City Nature Challenge Luxembourg 2021

COMMUNITY SCIENTISTS ARE INVITED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE GLOBAL CITY NATURE CHALLENGE, APRIL 30 – May 3, 2021

Sixth annual challenge to document biodiversity grows to over 400 participating cities on six continents; results announced on May 10.

CNC 2021 banner Lxuembourg

As community science initiatives;

which provide a safe way to connect people with nature and each other during the pandemic—continue to grow in popularity, this year’s sixth annual City Nature Challenge is expanding to more than 400 cities across six continents. Beginning on Friday, April 30 at 00:01 in each time zone, the Challenge runs through Monday, May 3, 23:59. The global event, co-organized by San Francisco’s California Academy of Sciences, the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County calls on current and aspiring community scientists, nature and science fans, and people of all ages and education backgrounds to observe and submit pictures of wild plants, animals, and fungi using the free mobile app iNaturalist. From Friday, April 30 to Monday, May 3, participants can upload their observations to the app, with identifications happening from Tuesday, May 4 to Sunday, May 9. Final results will be announced on Monday, May 10. For Luxembourg the National Museum of Natural History is the local partner.

Nature is all around us;

in our cities, neighborhoods, and even in our homes. One of the best ways to study nature and its biodiversity is by connecting scientists and local community members through community science. As global human populations become increasingly concentrated in cities, it’s more important than ever to document urban biodiversity and help ensure the future of plants and wildlife. Large pools of data built through iNaturalist, natural history museums, and science organizations help leaders make informed conservation decisions that allow both human and natural communities to thrive.

The “natur musée”

will, for the third time be the local partner in this global challenge. Observations from the entire country of Luxembourg will be permitted in the challenge, to make sure everyone can participate without having to travel too far from the safety of their homes.

In response to the pandemic, this year’s Challenge will not be focused on competition, but rather global collaboration as more than 41,000 people around the world are estimated to participate however they can. For both budding and veteran community scientists, participating is easy:

Find wildlife in your home, neighborhood, backyard, or anywhere else! It can be any wild plant, animal, fungi, slime mold, or any other evidence of life, such as scat, fur, tracks, shells, or carcasses. Check out this guide for tips on finding the surprisingly abundant biodiversity in and around your own home!
Take pictures of what you find using iNaturalist. A powerful image recognition algorithm will help you identify what you saw. You can find some useful iNaturalist video tutorials on the “natur musées” youtube channel.
Learn more as your observations are identified by the global iNaturalist community.

To learn more about the Challenge and how to participate using iNaturalist.LU watch our webinar from the 26th of April on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poI9beBzLNM