I’m taking the City Nature Challenge—will you join me?

In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, I participated in the City Nature Challenge for the first time. It was just me and my family, venturing out to our favorite park and capturing photos of the various wild species we stumbled upon. It was a small yet meaningful act of connecting with nature during a time of isolation and uncertainty.

What is the City Nature Challenge, you ask? It’s a simple yet magical event for everyone. This annual four-day bio-blitz encourages people to get outside, take photos of the wildlife around them—whether it’s in a park, your backyard, or on a hike—and upload those photos to the iNaturalist app. These observations contribute to research on biodiversity, helping scientists map and understand urban ecosystems. It’s all about engaging communities in citizen science while fostering a deeper connection to nature.

The City Nature Challenge was founded in 2016 by the California Academy of Sciences and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. It all began as a friendly rivalry between San Franciscans and Angelenos, with each city competing to see who could document the most biodiversity in their urban environments. What started as a playful competition quickly grew into a global movement, expanding from a few cities in California to the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Before anyone knew it, the entire world was taking part. In 2025, over 1,000 cities worldwide are expected to participate—can you believe that? Last year alone, nearly 90,000 people joined in! It’s like an army of biodiversity soldiers, crowd-sourcing the discovery and protection of nature, one observation at a time.

In 2021, I had the chance to interview Alison Young, one of the co-founders of the City Nature Challenge, on the Internet of Nature Podcast. It was incredible to hear how the event started and the remarkable growth they’ve experienced over the years. The success of the City Nature Challenge continues to exceed expectations, uniting thousands of cities and communities in this effort to document and protect wildlife. It’s led to crazy discoveries like a well-camouflaged leafy sea dragon in Australia and a critically endangered elkhorn coral in Panama, which, despite being on the brink of extinction, is showing signs of potential recovery. Another remarkable find was a flying steamer duck in Argentina’s Tierra del Fuego, a species known for its inability to fly, making this rare sighting especially fascinating.

By 2023, the City Nature Challenge had become such an integral part of my life that I wrote about it in my book The Nature of Our Cities. As I researched for that chapter, I was astonished to learn that La Paz, Bolivia, was absolutely dominating the competition. They had an incredible turnout, with nearly all high schools and many businesses taking part—some 3,500 people—over 165,000 observations, and more than 5,300 species documented. I knew I had to see it firsthand, so when I became a National Geographic Explorer, I traveled to La Paz to produce a documentary about it.

During my time in Bolivia, I was joined by Femi Meaux, a good friend and passionate nature lover from Curaçao. Femi and I both felt inspired by the power of community involvement in La Paz. As we explored the city, Femi turned to me and said, “We have to bring this to Curaçao.” That’s when we decided, alongside Cindy Eman—a long-time environmental advocate and educator—to bring the City Nature Challenge to our island.

Since 2021, I’ve been calling Curaçao my part-time home, with deep family connections to the island. It felt like the perfect moment to contribute to the island’s future. But why now?

Curaçao gets a bad rap for being a dry, desert landscape, with nothing but prickly cacti and elusive iguanas, but it is home to a wealth of biodiversity for those who care to look. So much of it remains undocumented, and with escalating, unchecked development, it is deeply threatened.

Participating in the City Nature Challenge will help us map and protect the species that call Curaçao home. It will also engage our local communities in biodiversity conservation, inspiring everyone—from students to business owners—to be active participants in safeguarding our natural heritage. Sustainable development begins with a connection to the natural world. We have so much to learn about our environment, and this challenge provides a fun, accessible way for everyone to get involved.

So, what’s in store for 2025? Mark your calendars for April 25-28, 2025! We’re inviting YOU to join us for the City Nature Challenge, even if just for an hour on one of the days. All you need to do is head outside, snap photos of the wild plants and animals you find, and upload them to the iNaturalist app. It’s that easy. These observations contribute to global biodiversity research and are verified by scientists, helping us better understand and protect the natural world.

I’m also producing an exciting mini-interview series with the talented (and local) filmmaker Katjana Cabenda, showcasing the incredible people who are protecting Curaçao’s nature in their unique ways. Together, we can inspire a deeper connection to nature and take important steps toward preserving it. Follow along on Instagram for more on those interviews!

I can’t wait to see how this challenge will make a difference, whether you're in Curaçao or elsewhere. Whether you have just 15 minutes or a whole day, your participation will help create meaningful change. Bring your family, friends, colleagues, or classmates—let’s make 2025 our best year yet in celebrating biodiversity worldwide. Together, we can help map, protect, and share the beauty of our planet’s natural wonders.

P.S. The City Nature Challenge takes place globally, so you can join from anywhere! Check out the official list of participating cities for 2025 (to be posted in March) here: City Nature Challenge.