Trees and People

The Springwatch project in Britain, sponsored by the Woodland Trust and the BBC, is a large-scale effort to record the timing of spring events in nature. The project has been enormously successful, with over 114,000 observations turned in to date. Initial results suggest that many events normally associated with spring have been occurring throughout the mild British winters of recent years. What is most important is that this kind of large-scale citizen participation in phenology records, if kept up over a long time, will provide scientists with enormously useful information on the impacts of climate change on the natural world.

This is also a great educational tool, one that could easily be implemented in the US. It not only serves an important role in climate change research, but it is an educational tool as well. Any community process that enhances the ability of the citizenry to observe nature is a benefit.

The Woodland Trust found that 94% of British children are unable to identify common native trees. Even oaks were only recognized by 20% of kids in the survey. The survey of 7 to 14 year olds found that the most recognizable tree was holly, known for its indoor use as a holiday decoration.

See earlier Growing up without nature post