The Buzz Club
Real gardens - Real science
Gardening is a popular pastime, but not one that we do alone. Whether hidden beneath the soil, buzzing in the borders or singing on the fence, thousands of wild animals share our spaces. They provide vital support to our own horticultural successes - yet we know very little about most of them!
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The Buzz Club intends to change that. We are a citizen science club, run by scientists at the University of Sussex. Citizen Science is a way of conducting research in collaboration with the general public. The Buzz Club creates experiments that help us understand the wildlife we share our gardens with, and what we can do to conserve it. Volunteers all over the UK help us to answer these important questions.
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Learn more about why wildlife gardening, pollinators and the Buzz Club is important from our Director Dave Goulson's Symposium talk below:
Our Aims
The University of Sussex has lots of aims which you can read about here, some of which are highlighted below:
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The University of Sussex aims to:
- Stimulate, excite and challenge.
- Research with Impact: By challenging conventional thinking and discourse, we will understand and help solve the grand issues of our time.
- Engage for Change: Working for positive change in partnership with people, communities, organisations close to home and around the World.
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Raise awareness of insect decline, and provide scientific evidence for interventions to encourage and support wildlife in private outdoor spaces.
The Buzz Club is part of the University and so aspires to the above aims. We also have our own additional aims:
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Engage a large and diverse audience, increasing accessibility and confidence in citizen science, thus fostering a sense of ownership and involvement with ecological endeavours.
Fill knowledge gaps about how private outdoor spaces contribute to insect conservation, using the unique opportunities afforded by citizen science methodologies.
Promote and share findings, ensuring maximum data flow between people, communities and organisations.
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