Empowering residents to contribute to habitat restoration

“The dynamics of scaling up the Flag Calumet Kit efforts relate to its potential for applying its enhanced technological ability to promote large scale transformation into postindustrial environments and resulting social dynamics. A particular collective value the Kit creates is the gathering of environmental data at the local level, and setting the precondition for its public access, democratizing and increasing the ability of residents to use for their own interests, and distribute it accordingly. While the technology for such an impact has already been created and used in other contexts, the challenges underlying how people access, understand, interpret and use such apparatus and its data are critical points that needs greater attention. Still, providing access to local data, pushing and pulling notifications from dispersed networks (e.g. residents, researchers, government agents, landowners, etc.), crowdsourcing both the assemblage and placement of the Flat and information to act upon habitat restoration efforts through services and management of the property, are all critical aspects that can be further explored.”