COVID-19 Update
Hello everyone,
We wanted to give an update on 2020's CNC situation. Given the current circumstances surrounding the outbreak of COVID-19, we are restructuring this year’s City Nature Challenge in the Boston area -- first, by renaming it the City Nature Celebration! Instead of competing, we seek to share appreciation of nature and its biodiversity. To keep everyone safe and comply with rules around social gatherings, we are cancelling in-person events. Our goal is to help everyone participate in the CNC, even while keeping our communities safe.
Many are now taking solace in their time away from work or school by spending more time in the great outdoors. We encourage all to shift focus to the local flora and fauna of your own neighborhood, and backyards. By taking a closer look at your natural surroundings, we can gain a greater appreciation of local wildlife while also adhering to social distancing guidelines. We also want to encourage everyone to take care to preserve and treat natural spaces and creatures with respect.
National Geographic has some excellent activities described on their website that can be done right in your own backyard. Some other fun activities that can be done to explore your local biodiversity include setting up camera traps, building your own insect catcher, and installing coverboards to find all sorts of critters. Even lights in front of your own house can be used to attract insects at night, something that Project PorchLight focuses on. We hope that you all stay safe in this time but continue to observe and appreciate your natural surroundings.
Best regards,
The CNC Steering Committee
Boston Area City Nature Challenge Steering Committee:
Aimee Bonanno, New England Aquarium and New England Ocean Science Education Collaborative
Colleen Hitchcock and Isaiah Freedman, Brandeis University
Claire O’Neill, Earthwise Aware
Eliza Forman and John Anderson, Zoo New England
Peter Burn, Suffolk University
Pam DiBona, MassBays National Estuary Partnership
Stan Rullman, Kim Arlen, and Mark Chandler, Earthwatch Institute
Rob Stevenson, University of Massachusetts Boston
