Third Caring for the Clyde – Citizen Science Meeting
On Saturday 7th March the Clyde River Foundation held its third ‘Caring for the Clyde’ citizen science meeting. The meeting was opened by Catchment Manager Dr. Willie Yeomans, after which Project Coordinator Lesley Deans gave an overview of CRIMP and presented some highlights of the project to date as well as plans for the future. John Blair (President, Bridge of Weir Angling Club) gave a terrific account of CRIMP in action on the River Gryffe – it was great to hear about how CRIMP is being used as a boost for ensuring that the river is properly managed. After tea and cake Graham Munro (Teacher, Hollybrook Academy) gave us a heart-warming version of how he has been using CRIMP for outdoor education with his classes at the Castlemilk Burn. Graham explained that the school, which is for pupils with additional support needs, greatly values outdoor learning and is actively involved in the John Muir Award scheme. He said that CRIMP was unique among many of the outdoor activities on offer in that it involves water and the “chance to splash about” and he talked of the real benefit it gives pupils, providing new skills and helping to build up resilience. Finally, Jack Perks (www.jackperksphotography.com) shared some excellent stories of filming fish all over the UK followed by a short preview of the freshwater fish he’s managed to catch on camera. It was an excellent day and we’d like to say a great big thanks to our guest speakers, all of our citizen scientists and everyone who attended.
