Meet some of your fellow science champions
Why do people take part in citizen science? What is it that excites or motivates them?
Citizen scientists are the heart of this initiative. Without them, the success of projects would not be possible.
We would like to fill this page featuring members from our citizen science community.
If you would like to share your story, please email wonder@csiro.au
MEET THE CSIRO TEAM
Dr Emily Brindal
- Hi. My name is Emily and I was born to be a scientist. I love grouping, quantifying and explaining the world around me. I have trained in psychology, so the focus has usually been on people and behaviours but I also love the environment around us. I try to do the backyard bird count every October and have got better at identifying local birds thanks to it. I want to learn from science but also help people learn about science and work with passionate people to answer questions important to them. That is why I am part of this project.
Dr Gilly Hendrie
- Hello, Gilly here. My research focuses on understanding Australians’ dietary intake patterns and trying to develop new ways to improve our food choices to address key challenges like obesity and environmental sustainability. Previous intervention we have developed use technology to support people to monitor and change their eating habits to improve their health.
- I lead the CSIRO Public Health and Wellbeing Group which is focussed on improving the health and wellbeing of Australians. That is why I am interested in citizen science and learning more about how we can work together to do science that has a positive impact on community health. I also lead the science behind the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet Online and have also developed the CSIRO Healthy Diet Score which is a survey that asks about the foods you eat. This survey has been completed by over 230,000 Australians over the years! Through this work, I often do radio and TV interviews, so am always up for a chat.
Danielle Baird
- Hi, I’m Danielle, an eager member of the citizen science project team here at CSIRO. For the last 15 years, I have dedicated my efforts to better understand Australians’ food choices and dietary behaviour, and the impact our diets on obesity, food security, and climate change. While much of this research follows a traditional scientific approach, I believe actively involving the population in shaping solutions is important. I believe in empowering communities to contribute to the discourse surrounding their own challenges.
- A recent highlight for me was meeting Costa Georgiadis at the citizen science conference in the Sunshine Coast. His passion and enthusiasm for engaging and empowering regular citizens in all aspects of science was inspiring and infectious.
Maddy Sandeman
- Oh, hi there! I’m Maddy. About 5 years ago, I completed a degree in health and medical science (focusing on neuroscience) and have been working in clinical and health research since then. I’m super keen to be working in the area of citizen science because I’ve always wanted to improve how science is communicated and to break down barriers to make science more accessible for anyone who didn’t spend a long time at university.
- I am fairly new to citizen science and have been reading a lot of scientific literature to figure out how this approach to working together can become a staple in the work we do. I am really excited to see your ideas come in and look forward to engaging you in the great science we do at CSIRO. My message to you is that you don’t need to study something for four or more years to have good ideas! We would love to hear from you. Please fill out our survey or submit your thoughts via the online form. It doesn’t matter how big or small you think your idea is, or what your background is. I hope this space will be created by you as well as by us!
If you would like to share your story, please email wonder@csiro.au