In the frames of the Project “Strengthening Social Cohesion and capacity of local refugee and migrant young people by creating STEAM” AHEAD implemented the STEAM workshop Science for inclusion in L’Hospitalet de l’Infant (Tarragona) the 25th March 2023.

The workshop had as a main objective to develop competences linked to science as a tool for increasing awareness about environmental heritage and biological diversity increasing the appreciation to the natural spaces and the sense of belonging and inclusion in the community.

The workshop was designed as a Bioblitz that is a participatory citizens science event where the objective was to conduct a research and identify the diversity of natural species in the sea coastal village of the Hospitalet de l’Infant, in Tarragona province.

The workshop started providing ground information about the environment in the area and maps of the zone. Participants were requested to design a scientific research strategy and to identify key geographical points where to conduct the biological research.

Throughout the Bioblitz exercise, participants collected useful data for the study of biodiversity, learning about and getting closer to the ecosystem and nature in general, and interacting with other participants with whom they share common environmental interests.

Participants identified multiple elements of the coastal environment in the venue of the activity including land and sea vegetation and fauna (invertebrates and vertebrates)
During the Bioblitz data and pictures were collected and no harm or disturbance was done to any of the studied specimens.

At the end of the session, participants brought together all the information compiled through the Bioblitz activity and presented the results of the research. The activity concluded with a debriefing about the importance of preserving the common natural heritage, the global threats and the challenges affecting these natural spaces and the strengthening of the sense of belonging and the sense of responsibility in the local-global communities.