We believe that everyone’s time is valuable, and that everyone who loves the coast and visits a favorite beach regularly is an expert on that place. In COASST, we train people to “see” and understand their place through the lens of science, by collecting the same information, in the same way, month after month, in order to build up a picture of what’s normal. We call that a baseline.
Our Vision
COASST sees a future in which all coastal communities contribute directly to monitoring their local marine resources and ecosystem health through the establishment of a network of people and programs collecting rigorous and vital data. Through their collective efforts, and the translation of their on-the-beach data into baselines against which any impact—from human or natural origins—can be assessed, nearshore ecosystems worldwide will be actively known, managed and protected.
Our Mission
COASST believes coastal communities and people are essential scientific partners in monitoring marine ecosystem health. COASST partners with state, tribal and federal agencies, environmental organizations, and community groups to create actionable science – science that matters. By collaborating with coastal residents, natural resource management agencies and environmental organizations, COASST works to translate long-term monitoring into effective marine conservation solutions and responsible marine stewardship.
What is citizen science?
While citizen science has been used as an umbrella term for any public involvement in science, it can be distinguished from other terms based on how the project is initiated and run. For example:
– Citizen science is a process where members of the general public aid in scientific research, typically by collecting data for projects designed and initiated by professional scientists. This teamwork allows scientists to gather far more data than they could alone.
– Community science is initiated and managed by community members to address local needs, often related to social or environmental justice.
We recognize that the term citizen can hold legal or exclusionary connotations, however, in this context it truly refers to citizens of the world and reiterates that science is for everyone.
COASST accepts everyone interested in collecting data using our protocols.
Learn more about participating with COASST