Citizen Science Quotes

“I feel the need to fall in love with the world, to forge that relationship ever more strongly. But maybe I don’t have to work so hard. I have thought nature indifferent to humans, to one more human, but maybe the reverse is true. Maybe the world is already in love, giving us these gifts all the time—the glimpse of a fox, tracks in the sand, a breeze, a flower--calling out all the time: take this. And this. And this. Don’t turn away.”
― Sharman Apt Russell, Diary of a Citizen Scientist: Chasing Tiger Beetles and Other New Ways of Engaging the World

“That little owl with a call as steady as my heartbeat was telling anyone who would listen, ‘I am here.’ We were listening. We’re listening still.”
― Heather Durham, Going Feral: Field Notes on Wonder and Wanderlust

“It's that magnificent interlude in New York between winter and spring, when you feel the warmth stirring, and you remember that the dreadful naked trees will inevitably sprout tiny green buds, soon. Everyone rushes into the parks, the streets--and you even forget that, very soon , summer will come scorchingly, dropping from the sky like a blanket of steam...”
― John Rechy, City of Night

“I see reason for hope, but I also make a plea for vigilance on behalf of wild nature. More citizens' action, undertaken by more of us working in concert, can lead us to a new and better world. Let's all raise the flag for wilderness, wood warblers, and all the wild things.”
― Bruce M. Beehler, North on the Wing: Travels with the Songbird Migration of Spring

“Too often our observations of birds-- or any other wildlife-- end at the moment of recognition. We look just long enough to see what something is, and then turn away, neglecting to ask the next logical (and arguably more interesting) question: What is it doing? To really understand what is happening in the natural world, we need to pay attention to behavior. [...] Watching closely takes time, a precious commodity that is often hard to spare, particularly for familiar species that our eyes tend to pass over as part of life's backdrop. But the robin and frog incident inspired me to try.”
― Thor Hanson, Close to Home: The Wonders of Nature Just Outside Your Door