The Incidental Steward : Reflections on Citizen Science

Akiko Busch

ISBN 10: 0300205678 / ISBN 13: 9780300205671

Published by Yale University Press Apr 2014, 2014

About this Item

Neuware - A search for a radio-tagged bat led Akiko Busch to assorted other encounters with the natural world which illuminated the role of ordinary citizen as stewards of place. Here she highlights factors that distinguish 21st-century citizen scientists from traditional amateur naturalists, and celebrates today's renewed volunteerism and the opportunities it offers for regaining a deep sense of connection to place.

Seller Inventory # 9780300205671

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Incidental Steward : Reflections on Citizen Science
• Publisher: Yale University Press Apr 2014
• Publication Date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0300205678
• ISBN 13: 9780300205671
• Binding: Taschenbuch
• Illustrator: Cotter Kaspari, Debby
• Condition: Neu
• Dimensions: 203W x 128H x 20D millimeters 203 millimeters width by 128 millimeters height by 20 millimeters depth
• Weight: 285 grams

About this title

Synopsis

A thoughtful citizen scientist contemplates our changing natural world and the value of environmental stewardship

"Sensuously lush and thought-provoking chronicles. . . . A beautiful and incisive affirmation of how 'full engagement with the natural world enriches the human experience.'"―Donna Seaman, Booklist, starred review

A search for a radio-tagged Indiana bat roosting in the woods behind her house in New York’s Hudson Valley led Akiko Busch to assorted other encounters with the natural world―local ecological monitoring projects, community-organized cleanup efforts, and data-driven citizen science research. Whether it is pulling up water chestnuts in the Hudson River, measuring beds of submerged aquatic vegetation, or searching out vernal pools, all are efforts that illuminate the role of ordinary citizens as stewards of place. In this elegantly written book, Busch highlights factors that distinguish twenty-first-century citizen scientists from traditional amateur naturalists: a greater sense of urgency, helpful new technologies, and the expanded possibilities of crowdsourcing.

The observations here look both to precisely recorded data sheets and to the impressionistic marginalia, scribbled asides, and side roads that often attend such unpredictable outings. While not a primer on the prescribed protocols of citizen science, the book combines vivid natural history, a deep sense of place, and reflection about our changing world. Musing on the expanding potential of citizen science, the author celebrates today’s renewed volunteerism and the opportunities it offers for regaining a deep sense of connection to place.

About the Author

Akiko Busch is well known for her writings on design, culture, and the natural world. Debby Cotter Kaspari is an artist, illustrator, and designer whose work has been featured in national exhibitions, shows, and books.