Crowdsourced Eco-Volunteers Team Up Online to Save Hawaii's Forests
 

Crowdsourced Eco-Volunteers Team Up Online to Save Hawaii's Forests
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A new digital initiative is harnessing the power of the crowd to track invasive species and preserve the delicate ecosystem of Hawaii’s rainforests

The Nature Conservancy and DigitalGlobe launched the Hawaii Challenge Tuesday, in which volunteers on the Tom**d crowdsourcing platform comb through aerial imagery of 30,000 acres of forest on the island of Kauai. As they go, they tag the weeds that have contributed to the loss of 50% of Hawaii’s native forest so conservationists can remove them

See also: 5 Crowdsourcing Platforms Every Developer Should K**w


Hawaiian forests are the islands’ main source of freshwater, absorbing rainwater like a sponge and releasing it slowly over time. But the ecosystem developed in isolation, and foreign species can easily upset the natural balance. The Australian Tree Fern and African Tulip Tree increase water ru**ff and kill native plants by blocking the sun. The fern releases millions of spores and grows to 30 feet in height Read more...

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