Citizen Science Show

Thomas Mesaglio is a dynamic Australian curator and forum moderator of the citizen science platform iNaturalist. He is also an engagement officer for the Atlas of Living Australia and a current PhD student at the UNSW school of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences. Thomas has authored over twenty publications, organised numerous BioBlitzes across Australia and in 2022 won a prestigious Eur...

Dr Rochelle Steven is a conservation scientist and community outreach specialist currently based in Perth, Australia. Her research and professional experience include working on threatened species management, the role of citizen science in threatened species conservation and in building greater community support for conservation more broadly. Her research themes have explored issues related to hum...

John Totterdell is a marine researcher and a lead researcher in the field of marine megafauna, with a particular emphasis on orca (Orcinus orca) commonly known as Killer Whales. In this episode, John discusses the social and hunting behaviour of these fascinating marine mammals. He describes the relationship between Killer Whales and other sea mammals and he references his research paper: Whale ki...

Professor Sarah Bekessy leads the ICON science research group, which uses interdisciplinary approaches to solve complex biodiversity conservation problems. Sarah is particularly interested in understanding the role of human behaviour in conservation, in designing cities to encourage ‘every day nature’ experiences and in defining and measuring ‘nature positive’ development. Sarah also co-developed...

Associate Professor Tanya Latty is an entomologist from the school of life and environmental sciences at the University of Sydney with a special interest in ecology and conservation. She is the co-founder and outreach lead of Invertebrates Australia, and is currently running the Christmas beetle project. More Information https://invertebratesaustralia.org/ https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/chri...

Richard Fuller is a passionate advocate for conservation. In particular, he focuses on biodiversity and is regularly called upon to provide advice to the Australian Government on environmental issues. Richard also studies the migratory patterns of coastal bird species travelling between Australia and Asia. More Information https://www.fullerlab.org https://ebird.org/ebird/home https://birdlife.org...

Lisa Blair is an Australian solo sailor who holds multiple world records and is an advocate for action against climate change, which she promotes through her Climate Action Now project. Lisa is the author of the book, Facing Fear, and stars in her own documentary film, Ice Maiden. More Information https://lisablairsailstheworld.com/ https://www.instagram.com/lisablairsailstheworld https://m.facebo...

Ted Cheeseman leads one of the world’s largest Whale Citizen Scientist Projects. In fact it may be the largest Citizen Science Project for Whales in the world.  Citizen Scientist contributors around the world have been photographing the underside of the flukes of Humpback Whales for almost ten years and uploading these images to a Whale Fluke database. Whale markings are then cross correlated...

Tonight on the show we are talking to a Professor David Watson, an Ecologist who monitors sound in the environment for the A20 Project.  This project helps to monitor Australian ecosystems so that we can gauge the health of the environment.  More Information https://acousticobservatory.org/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tonight on the show we are speaking with Graham Tupper, the former Manager of the Northern Australia Program for the Australian Conservation Foundation and a former wildlife tour guide south of Canberra. Graham is the President of The Friends of the North Coast Regional Botanic Garden Inc., a Not-for-Profit Association that works in partnership with the City of Coffs Harbour to maintain and develo...

Catriona Walker describes herself as a “grower, forager, maker, mender and mother” who lives on a tiny Scottish island in the UK. A true citizen scientist, Catriona is making a difference in her own way, by sharing her fascination of moths that live in her backyard with the world…and it has brought awareness and attracted a surprisingly high following on Instagram. More Information https://www.ins...

David Trood is a YouTube sensation who inspires people to get into their garden and grow organic food. His movie; Down the Carrot Hole, demonstrates a meticulous attention to detail in filmmaking and storytelling. His spectacular filming techniques help people to understand the processes of nature and encourage a fruitful and thriving healthy lifestyle. More Information https://www.youtube.com/@Th...

Steve Austin has been an international dog trainer for more than 30 years and is ear marked as one of Australia's top animal experts. He has trained animals for quarantine, search and rescue, police and wildlife preservation. His work with canines in conservation is fascinating, training dogs to locate pest species, such as cats, foxes, rabbits and cane toads. He has also trained dogs to locate th...

