A new twist on climate change reseach

The climate change data is related to the leafing and flowering of flora across the country. Armed with a Web site and thousands of participants, the project — called "Project BudBurst," notes early flowering trends and other anomalies, which one environmentalist says are a symptom of "global weirding."

"The Takeaway’s" Adaora Udoji talks to Project BudBurst co-founder Kayri Havens. Havens is the director of plant science and conservation at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

Project BudBurst is putting out the call for citizen scientists — they would like to enlist volunteers around the country to report when plants flower, or leaf out or drop their leaves. The information is used to determine how plants are responding to the changing planet.

Havens says everyone from scientists to school children are submitting data: "The kinds of information they send us is, they pick a plant species that’s in their garden or their local park, and they agree to watch it, and then the first date they see a leaf or a flower, or first fruit, they submit that information on our website."

The project allows for the collection of a large amount of data that scientists wouldn’t be able to collect on their own. Visit the Project BudBurst website.

"The Takeaway" is PRI’s new national morning news program, delivering the news and analysis you need to catch up, start your day, and prepare for what’s ahead. The show is a co-production of WNYC and PRI, in editorial collaboration with the BBC, The New York Times Radio, and WGBH.

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