Emu-Felicitas Miyashita (Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Ambassador of Japan in Citizen Science Asia)
Hiromi Kobori, Ph.D (Tokyo City University/Biodiversity Academy)
From the 12th to 15th of September, Ms. Emu-Felicitas Miyashita and Dr. Hiromi Kobori had a chance to visit Hong Kong. Dr. Kobori is a distinguished professor of Tokyo City University majoring in the field of Conservation Biology, Environmental Education, and Citizen Science. Dr. Kobori is also a representative director of Biodiverity Academy (General incorporated association in Japan). Ms. Miyashita is a graduate student of Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology and an ambassador of Japan in Citizen Science Asia. The trip resulted from a conversation between Dr. Kobori and Mr. Shaun Martin, who both had been managers of the City Nature Challenge (CNC) 2018, in their respective regions (Tokyo and Hong Kong). Since participation for the CNC in Hong Kong was remarkably high, Dr. Kobori asked Mr. Martin what had been the key to success. He answered “Come to Hong Kong and I’ll show you my secret!” Mr. Martin and the Hong Kong members of CS Asia then contacted and arranged an adventurous and exciting four-day tour, where Dr. Kobori and Ms. Miyashita were introduced to many hidden, fascinating sides of Hong Kong. As a result, Dr. Kobori and Ms. Miyashita wrote this article as an expression of gratitude to all the people who made the stay so special.
2018. Sep. 12, Day 1
Interview with Mr. Martin and Prof. Kobori
On the first day, there was an interview between Mr. Martin and Dr. Kobori, from SC. Asia. They talked about their definition of Citizen Science (CS), and experiences as managers of the CNC 2018. “City Nature Challenge 2018” is a citizen science project that focuses on monitoring all taxa of wildlife in the cities in the world by asking citizens to take photos of wildlife in their own cities. The web based application of “iNaturalis” was used as a platform for the SC project. It was organized by the California Academy of Science and the National History Museum of Los Angeles. Collaborating with these two institutions, the local organizers of 68 cities in the world implemented local programs in their cities simultaneously from the 27th to 30th of April in 2018 and competed the number of observed records, species, and participants among the cities. Dr. Kobori and Mr. Martin also spoke about the merits and challenges of CNC2018. The merits were the involvement of so many citizens (17 thousand participants globally) and the collection of an enormous amount of open access data in the world. The major challenge in Japan was the language barrier that became an obstacle to recruit participants.
After the interview we had a social dinner with members of CS. Asia, discussing the current state of citizens’ involvement in scientific research in Asian countries.
2018. Sep. 13, Day 2
Island House
Dr. Kobori and Ms. Miyashita had the honor to be the first guests to stay in Island House after its renovation; a heritage monument built in the 20th century, now taken care of by WWF Hong Kong. At a wonderful location directly by Tolo Harbour in eastern part of Tai Po, and a garden with many indigenous and imported plant species, it was quite a different environment than one might expect from a “mega city”. Mr. Cornthwaite Peter, CEO of WWF Hong Kong, picked up Dr. Kobori and Ms. Miyashita in the morning. After showing them around Island House and explaining the present state of animal and plant protection on the Hong Kong biodiversity map, they made their way to Mai Po, along with Mr. Martin.
Mai Po
Mai Po is a wetland nature reserve located in the northwest of Hong Kong, and has been managed and protected by the WWF since 1983. It is home to more than 250 plant species, many kinds of animal species, a haven for thousands of migratory birds during autumn and winter, more than 400 bird species, among them 49 that are of global conservation concern. As a result, Mai Po has been recognized as a “Wetland of International Importance” under the Ramsar Convention in 1995.
After signing a special entry permit, the group entered a restricted area, accompanied by Mr. Yamme Leung, the education director of WWF Hong Kong and some staff members. Umbrella in hand (the weather was unstable as a small typhoon had just passed by), the group clambered over the raft-like boardwalks-careful not to slip-which was quite an adventure. Since it was low tide, mudskippers and crabs were visible on the mangrove floor. Along the boardwalk there were some mangrove trees with markings, which were under research by Hong Kong University and other local and international research institutes.
