MICROPLASTICS COMMUNITY SCIENCE AND EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY
Resources, tools and technology for community scientists and students to tackle local microplastic pollution
Our tools. YOUR power to make a difference. Together, WE create change.
Microplastic pollution has been found in all of Earth’s environments, our food, water, air and even our bodies. Cleaning up plastic pollution is important, but we must also prevent it from entering the environment in the first place. To drive solutions, decision makers need more than global scientists alone can provide.
Community Scientists are students, community members, beach cleanup volunteers and ocean enthusiasts who help to fill these data gaps. Using science and technology Community Scientists collect and analyze microplastic data from their local sandy beaches to help identify and address solutions while helping to fill global data gaps.
THE TECHNOLOGY
The Data We Need for the Change We Want to See
The Saturna Imaging System is the first-of-its-kind technology that uses machine learning to identify the physical properties of visible microplastics from sandy beaches. Saturna provides community scientists with the ability to identify local microplastic sources and solutions while contributing to a global microplastics data platform.
MICROPLASTICS COMMUNITY SCIENCE AND EDUCATIONAL PRODUCTS
WE ALL have the power to protect our planet from microplastic pollution
Microplastics Community Science Toolkit
Learn about microplastic pollution, collect real data from your local sandy beach(es), use Saturna to upload and evaluate the data and engage your community in solutions while contributing to a global microplastics database called Mariana. >
Microplastics Educational Toolkit
Educational resources, classroom or field sampling activities, analysis technology and communication tools to empower middle and high school students to tackle microplastic pollution in their classroom or the field.
Saturna Standalone
The standardized imaging and illumination device is included in the Community Science and Educational Toolkit. On its own, Saturna plugs into your computer and syncs to a standalone analysis web application to rapidly characterize and quantify visible microplastic particles collected without the use of a sandy beach protocol like Manta nets or rocky beaches.