litter data collection on their local coastline. The workshop will pass on the skills in surveying, data collection, and Health & Safety that will allow you to play an important part in this long-term effort.
This “Citizen Science” project will allow you to contribute data to New Zealand’s first national beach litter database, meaning that the information collected reaches those that need it for decision-making.
In terms of the level of commitment required from your group, the project is ongoing and ideally each of the monitoring sites will be surveyed a minimum of 4 times per year, for at least the next 3 years. We are setting up 108 sites like these around Aotearoa and this long-term data will play a critical role in proving the litter problem and helping to prioritise solutions.
We will be working around the following towns and regions during the dates listed below, and would love to organise a free Citizen Science workshop specifically for your group during these dates. Simply click ‘Book workshop’ to email our friendly team with a date that works for you. Find out more about the project and the workshops in the sections below.
Workshop details
Date: We’ll arrange a workshop specifically for your group. Just let us know the date and time that suits best within the dates that we’re in your region.
Timing: 3-4 hours.
Location(s): We will run a 2-hour workshop session at a nearby indoor space of your choosing, eg surf club, community centre, marae etc, followed by a Litter Survey at a local beach / coast that you would like to collect data from on an ongoing basis. This will be your “Monitoring Site”. Sustainable Coastlines will assist you with your monitoring site selection. Please let us know your beach and indoor location preference(s) so we can make arrangements.
Capacity: 3-10 ‘Citizen Scientists’. We highly recommended that a minimum of 3 people from your organisation / community group attend so that leadership and knowledge can be spread.
When and Where
Book your Citizen Science workshop
Northland: Mon 28 Jan to Fri 1 Feb. Book workshop.
Auckland: Tue 12 Feb to Thu 21 Feb. Book workshop.
Coromandel: Mon 4 Feb to Fri 8 Feb. Book workshop.
Waikato West Coast: Tue 19 Mar to Thu 28 Mar. Book a workshop.
Taranaki (New Plymouth & North): Tue 16 Apr to Thu 25 Apr. Book workshop.
Taranaki (South of New Plymouth): Tue 2 Apr to Thu 11 Apr. Book workshop.
Manawatu-Whanganui: Tue 5 Mar to Thu 14 Mar. Book workshop.
Wairarapa: Tue 30 Apr to Thu 9 May. Book workshop.
Wellington: Tue 5 Feb to Thu 14 Feb. Book workshop.
Can’t see your town or region above?! Never fear. We’ll be in touch again in the next few months as we confirm dates for our next roadshow from May 2019. Eventually we will set-up at least 108 long-term Monitoring Sites all around Aotearoa, so there will be plenty of opportunities to get involved.
How Much
Free