Blog post by Madison Stroker & Caroline Nickerson

CitSci is an app and website that empowers people worldwide to start and join participatory science projects. The platform provides tools to create projects and datasheets, visualize results, communicate with participants, and share resources. 

Many projects hosted on CitSci are hyperlocal – for example, focused on one creek in a small town – and we think those projects are awesome! Check out our quick guide series for resources, if you’d like to start your own local and place-based project.

Looking for projects you can do from anywhere? Check out our global projects blog post. But first, read on to celebrate some of our favorite projects that you can do at national, regional (and multi-state), and state-level scales.

National Projects

United States:

• Scat-Track: Canine Conservation through Citizen Science
  • Join a nationwide effort to conserve wolves and coyotes through noninvasive scat collection. By gathering scat samples for DNA analysis, you’ll help scientists study diet, population genetics, and how wild canines adapt to changing environments. Current focus areas include the Southeast (Gulf Coast Canine Project) and the Northeast (North American Canine Ancestry Project). Participants receive training and protocols to ensure high-quality data collection — no experience required!

• Monarch Watch Free Milkweeds for Restoration Follow-up Survey
  • Help Monarch Watch evaluate the impact of its milkweed restoration program! If you received free milkweeds through their grant initiative, complete a short survey about your planting experience — including survival rates, volunteer involvement, and any challenges faced. Your feedback helps improve future habitat restoration efforts for monarch butterflies.

United Kingdom:

• Duckling Watch
  • Community members in the United Kingdom are invited to record mallard duckling sightings with information about the brood including the location, date, number of ducklings, and the approximate age of the brood. This data will help calculate mallard duckling survival rates.

New Zealand:

• Mātaki Marangai 
  • In Tairāwhiti, New Zealand, rangatahi (youth) are leading community-driven climate science by tracking rainfall through 100 rain gauges and 8 weather stations at their kura (schools). Co-designed and rooted in kaupapa Māori (Māori-guided principles and research values), the project strengthens local mātauranga (knowledge) and fills critical gaps in national forecasting.

Serbia:

• DivSci: Citizen Co-Creation: Shaping a Sustainable Future of Wastewater Treatment in Serbia
  • In Divčibare, a fast-growing mountain resort in western Serbia, citizens and researchers are working together to address the discharge of untreated wastewater into local creeks. Guided by the University of Belgrade, the project applies EU guidelines on energy-neutral, zero-waste wastewater treatment (WWT) and explores new methods for energy and resource recovery. Local residents, students, and environmental activists co-design solutions, collect data, and validate results through a strong citizen science approach. Their findings will inform master’s-level research and help develop sustainable WWT systems that can be scaled across Serbia.

Regional and Multi-state

New York and Pennsylvania: 

• Alliance for Aquatic Resource Monitoring Hub
  • Investigate stream health in different sites across Pennsylvania and New York with the help of the Alliance of Aquatic Resource Monitoring (ALLARM). Since 1986, ALLARM has offered all the training, equipment, and support you need for high-quality water monitoring. 

Virginia and West Virginia: 

• Trout Unlimited Water Quality Monitoring Project
  • Volunteers in West Virginia and Virginia join forces with Trout Unlimited to monitor the health of cold-water streams using consistent water-quality data collection. By measuring parameters like pH, temperature, conductivity, and turbidity, participants help protect and restore trout-friendly habitats while gaining hands-on experience in watershed science.

State-level

Alaska:

• Alaska Birds ‘n’ Bogs 
  • Join a volunteer-based citizen science effort in Southcentral Alaska to monitor boreal wetland birds such as loons, grebes, yellowlegs, blackbirds, flycatchers and swallows. Your observations help biologists track distribution, abundance, and breeding success of species of concern across drains and bogs. The data assists in habitat conservation for wetland-associated birds and strengthens our understanding of how Alaska’s wetlands are changing.

