To all Local groups, Organisations, City Nature Challenge organisers, Cities, Towns, Shires, Societies, Friends of groups, Universities, Foundations, Departments, Schools, Clubs, and other groups...
WE WANT YOU!
Be part of the Great Southern Bioblitz (GSB) in 2023 for its third year running by getting your local area involved.
The GSB will run through the online citizen science platform iNaturalist. iNaturalist is an online social network of naturalists, citizen scientists, and biologists built on the concept of mapping and sharing observations of biodiversity across the globe. Projects for each area will also be created using this platform.
So, how do I get involved?
If you are interested in getting your area involved, please follow this link to fill out our online form.
We will contact all organisers for a joint meeting to discuss the event in July.
For all other inquiries, please go to our contacts page for more info.
What is required by organisers?
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Organisers will need to be familiarised with the iNaturalist platform before creating a project. Check out this article for setting up a collection project on iNaturalist.
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To create a collection project on iNaturalist.
What areas can participate in the GSB?
First and foremost, areas need to be located in the Southern Hemisphere.
Each area can register its Local Government Area (LGA) (this may have another name in your region), provided no one else has already this area. Areas can also be made of several LGAs that have combined resources.
On the iNaturalist platform, an LGA may be made up of one or more preloaded shapefiles. You can also upload separate files - your local council should be able to do this.
Returning participants
Areas that have previously participated can use the same area previously mapped to create a new project for GSB 2022. 'Cities' or 'Areas' that are new and are outside Australia can use the local equivalent to an LGA, City or grouped LGA equivalent. A simple method is to duplicate a previous years project.
Project settings on iNaturalist
Project name: Great Southern Bioblitz 2023 - Area Name
example: Great Southern BioBlitz 2023 - Greater Adelaide
Observation Requirements: Blank
Exclusion Filters / Exclude Taxa: Human (Homo sapiens), Domestic Dog (Canis familiaris), Domestic Cat (Felis catus)
Data Quality :
Research Grade: Checked
Needs ID: Checked
Casual: Checked
Include Users: Blank
Project Members Only: Unchecked
Media Type select: “Any”
Establishment Means: “Any”
Date Observed:
Range: November 24-27, 2023 (not specify time)
Allow members to trust this project with hidden coordinates: Unchecked
Admins:
Include '@Gsbadmin' as an admin
Promotion
What if I am contacted by the media about the GSB as an organiser for my area?
As an organiser for this event, you will be responsible for responding to all media enquiries regarding your area in the bioblitz.
If you are contacted by the media, be that on a local, national, or international level, we ask that you talk about the Great Southern Bioblitz as a whole project, and not just in your local area. This is an international effort, and we intended to portray it this way.
Promotion
Do I need to promote my local area as part of the GSB?
Although it is not mandatory, we ask that all organisers give their best efforts to promote the GSB through social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other sites.
We also encourage organisers to write their own tips and information for the event. An example could include writing a short blog or video discussing three tips for finding lizards in your local parkland.
All forms of media (especially photos, infographics and videos!) are really useful tools for promoting your local area in the BioBlitz challenge.
Social media posts
If you have any relevant content you would like us to share through the official GSB social media accounts, fill out our form below and we will be sure to share it with everyone.
Additionally, if you wish to engage more locals from your area, we strongly encourage you to make social media pages to recruit people and promote GSB. Feel free to use our logo and banner template here.
What if I am contacted by the media about the GSB as an organiser for my area?
As an organiser for this event, you will be responsible for responding to all media enquiries regarding your area in the bioblitz.
If you are contacted by the media, be that on a local, national, or international level, we ask that you talk about the Great Southern Bioblitz as a whole project, and not just in your local area. This is an international effort, and we intended to portray it this way.
Please report any media contact so we can promote this on our social media
Social media posts
If you have any relevant content you would like us to share through the official GSB social media accounts, fill out our form below and we will be sure to share it with everyone.
Additionally, if you wish to engage more locals from your area, we strongly encourage you to make social media pages to recruit people and promote GSB. Feel free to use our logo and banner template here.
Do I need to promote my local area as part of the GSB?
Although it is not mandatory, we ask that all organisers give their best efforts to promote the GSB through social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other sites.
We also encourage organisers to write their own tips and information for the event. An example could include writing a short blog or video discussing three tips for finding lizards in your local parkland.
All forms of media (especially photos, infographics and videos!) are really useful tools for promoting your local area in the BioBlitz challenge.