Daniella Teixiera is a specialist in animal vocal ecology. Her approach to studying Australian wildlife is to record and listen to the soundscapes created in the Australian bush. Through her research, she hopes to bring attention to the plight of a number of endangered species, with a particular focus on the Black Cockatoo. The sound recording at the beginning of the episode is an example of the r...

Our guests tonight are involved in an incredible underwater project that has gained a Guinness World Record, and combines art, science and humanity to protect the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.  Based at John Brewer Reef, the Museum Of Underwater Art has created artificial habitats that attract and provide shelter for marine species and promote coral growth and regeneration. The unique inst...

Kathryn Kermode is a true Citizen Scientist who loves Australia’s incredible biodiversity.  She shares stories on her YouTube channel of all the fascinating creatures that visit her very own garden in the Clarence Valley in NSW in Australia, which she calls her “Wild Backyard”; with a focus on the vital role that each and every one plays in the overall ecosystem and circle of life.  Kath...

Stuart McKenzie is a licensed Reptile enthusiast, having kept reptiles for 15 years, and has been relocating snakes and other reptile species from people's homes and businesses for more than 5 years now.  As the Owner of Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers, he leads a team of over ten highly trained and professional snake catchers, who are available 24/7 to assist locals by rapidly and professional...

Professor Michael Mahony is a world renowned Conservation Biologist from The University of Newcastle, with decades of experience researching (and talking to) Australian frogs. So far he has found and described twenty new frog species and contributed to the development of the first frog genome bank and cryopreservation method that may help bring frogs back from extinction. He is a passionate educat...

Darlene Cavalier has been named a National Geographic Explorer and Fellow. She is a professor of practice at Arizona State University’s School for the Future of Innovation in Society and the driving force behind SciStarter.  A Citizen Science champion, and science cheerleader, with a real understanding of the diversity of citizen science projects. More Information https://scistarter.org/ http...

Tonight we are talking with Maree McCarthy of Nature's Magic Garden Designs based in the Hunter Region of NSW. She is one of the most knowledgeable and passionate native plant experts with over forty years of experience in creating native habitat gardens, and developing a growing wonder at the many intricate plant/animal interactions. Marie is a native landscaper, ecologist, and dragon whisperer w...

Laure Torre is a conservation biologist, marine educator, and wildlife researcher based on the Gold Coast Australia.  She leads the Gold Coast Newborn Calf study, which has a large team of research assistants supporting it. The goal of her research is to collect data to better protect newborn calves in this area, where many marine craft approach these vulnerable animals. With a deep concern f...

Peppie Simpson runs the popular Whale Songs Charter boats based at Noosa on the South East Queensland Coast of Australia, While on the ocean she collects data and contributes to the HHR whale research organisation based at Griffith University at the Gold Coast, Australia. Spending a lifetime with dolphins and whales has led to a fascination with animal communication and as a result she has been a...

Kit Prendergast is a passionate native bee scientist and performer, who combines her love of wild bees and acrobatic dance to engage audiences and communicate the importance of Australian native bees.   Kit is a successful author on the topic of Creating a Haven for Native Bees and several years ago she discovered a new species of bee and named it after her pet dog Zephyr. More Informati...

Anastasia Guise is a grass-roots journalist, qualified ecologist, and published author. When not writing, she works as a landcare leader in her intentional community in the Northern rivers. Anastasia trains citizen science teams with a particular focus on forest protection. More Information https://anastasiadeguise.wixsite.com/author https://firestories.com.au/ https://landcare.nsw.gov.au/groups/g...

Jessica Raintree is happiest when she is exploring the bush or underwater treasure hunting for cool creatures.  She has been running the Biocontrol Facility at Mooloolah River Landcare for the past five years and helps to enable citizen scientists to follow their passion through field activities. Jessica helps members of the community take positive environmental action through projects includ...