Colorado:

• Bird Conservancy of the Rockies’ Bald Eagle Watch
  • Join a long-running citizen science program helping monitor nests of the iconic bald eagle across Colorado’s Front Range and beyond. Volunteers track nesting behavior, fledgling success, and disturbances to support eagle conservation. The data collected feed into state and federal wildlife management efforts, strengthening protection for these majestic birds.
• Bird Conservancy of the Rockies’ Golden Eagle Watch
  • Join this citizen science program to monitor golden eagles across the Rocky Mountains region. Volunteers track sightings, behavior, and habitat use to support conservation efforts and enhance understanding of these majestic raptors.
• TIC Tank Observations
  • Students and educators across Colorado monitor rainbow trout tanks as part of the Colorado Trout Unlimited and Colorado Parks and Wildlife “Trout in the Classroom” program. Participants record water chemistry and fish counts at least twice a week to boost trout survival and understand how tank conditions relate to healthy cold-water ecosystems.
• San Juan Wanted Wildlife 
  • A citizen science initiative in the San Juan Mountains where volunteers gather sightings and evidence of elusive wildlife—such as wolves, bears, fishers and other large mammals—to inform conservation and management decisions.

Utah:

• Utah Water Watch
  • Join this statewide program in Utah that empowers volunteers of all ages to monitor the health of local lakes and streams by collecting water-quality data. Open to anyone, participants receive training and resources, then report monthly measurements to support watershed management and foster community stewardship of water resources.

Virginia:

• VBWT: Adopt a Trail
  • Join a conservation effort along the Virginia Bird & Wildlife Trail (VBWT) by becoming a volunteer “trail steward.” Participants conduct seasonal visits to designated wildlife-viewing loops to collect data on wildlife sightings and verify the trail information’s accuracy. This hands-on work supports wildlife monitoring, enhances public engagement, and aids in maintaining high-quality habitat and information along the trails.
• Vernal Pool Cooperative of Virginia 
  • Volunteer naturalists across Virginia monitor vernal pools — temporary woodland wetlands critical for species like salamanders and fairy shrimp — recording data on features such as egg masses, water depth, and disturbance. This long-term dataset, hosted on the CitSci.org platform, is used by land managers and the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources to inform conservation efforts.

West Virginia: 

• Access Fund New River Gorge Monitoring 
  • Join this citizen science effort in the New River Gorge National Park & Preserve, West Virginia, where volunteers help monitor climbing-area conditions—such as new social trails, trampling, and off-trail travel—to support rock-climbing stewardship and conservation. This project is part of a suite of Leave No Trace citizen science projects you can explore on the Leave No Trace Hub.
• Friends of Deckers Creek Citizen Scientists
  • Volunteers monitor water quality across the Deckers Creek watershed in West Virginia, providing long-term trends by sampling at multiple sites and reporting key measurements. Powered by the CitSci platform, this program helps the Friends of Deckers Creek track pollution, support restoration efforts, and empower community-based science.

Washington:

• BeaverWise: Snoqualmie Valley Beaver Monitoring Program
  • Join this citizen science initiative in Washington’s Snoqualmie Valley, where volunteers monitor beavers and their influences on local ecosystems. By documenting dam sites, water flow, and habitat changes, your observations help scientists understand how beaver activity supports biodiversity and informs land-management strategies.
• NSEA Salmon Spotters 
  • Join a citizen science program through the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association (NSEA) in Whatcom County, Washington, where volunteers are trained to identify Pacific salmon species and then monitor local creeks for their presence. By visiting a site of your choice twice weekly during the fall and submitting your observations, you’ll help track salmon returns, fill gaps in stream monitoring, and support regional salmon recovery efforts.

Start Your Journey

These examples are just a glimpse of the 1,000+ projects thriving on CitSci. Many of the projects that DIDN’T make this list are rooted in small communities — like the Town of Superior’s local monitoring programs — where residents are turning curiosity into impact right in their own backyards. Whether you want to study wildlife, track weather, or clean up your favorite trail, you can find a project (or start one of your own!) at CitSci.org/projects.