At one of the viewing points, the group observed water birds as the tide was slowly coming in. One could even see some species which had just arrived in Mai Po at their wintering site. It was a beautiful yet somewhat strange sight, as you could see the large city clustered with skyscrapers on the far side of the wetland. Mai Po is on the north edge of the Hong Kong border, and the next big city on the main land is in viewing distance. Mr. Leung explained there are a lot of tree seeds that make their way into the wet land and start growing, so local helpers occasionally go in to pull these trees out. Only with active management measures is it possible to conserve the unique ecosystem of the wetland. However, despite all human activity the water level is slowly but steadily sinking, and it is expected that someday the area will become dry land.
Prof. Kobori’s speech at DIYBIO
At the end of the second evening, Dr. Kobori gave a speech about CS in Japan. In Japan, the change of seasons is a cultural event that influences a broad spectrum of social activities, such as cooking, bird watching, or cherry blossom viewing etc. Another characteristic trait of the Japanese society is its volunteer spirit and meticulous performance once such an activity has been chosen. As a result, some of the world’s earliest CS projects have their origins in Japan.
At the same time challenges and difficulties CS in Japan is facing today were also mentioned according to the result of interviews by Dr. Kobori with major Japanese NGOs. The challenges are 1) aging of participants and the difficulty of involving the younger generation, 2) the monitoring records have not been well analyzed, resulting in the data not used for science research, conservation, and problem-solving in a community, 3) the concern and interest of the participants of the projects were not surveyed before the projects, and 4) very few web based citizen science projects have been implemented in Japan. However, Dr. Kobori gave several examples of citizen science projects which she has been involved in the hopes of to reverseing these trends. Her entire speech was recorded, and will be released by CS. Asia. The speech was followed by a lively discussion, where many of the participants with diverse backgrounds asked questions and shared their points of view.
The speech was hosted by DIY BIO, the first community bio lab in Hong Kong. DIY BIO, located in Maker Bay, is an open lab with its own equipment (much of which is handmade), where anybody can join to do scientific research. The staff members kindly showed us around and explained the equipment and insects in detail, as the spotlight of this year is on the insects of Hong Kong. One citizen science project named “Bug Hunt” has been implemented long term to encourage people to take ownership of nature and to enhance the public’s knowledge and understanding of insects while contributing to the biodiversity knowledge of Hong Kong’s insects. It also attempts to generate DNA barcodes of the different insects in the collection in order to build a DNA barcode library of Hong Kong insects and eventually to contribute to the international barcode of life initiative.
2018. Sep. 14, Day 3
Chinese Foundation Secondary School (CFSS)
On the last morning of our stay, Dr. Kobori and Ms. Miyashita were invited to the Chinese Foundation Secondary School (CFSS). First, the school principal, Mr. Au Kwong Wing, and the teacher team introduced the pair to the concepts of the school, one of them being STREAM education which stands for Science, Technology, Reading and Writing, Engineering and Robotics, Art and Design, and Mathematics. Basically, STREAM is a higher version of the now often talked about STEM education. In addition to this basic education, the school encourages students to develop their passion and interest in a specific field, not only in typical school subjects, but also in sports, music, languages, IT skills etc. This program includes the school teachers. On the top floor of the building, there was an astronomy room, with special telescopes and equipment, “encouraging” one of the English teachers to pursue his passion for astronomy, and, of course, share it with his pupils, for example, the teacher and students went on a school trip to Australia to observe the stars under more favorable conditions than in Hong Kong.
On the same floor, there also was a herbarium and seedling nursery centre, with seeds and plants from all over the world, some of them collected by students and teachers on their numerous school trips. The rooftop was filled with medicinal plants, some of them also known to remove indoor toxins in the air. A windowless room originally used as a photo-lab was now a research room featuring an electronic microscope for students. As one of the biology teachers had background knowledge in cancer research, the school provided him with a lab, where he is now continuing his research with his students.
There was much more to see, as these are only the highlights, but it was remarkable how every spare inch was used for something in order to create “skin contact” experiences for students with science and nature.
The slogan of “Leave no one behind” has been a pedagogical challenge for many school systems this century, but it seems CFSS has found an answer to it.
