Inspired by last week's stories of community scientists fighting polluters in their own backyards? It's easier than you think to join the field of participatory research, in which you can contribute data to experts investigating all sorts of environmental issues. And finding projects that give you opportunities to reconnect with nature or explore your neighborhood can help counteract the weightiness you may be feeling as the climate crisis intensifies. Thousands of active projects are looking for intrepid volunteers of all ages to go out into the field, no experience required. Here are some steps for getting started.

Tip #1: Get curious.

Love observing the night sky? Worried about your local air quality? Let your interests lead you as you hone in on a topic to explore. Chances are, there's a project looking for participants who share your passions or some of the questions on your mind.

Tip #2: Consider some basic training.

While community science requires no experience, some introductory trainings—like SciStarter's Foundations of Citizen Science or Cornell University's Citizen Science Training—can help ground you in the best practices for data collection.

Tip #3: Find your first project.

Now for the fun part. A number of popular databases allow you to search for active projects and sort by criteria like location and age range. Here are a few to check out:

• SciStarter: One of the biggest community science hubs, SciStarter lists thousands of active projects globally.
• National park projects: From Acadia to Olympic, national park visitors can observe and collect data that will help protect the country's most awe-inspiring natural places.
• NASA projects: Help America's space agency conduct important research on everything from asteroids to clouds on Mars.

Tip #4: Download an app.

You don't have to sign up for a specific project to participate in community science. Dozens of apps, like the three below, offer other ways to contribute to research databases.

• eBird: This popular birding app allows avian enthusiasts to report sightings from any location in the world while also searching crowdsourced databases for birding hot spots.
• iNaturalist: This app allows you to identify and document plant and animal species into scientific repositories.
• iSeeChange: Cities, local organizations, and others can identify trends, improve models, and shape adaptation solutions with the aid of this crowdsourced climate and weather data app.

Plus: A reckoning to save Inuit culture + the narwhal

Tomorrow is International Day of the World's Indigenous People—a chance to reflect on the leadership of Indigenous communities in the environmental movement and the continued effort to protect their traditions, lands, and resources. In honor of the occasion, we're sharing a compelling (and troubling) story out of the melting Arctic, where expanding mining projects are putting both the narwhal and an ancient culture on the line.

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