ClimateWatch was developed by Earthwatch with the Bureau of Meteorology and The University of Melbourne to understand how changes in temperature and rainfall are affecting the seasonal behaviour of Australia's plants and animals. The first continental phenology project in the Southern Hemisphere, ClimateWatch enables every Australian to be involved in collecting and recording data that will help shape the country’s scientific response to climate change.
The ClimateWatch system provides:
* An opportunity for educators to introduce their students to phenology, biodiversity, and climate change.
* A greater understanding, while raising public awareness, of the response of Australia’s biodiversity to climate change;
* An online system for collecting, storing, interpreting and reporting indicators of biological responses to climate; and
* The ability to predict and monitor changes in native and pest species distributions and to test their sensitivity to climate.