What is Community Science?
Community science involves members of the public seeking to answer a question using science, often collaborating with professional scientists. Learn more about what community science looks like in the parks.
About Our Community Science Programs
The Parks Conservancy's community science programs blend landscape-scale science with community engagement and education. Community members participate in large-scale studies to inventory and monitor species and ecosystems in the parks, helping to fill gaps in our knowledge about our local environment. These volunteer programs are an opportunity to learn new skills and to connect to our local public lands through participation in science. We couldn’t build this knowledge without our volunteers!
Programs include:
- Golden Gate Raptor Observatory–a program of the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy in cooperation with the National Park Service to inspire the preservation of California raptor populations.
- Marin Wildlife Watch–a mountain-wide study using motion-activated cameras to monitor mammal populations.
- Tamalpais Bee Lab–an inventory of wild bees on public lands throughout Marin County.
- California Giant Salamander Inventory–documenting this elusive species' population through crowd-sourced data.
- BioBlitzes–these are one-day events where community members and scientists conduct a survey of a specific area to contribute to our knowledge of an area's biodiversity typically using the iNaturalist platform and/or making collections.
- Bioquests–multi-day campaigns to document when and where specific species show up, typically using the iNaturalist platform.
This work is done in partnership with our agency partners, academic institutions, and nonprofit conservation organizations. Our broad network also offers myriad programs with which we partner, including California Academy of Sciences, City Nature Challenge, and Xerces Society, to name just a few. Much of the work feeds into larger, sometimes global, datasets and science initiatives. When you participate in one of our programs, you get to learn new skills and contribute to these important bodies of knowledge about the world.
HOW TO Participate & Contact Us
Find community science events and opportunities to get involved on our calendar. You can also get updates on this work by signing up for One Tam's seasonal newsletter. Please note each program has its own structure, and availability and level of commitment required can vary by season and program size. Some programs also require training, which is provided free to volunteers.
Email communityscience@onetam.org for questions about our programs. You can also learn more about our approach to community science on One Tam's website.
