Climate & Education: take part in a participative project with your park

Date :: 29/03/2011
Keywords :: Climate Change Ecosystems Environmental Education and Awareness Raising

What is Phénoclim?

Since 2004, the Alpine Ecosystems Research Center (CREA) is running the Phenoclim project, aiming at measuring the effects of climate change on alpine plants phenology. Within the scope of participatory science, Phenoclim is both a scientific and educational program involving various publics (schools, associations, individuals, protected areas) in data collection.

Every spring and autumn, volunteers observe phenology of common plant species and transmit the data (dates of budburst, leafing, flowering, leaf fall etc...) to CREA.

170 study zones are now spread across the Alps. Climate is also monitored through a network of 60 temperature stations .
The objective of this observatory is to expand all over the Alps (also Germany, Austria, Slovenia…), to better take into account the geographical diversity of the whole mountain range.

In the scope of the Working group “Mountain environmental education”, ALPARC and the REEMA support this programme and encourage the Alpine Protected Areas to participate.

How to participate?

The 2011 Phenoclim spring campaign has just started… You are managing one or more alpine protected areas? It’s the perfect time to join the french, italian and swiss protected areas which are already involved in Phenoclim!

You are interested in joining the project?

Register on Phenoclim website
Choose the plants from your study zone
Start your observations according to the Phenoclim protocol

Important: the web interface to register and report data is for the moment only available in French. If you would be interested to register and need an English version, please contact Floriane Macian (below) to express your interest and the CREA will consider the possibility to translate these pages.

If you want to use Phenoclim as an educational tool for schools, don’t hesitate to ask CREA for some tips.