Get Involved
There are many avenues available to build scientific knowledge, to network with interesting people and to gain career experience in science or natural history.
You can join a group. To enhance that experience, you can volunteer for a committee with your chosen group. This can make a big difference to the group’s mission.
Sign up for a newsletter – most groups have a newsletter and some have a free electronic newsletter for anyone who subscribes.
Attend an event – there are several events every week. Check the websites of your favourite groups and check this Queensland Science Network website, which includes a link to the Advance Queensland and Inspiring Queensland events calendars.
Participate in a field trip, backyard survey or community event. Numerous opportunities to participate in citizen science through field trips, backyard surveys and group activities are available through QSN member groups. Check your favourite group and also the webpages of member groups the Australian Citizen Science Association (Queensland) and EarthWatch-ClimateWatch. Projects in your locality or chosen field of science may be listed on the ACSA Project Finder.
Publish something. Scientists and naturalists with scientific information they wish to share have several options… Read more.
Contribute data to the Atlas of Living Australia, a collaborative, digital library of data about Australian biodiversity from multiple sources.
Donate money. All groups affiliated with this site engage in ‘public benefit’ activities, meaning that they are not commercially self-supporting. Numerous opportunities are available to make an enduring difference to our natural world. The tax-deductible Research Fund of The Royal Society of Queensland is an example. Donations may be made for any program of the Queensland Science Network via the Philanthropy page of the Society, or by clicking on the button below (you do not need your own PayPal account to use this button). Send an email via admin AT royalsocietyqld.org if you wish to suggest a purpose for the donation.
Specific initiatives
The Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science award Australian scientists and innovators with prizes to recognise outstanding achievements in science and research-based innovation. Closing date: Thursday 9 February 2023 5:00pm AEDT There are five Science Prizes ranging between $50,000 and $250,000. The Prizes are awarded for outstanding achievements in: scientific research research-based innovation excellence in science […] An amount of up to $20,000 is available. See The Royal Society of Queensland’s Research Fund page for details. See the World Bee Day Australian website for a list of activities to showcase the honey bee and its role in contributing to ecosystem services. The National Waterbug Blitz is Australia’s first nationwide, citizen science, waterway monitoring event. In spring each year, Australians are encouraged to discover how healthy their local waterways and wetlands are, simply by exploring and identifying what waterbugs live in them. Many schools, farmers, local residents, catchment or Landcare and other community groups, are collecting information […] Students, teachers, Indigenous Rangers and community citizen scientists: jump on a boat or get muddy to make a difference & sign up for EarthWatch Mangrove Watch program Student Challenge High school students in Yr 10-12 in Queensland Government schools can apply for a one-week environmental scholarship, working as research assistant alongside scientists. Applications for the […] Scientists are inviting schools in Queensland to sign up to help search for Australia’s missing insects. Dr Andy Howe insect ecologist of the University of the Sunshine Coast is co-ordinating the Queensland arm of the “Insect Investigators” program led by the South Australian Museum. The program is seeking 50 schools across Queensland, Western Australia and […] Wildlife Queensland is offering a free will-making service for those who would like to sponsor the vital work that the group tackles. By partnering with Australia’s top-rated will-writing platform, Gathered Here, Wildlife Queensland is offering its supporters a free will-writing service that easily allows a donor to leave a gift in their will to help […] Western Sydney University and the University of New England have set up a Citizen Science Project called the Dead Tree Detective. The aim of the project is to collect observations of dead or dying trees around Australia. It sounds a bit grim, but knowing where and when trees have died will help us to work […] Interested to participate in a first of its’ kind exciting Australia wide Citizen Science project? Pesticide Detectives is an extensive project investigating the occurrence and concentrations of pesticides in Australian waterways. It is funded by the Department of Industry, Innovation and Business and undertaken by the Aquatic Environmental Stress Research Group (AQUEST) based at RMIT […] The Australian Citizen Science Project Finder has been designed to help people learn about citizen science projects and provide opportunities to volunteer or become otherwise involved.
The Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science
Walter Fisher Grants for Mycology Research – Open to 5 March 2023
World Bee Day 20 May annually
National Waterbug Blitz
EarthWatch Mangrove Watch Program
Find missing insects – Calling Queensland schools
Leaving a legacy for wildlife
The Dead Tree Detective
The Pesticide Detectives: National Assessment of Pesticides in Waters
Finding a citizen science project
Closing date: Thursday 9 February 2023 5:00pm AEDT
There are five Science Prizes ranging between $50,000 and $250,000.
The Prizes are awarded for outstanding achievements in:
- scientific research
- research-based innovation
- excellence in science teaching.
Further information:
https://business.gov.au/grants-and-programs/prime-ministers-prizes-for-science
An amount of up to $20,000 is available. See The Royal Society of Queensland’s Research Fund page for details.
See the World Bee Day Australian website for a list of activities to showcase the honey bee and its role in contributing to ecosystem services.