Tai Tam Tuk Foundation (TTTF)
In the afternoon, we visited the Eco Education Centre of Tai Tam Tuk Foundation where Mr. Martin explained how he had organized the CNC in 2018 Hong Kong and his future plans for 2019. As the organizer of CNC2018: Honk Kong, Mr. Martin took the following three approaches; an integrated approach, a captive approach, and public approaches. The integrated approach focuses in NGOs and research institute. Regarding the integrated approach, Mr. Martin contacted local NGOs and nature protecting communities, and asked them if they were interested in taking part at the CNC just by continuing what they were already doing, with minimal additional effort. In this case, the additional effort was to take a picture and upload it on the application iNaturalist. “The simplicity of the activity was the key to success; not many people are willing to read manuals with long and complicated explanations, but instead are open to something as easy as taking a picture.
Next, the captive approach focused on schools and universities. In urban areas in Hong Kong, there are 30 secondary schools. In 2019, Mr. Martin is planning to cover all these secondary schools, as it is an effective way to involve many students in the area. If 100 students of each secondary school take 10 pictures of wildlife, it will become a huge number of data which will contribute to urban BD monitoring station and bioindicators of Hong Kong.
Third, there is the public approach which focused on the media and government. The media was effective to provide materials and post CNC press releases. In addition, social media played an important role. The Dept. of AFCD and LCSD also supported the project.
In 2019, his main focus is on the young generation; he is planning to involve whole schools in the project.
Afterwards, Mr. Martin along with Ms. Jenna Marris took Dr. Kobori and Ms. Miyashita on a tour around Tai Tam Tuk wetland, showing them the unique flora and fauna. Ms. Marris explained that how to scale up the carrying capacity of Tai Tam wetland without exceeding is a major local agenda to contribute to Hong Kong’s first Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2016–2021.
2018. Sep. 15, Day 4
Island House Conservation Studies Centre (CSC) and CS projects in WWF
On the 4th day in Hong Kong, Dr. Kobori visited one building in the Island House Conservation Studies Centre (C SC) of WWF Hong Kong. The building had been used for the horse stables, however, it was renovated recently to use for the CSC. When Dr. Kobori visited there, every visitor enjoyed a free cup of coffee and was informed about marine ecosystems and ocean protection exhibitions. The Centre hosts many events, activities and programs to accomplish the mission on conservation and sustainable living. One of the major focuses is “One Planet Education Programme” which provides the youth with real-world ecological experience and use CS -based approaches and technology to inform and empower them.
Since 2017, WWF-Hong Kong has been collaborating with various youth groups on CS programs. The WWF expert team trained young people to become “One Planet Citizen Scientists”. These young citizen scientists will contribute to providing the latest status of Hong Kong biodiversity for ongoing conservation projects, such as “Biodiversity Check@ Mai Po” and Baseline Study@ Hoi Ha Wan.
Conclusion:
The trip to Hong Kong was only for 4 days; however, it was a great opportunity for Dr. Kobori and Ms. Miyashita to learn that Hong Kong is not only a vibrant metropolis, but also home to a rich biodiversity and natural habitat.
In conclusion, below are the unique aspects of Hong Kong in terms of biodiversity and CS.
1.The topography and sub-tropical climate provide a wide range of habitats to support a rich variety of flora and fauna in Hong Kong.
2. An extraordinarily high level of biodiversity was observed in very small areas.
3.The percentage of indigenous species in many taxa is quite high.
4.From the city centre, citizens can access a variety of natural environments, such as mountains, woodlands, coral reefs, and even an internationally-important Ramsar wetland in an hour or so.
5. A world-class country park system is used as a regional example of conservation best practice.
6. Unfortunately, precious national environments are also damaged because of urban development, various human activities, and unsustainable lifestyles.
7. Easy access to various environments would stimulates school children and citizens to learn about biodiversity through real life experience.
8. Various stakeholders, such as the government, NGOs, research institutes and schools can easily discuss conservation, policy on biodiversity, and CS face to face.
9. Various CS projects have been (and still are) conducted in Hong Kong. Especially, targeting the youth is important to create new generation for conservation and sustainability through real life experience.
10. The role of CS. Asia will become more important to share information, collaborate and enhance CS activities in Asia countries through its platform of networking.
Acknowledgment
This survey trip was supported by JAPSKAKEN grant number18H01073 to Hiromi Kobori.
“Citizen Science Trip” in Hong Kong was originally published in The CitizenScience.Asia Journal on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
