Bookend Trust
Two men standing on rocks surrounded by grassland, by a large lake in remote southwest Tasmania, with mountains on the far side of the lake. They are in the area doing Where? Where? Wedgie! surveys. They are smiling at the camera and one of them has a pair of binoculars. Photo: Nick Mooney.
Photo: Nick Mooney

About

NatureTrackers is the Bookend Trust’s overall program of ‘citizen science’ projects, coordinating schools and the community to track the status of our threatened species and better understand their needs. Citizen science projects may be defined as projects in which volunteers partner with specialist scientists to answer questions about the world and how it works.

NatureTrackers projects are monitoring an increasing variety of threatened and other species annually. To design and establish the infrastructure needed to coordinate largescale citizen science surveys, NatureTrackers brings together a multi-disciplinary team with substantial expertise in field biology, statistics, education and social science.

A wedge-tailed eagle flies low through forest trees. We can see the wedge shape of its tail. Photo: Stewart Ralph.
Photo: Stewart Ralph
A woman dressed in warm walking gear stands on a tree stump taking notes for Where? Where? Wedgie! Behind her are tree ferns and forest. Photo: Stephen Anstee.
Photo: Stephen Anstee

Expedition Class

Founded in 2007 by Andrew Hughes, Expedition Class was created to inspire and motivate students in science and environmental education through a unique model of adventure learning. The goal is to provide free online learning resources, school visits, and professional learning for teachers in Australia and further afield.

You can learn about Andrew’s adventures with eagle researcher James Pay during Expedition Class 2018. Find out more about Expedition Class activities for NatureTrackers under Learn and the Events calendar, and subscribe to NatureTrackers for updates.

A wedge-tailed eagle flying above looks down at the photographer. It is very dark against the blue sky but we can just make out the pale nape of its neck, indicating that it is a younger bird. Photo: Stephen Anstee.
Photo: Stephen Anstee

The Bookend Trust

A not-for-profit founded in Tasmania in 2008, the Bookend Trust inspires people of all ages and abilities to develop careers and interest in the environment, and to find positive solutions to environmental problems. Bookend is made up of a mix of paid and volunteer staff, with more in support roles beyond this. Projects have included student opportunities ranging from the installation of alternative renewable power supplies for medical equipment in remote villages in Fiji, to Antarctic flights.

A group of people with large backpacks walk along a white sandy beach on a dull day, with hills rising up in the background. Photo: Andrew Hughes.
Photo: Andrew Hughes

The Bookend Trust’s projects have received multiple national awards recognising their lasting and positive community impact and outreach, while its ground-breaking documentary Sixteen Legs was given the BOFA Film Festival Award for Innovation. The Trust was named the 2012 Australian Geographic Society Conservationist of the Year, and Education Officer Andrew Hughes was the 2013 Tasmanian of the Year and recipient of the 2012 Australian Power of One Award.

Two young women on a white sandy beach hold polystyrene cups, beside a white jerrycan and a small pool of black liquid on the sand. Photo: Andrew Hughes.
Photo: Andrew Hughes

Learn about other individuals and organisations involved with NatureTrackers.

A man walks over a small grassland rise, with a mountain behind him, in Tasmania’s remote southwest. He is wearing bushwalking gear and carries a large pack. Photo: Persia Brooks.
Photo: Persia Brooks