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A Citizen Science Service to Monitor Biodiversity

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A Citizen Science Service to Monitor Biodiversity Biofonia A citizen science service to monitor biodiversity MFA Interaction Design 2016 Jenni Loviisa Toriseva Umeå Institute of Design Abstract An increasing amount of both physical and mental layers keep distancing urban dwellers from the biophysical envi- ronment that we often call nature. Environmental psycholo- gists have coined the term ‘extinction of experience’ to de- scribe the decreasing amount of encounters urban dwellers have with the natural environment. With the depletion of these experiences we have less relation to the natural world. And what we cannot relate to, we fnd hard to value. The intent has been to explore new ways urban dwelling adults could interact with the natural environment in order to help them relate to the abstract notion of biodiversity. The fnal concept is inspired by expert and user insights gathered through ethnographic research methods. The resulting design concept is a service and product eco- system that is based in the feld of soundscape ecology. Keywords: biodiversity monitoring, soundscape ecology, soundscapes, biophony, citizen science, biodiversity loss, locally based monitoring. 2 Contents 1. Introduction 1. Introduction 4. Concept refnement4. Concept refnement Background 5 Plan for concept refnement 35 Design opportunity 7 Meeting the design guidelines 38 Target group 8 5. The fnal concept Design approach 9 5. The fnal concept Personal interest 9 Concept description 45 Concept components 46 2. Primary research 2. Research User journey 52 The plan 11 Exhibition 54 Topic experts 12 Refection 55 Field studies 13 Acknowledgement 56 User studies 15 References 57 Insights 16 Design principles 21 6. Appendix 58 Problem observation 22 Redefned problem area 22 3. Concept development3. Concept development Inspiration 25 Ideation 26 Initial concepts 27 Experience prototyping 28 Evaluation 32 3 Chapter 1 Introduction In this section I lay out the foundations for the thesis. This starts with an introduction to the Anthropocene and arguably the driving force behind this era: human-nature disconnection. I then present the initial design opportunities identifed within the subject area, along with the chosen target group, design approach, goal, and my personal interest in the topic. 4 How sad to think that nature speaks and mankind doesn’t listen. Victor Hugo, 1840 Background Biodiversity in the anthropocene Accumulating evidence on humanity’s impact These pieces of news call us to not only to re-ex- on the Earth’s atmosphere, oceans and wildlife amine the way we use land areas, but to rethink leaves us with little doubt that we have entered our value systems that concern the natural en- a new geological age, the Anthropocene, also vironment. If the relationship we have shaped known as the Human Age. For many it remains with the environment remains unchanged, our a conceptual predicament to imagine that in a own lifestyles will need to begin to change dra- single human lifetime — the new epoch’s formal matically. It is crucial we understand that the start date is likely to be the 1950s — anthropo- way we view the natural environment will shape genic impact has pushed the billions-years-old the future of ecosystems across the globe. planet into an entirely new age (Waters et al., 2016). Human-nature The Anthropocene has developed a range of disconnect faces, one of which is global biodiversity loss. The World Wildlife Foundation (WWF) esti- Psychologists have proposed that one of the rea- mates that the number of wild animals on Earth sons why we seem to be able to live in blissful is set to fall by two-thirds by 2020 (WWF Living peace while the natural environment around us Planet report, 2016). One of the main causes of is collapsing, is that we are disconnected from it, biodiversity loss is the reduction of wilderness to the extent that it has become hard to relate areas. Currently it is estimated that one-tenth of to the fact that our very existence depends on it the world’s wilderness areas have been lost over (Schultz et al., 2004). the past 25 years. If current trends continue, there could be no globally signifcant wild areas With more than half of the human population left in less than a century (Watson et al., 2016). living in urban areas — a trend that is expect- ed to increase by more than two-thirds by 2050 What is critical about this, is that with the de- (UN, 2014) — addressing the lack of human-na- pletion of species, the inextricably interconnect- ture interaction will become ever more impor- ed web of life becmes increasingly more fragile. tant. Ecosychologists have proposed a theory The simple fact is, that after wilderness areas called the Human-Nature Disconnect, which sug- have been lost, they cannot be restored. They gests that people living in urban areas have de- will come back as something else. How hospi- veloped a sense of being separate from nature. table the new environment is