The National Waterbug Blitz is Australia’s first nationwide, citizen science, waterway monitoring event. In spring each year, Australians are encouraged to discover how healthy their local waterways and wetlands are, simply by exploring and identifying what waterbugs live in them. Many schools, farmers, local residents, catchment or Landcare and other community groups, are collecting information on local waterway biodiversity through surveys of water life.
Participants usually attend a workshop or training event hosted by a local group and take water samples containing freshwater macroinvertebrates, which can include various stages of life, from dragon flies, damselfies, mayflies, caddisflies, waterbeetles and many more species that inhabit the water in creeks or waterways.
Aquatic invertebrates, though small, play a very important role in determining a waterway’s health These tiny creatures are very sensitive to changes in the waterway. Therefore, the condition of the wetland, creek or river can be easily determined by the presence or absence of these creatures. Thus in very disturbed water only very hardy species (those not sensitive to pollutants or sediment run off for example) will be present. Snails, bloodworms or backswimmers would be most commonly found.
The Waterbug App is free to download. However, it’s not just as simple as taking a photo. Participants need to have the correct resources, to collect the water samples, such as a fine mesh net, buckets and sampling materials to pick the live samples and classify them before the photo can be taken and uploaded.
It’s intense work, requiring at least two people to help as well as a safety factor whenever one is working in water. Involving adults and children to get outdoors to try hands-on activities to learn about freshwater ecosystems has to be a bonus in any science activity!
Students, teachers, Indigenous Rangers and community citizen scientists: jump on a boat or get muddy to make a difference & sign up for EarthWatch Mangrove Watch program
Student Challenge
High school students in Yr 10-12 in Queensland Government schools can apply for a one-week environmental scholarship, working as research assistant alongside scientists. Applications for the first round close on 17 April 2022 and the second round on 5 June! Register via: https://www.earthwatch.org.au/student-challenge
MangroveWatch at CAFNEC
Help fill the data monitoring gap and join the MangroveWatch program at the Cairns and Far North Environment Centre. We are seeking committed leaders to participate in the development of these local action plans to transform data into on-ground action. Have your voice heard and collaborate with other members of the community to create locally relevant solutions. Be a Mangrove Champion!
Read more: www.cafnec.org.au/mangrovewatch. Contact Alex at projects@cafnec.org.au to get involved.
Establish a local MangroveWatch chapter in your region
Are you interested in conserving and protecting your local mangrove habitats? Get in touch with Jock Mackenzie (Wetlands Program Manager at Earthwatch Australia) via: jmackenzie@earthwatch.org.au.
Scientists are inviting schools in Queensland to sign up to help search for Australia’s missing insects. Dr Andy Howe insect ecologist of the University of the Sunshine Coast is co-ordinating the Queensland arm of the “Insect Investigators” program led by the South Australian Museum. The program is seeking 50 schools across Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia to join an official program to help scientists find and catalogue insects.
The Brisbane Times has the story. Interested schools asked to register their interest at the project website.
Wildlife Queensland is offering a free will-making service for those who would like to sponsor the vital work that the group tackles.
By partnering with Australia’s top-rated will-writing platform, Gathered Here, Wildlife Queensland is offering its supporters a free will-writing service that easily allows a donor to leave a gift in their will to help protect Australia’s at-risk species.
“Having an up-to-date will is one of the most important things you can do for yourself and your family. But it’s also one of the easiest ways to leave a lasting legacy for wildlife. For a limited time (until 30 September 2021), Gathered Here is also offering supporters free and unlimited lifetime updates to their will* – a win for wildlife because ‘where there’s a will there’s a way.’
Write a free wildlife-friendly will in just 10 minutes.
Please contact Wildlife Queensland at bequests@wildlife.org.au or phone 3844 0129 for further information.
Western Sydney University and the University of New England have set up a Citizen Science Project called the Dead Tree Detective.
The aim of the project is to collect observations of dead or dying trees around Australia. It sounds a bit grim, but knowing where and when trees have died will help us to work out what the cause is, identify trees that are vulnerable, and take steps to protect them.
This project will allow people Australia-wide to report observations of tree death. In the past, there have been many occurrences of large-scale tree death that were initially identified by concerned members of the public such as farmers, bushwalkers, bird watchers and landholders. Collecting these observations is an important way to monitor the health of trees and ecosystems.
Interested to participate in a first of its’ kind exciting Australia wide Citizen Science project? Pesticide Detectives is an extensive project investigating the occurrence and concentrations of pesticides in Australian waterways. It is funded by the Department of Industry, Innovation and Business and undertaken by the Aquatic Environmental Stress Research Group (AQUEST) based at RMIT University. Citizen Scientists in collaboration with AQUEST scientists will collect sediments from waterways across Australia to advance our understanding of pesticide contamination in Australia’s waterways. Results from the study will be shared with you and will be available on our webpage. Learn more about pesticides in your waterway by participating in this study.
Download Pesticide Detectives pdf
Go to www.rmit.edu.au/pesticidedetectives for further information.
