Biodiversity!

This website is a companion to the Smithsonian Science for Global Goals guide,  Biodiversity! How can we balance the needs of people with the needs of other living things? 

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

As you saw in the video, the UN Sustainable Development Goals include 17 different goals. Which goals are you most passionate about? How do you see yourself and your community reflected in the goals? 

Find your research mentors on Twitter!

• Dr. Angela Mashford-Pringle:  @armp71 
• Amelia-Juliette Demery:   @acdemery  
• Monique Avery Pipkin:   @MoniquePipkin  

How can I make investigations safer for all?

In Task 1, you read about Monique Avery Pipkin and Amelia-Juliette Demery, two scientists who study birds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Monique and Amelia also wrote an article in a scientific journal about why people with certain identities might feel unsafe or uncomfortable during investigations and what other people can do to help. The article can be viewed  here .

• Which suggestions do you think you might follow? 
• What can you do to support the members of your team?
• What kind of support might you ask for?

Find out more about  Monique  and  Amelia  in Cornell University's Student Spotlight series. 

The People of the Ese'Eja Nation

Learn more about the people of the Ese'Eja nation in these videos, available in English and Spanish. 

English:

Spanish:

How can I do an oral history? 

In Task 2, you and your team might talk to people in your community about how the community has changed over time. You can conduct an oral history to record this information. Watch this video from the Smithsonian Institution Archives about how to do an oral history interview. There is also a printed guide available  here . 

Find your research mentors on Twitter!

• Dr. Ximena Velez-Zuazo:  @anqamalta 
• Dr. Reynaldo Linares-Palomino:   @R_LinaresP  

How can you find out more about the living things in your research area?

Visit the  Biocube Activity from the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History . It includes step-by-step instructions of how to build and use a 1-meter cube to find and identify the living things in your research area.

Visit the  iNaturalist Website . This is a community science website where you can upload photos of living things from your area and ask scientists and other people to help you identify the living things. 

Learn more about how scientists from the Smithsonian Center for Conservation and Sustainability, including Part 3's Dr. Ximena Velez-Zuazo, use technology to study living things in their research areas. Ximena's part starts at 1:42. 

Or, read  this article  about how scientists at the Smithsonian Center for Conservation and Sustainability use acoustic traps and camera traps to search for living things in the Amazon rainforest. Look at photos from the camera traps and listen to sounds from the acoustic traps.

Watch this video to learn about how scientists are trying to understand how populations, species and ecosystems change through time, particularly in response to environmental and other changes in their habitat.  

Watch this video to see how you can find out more about living things in the ocean.

Case Study: A Pipeline in Peru

Read  this article  from the Smithsonian Center for Conservation and Sustainability to see before and after photos of the pipeline route through Peru. The photos show how plants have grown back in areas affected by construction of the pipeline. 

Want to learn more about the cooperation between Smithsonian scientists and Peru LNG, the company that built and operates the pipeline in the case study? Visit  this website  to read more about the Biodiversity Monitoring and Assessment Project. The site is available in English and Spanish. 

Visit " The Team " page to see Ximena, Reynaldo, and their other team members.

Visit " The Ecological Landscape Units " page to learn more about the types of ecosystems along the route of the pipeline. Do any of the ecosystems look like your research area? 

Visit the " Protocols " page to learn more about the kinds of living things Ximena and Reynaldo study near the pipeline and breakwater. A protocol is just another name for a project that helps a scientist answer questions. For example, the  protocol for the Pati tree  asks how many trees are in the area disturbed by the pipeline, how they have been impacted by the pipeline, and what people can do to help those trees meet their needs. 

Find your research mentor on Twitter!

• Dr. Anish Andheria  @anishandheria 

The Wildlife Conservation Trust

Anish is the president of the Wildlife Conservation Trust in India. Visit  their website  or watch this video to learn more about the work of this organization! 

How can you find out more about the animals in your research area?

Visit the  iNaturalist Website . This is a community science website where you can upload photos of living things from your area and ask scientists and other people to help you identify the living things. 

Visit the  eBird Website . This is a community science website where you can upload photos or audio recordings of birds from your area and ask scientists and others to help you identify them. Visit  eMammal Lite . This is a website that allows you to practice classifying animals in camera traps around the world. 

Visit  Xeno Canto . This is a website that has a collection of bird sounds from around the world. You can explore what birds are in your area of the world. Or you can upload your own bird sound and ask for help in classifying it. 

Learn  how to 3-D print a camera trap case . This website has instructions from the Smithsonian Science Education Center about how to use a 3-D printer to make a camera trap case. This case can be used to hold a mobile phone. 

Want to find the insects in your research area? Watch  this video  from the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History about how to set up an insect trap. 

Watch  Acoustic Trap of Birds in Peru  and  Acoustic Trap of Amphibians in Peru . These videos from the Smithsonian National Zoological Park have recordings from acoustic traps in Peru. The videos allow you to observe and listen to different amphibian and bird species. You can hear how the calls help researchers tell the animals apart. 

Watch this video to learn about how scientists are are trying to understand how populations, species, and ecosystems change through time, particularly in response to environmental and other changes in their habitat.

How can roads, canals, power lines, and railways affect habitats?

Watch this video from the Wildlife Conservation Trust about how fragmentation can affect tigers and other kinds of wildlife in India. 

How can we solve conflicts between people and animals? 

In this video, Anish talks about what's important when solving conflicts between people and tigers in India. 

In this video, learn about biodiversity and wildfires. 

Find your research mentor on Twitter!

• Dr. Steve Canty  @canty_steven 

How can you find out more about the plants in your research area?

Visit the  iNaturalist Website . This is a community science website where you can upload photos of living things from your area and ask scientists and other people to help you identify the living things. 

Visit the  PlantNet Website . This is a community science website where you can explore or identify the plants from your area. 

If your research area is in the United States, visit the  USDA Plants database . This website has a checklist of plants found in each state and county in the United States.

Check with your teacher or your local government to find out if it is okay to pick and keep plants from your research area. Some plants are endangered or protected by law. If it is okay to pick and keep plants, visit  this website  to learn how to make a plant press. The video and instructions from the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History can help you keep examples of plants from your research area.  

Practice using a dichotomous key with  this video ,  worksheet , and  answer key  from the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. 

 This website  is an example of a dichotomous key for North American orchids. It was made by scientists at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. Click on “Simple Key” to practice using it. 

 This website  is an example of a dichotomous key for New England plants. 

Find your research mentor on Twitter!

• Dr. Christine Sprunger @Sprunger_PhD

How can you find out more about soil organisms in your research area?

Visit the  iNaturalist Website . This is a community science website where you can upload photos of living things from your area and ask scientists and other people to help you identify the living things. 

Learn how to make a Berlese Funnel using  this video  from the United States Botanic Garden.

Want to find out what is living in the fresh water in your research area? You can use  this guide  from the Stroud Water Research Center's LeafPack Network to search for and identify organisms in fresh water. The guide is available in English and Spanish. 

Don't have a stream in your research area or can't get the materials, but still want to try the LeafPack activity? You can use  this simulation  from Stroud Water Research Center instead!

How can you test your soil?

Take the  Soil Your Undies Challenge from the US Department of Agriculture ! Visit this website to learn more about the challenge and how you can participate. 

Watch this video to see how you can make a microscope to study your soil.