for us and other Eventhough participants in studies on the topic species is difcult to speculate on (Watson et al., understood that humans have their origins in 2016). nature, they did not view themselves to be part 5 of it. The theory also asserts that a disconnect What has been broadly grouped as the Environ- from nature correlates with pro-environmental mental Connectedness Perspective (Beery et al.) pro- inaction (Scannell & Giford, 2010). poses that a ‘connection’ to nature has the po- tential of transforming an individual’s level of One of the reasons for human-nature discon- environmental concern and pro-environmental nection is our physical separation from the behaviour. natural biophysical environment (Vining et al., 2008). In the late 90s a study was carried out to Chawla and Derr (2012) defne this environ- get insight into the types of spaces Westerners mental connectedness to lead to a predisposition to spend their daily lives in; 90 per cent of their take an interest in learning about the environment, feeling time was spent indoors (Evans & McCoy, 1998). concern for it, and acting to conserve it, on the basis of With a lack of contact and everyday closeness formative experiences [in nature]. (location of residence) to what is perceived as nature, the relation we have to it subsides. A way to understand the connectedness per- spective is to see repetitive experiences in nature With the rapidly escalating anthropogenic phe- leading to the development of a relationship, nomena of climate change and biodiversity loss, whereby a space becomes a relational place. It it has become of utmost urgency to provide peo- has been suggested that place attachment to a ple with ways to not only build relation to the specifc natural location, as opposed to general- natural world but to also provide people with ised nature, correlates with pro-environmental agency in- and channels to mitigation eforts. behaviour. Place attachment refers to the bond- ing that occurs between individuals and their meaningful environments (Scannell & Giford, 2010). Relation through experiences Several studies exist that support the existence of a relationship between connectedness to na- Over the past 50 years studies carried out in a ture and environmental action or behaviour. variety of academic felds – such as psycholo- Mayer and Frantz (2004) synthesise the results gy, education and environmental history – have of fve diferent studies and conclude that there stressed the importance of “nature encoun- is a moderately strong positive relationship be- ters” and “nature experiences” as pathways to tween human-nature connection and pro-envi- pro-environmental behaviour (Beery & Wolf- ronmental actions. Waltz, 2014). Experiences Relation Value Encounters with A space becomes Value attribution through natural spaces a place emotional attachment In order for us to appropriate value to the natural environment people need to feel relation to it. And to feel relation to it, they need experiences with it. 6 The design opportunity At the moment the problem of human-nature Using Technology to disconnection is being addressed from a design train long lost senses point of view mostly from the feld of the built In a similar vein of thought, this project aims to environment, which primarily aims to incorpo- translate the abstract notion of biodiversity to rate more greenery in urban areas. However, a relatable concept, with the aid of technology few attempts have been made to promote the available today or in the near future. importance and awareness of natural land- scapes that inhabit larger ecosystems. While we have gradually become increasing- ly urban, we have also become less attuned to Interaction design’s role on sustainability detecting and understanding the changes and anomalies occurring in the natural environ- Discussion on interaction design’s role on sus- ment. Could technology aid us in redeveloping tainability is only at its infancy. Conversations an understanding of the environment without have been started to explore how sustainable creating a new dependency on the technology lifestyles and decision making could be sup- itself ? Could technology help us train our very ported through the design of technology. In own senses and abilities we have stopped using the industrialised nations that contribute most since we became urban? heavily to global warming, information technol- ogies are deeply embedded in people’s everyday The design opportunity this project is engaged lives. These technologies could form an efective in is the role technology could play in taking us channel to infuence mindsets. closer to nature, and how it could help us under- stand it in order for us to better relate to it. A popular suggestion has been to intervene in indi- vidual lives by making abstract environmental data concrete for everyday life (Mankof et al. 2007). 7 The target group Re-planting the seed So far, designerly attempts to engage people the interest in nature with nature have mostly targeted younger gen- -curve erations.
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