The Korea National Arboretum (President Lim Young-seok) announced that ‘BioBlitz Korea 2025’ will be held from September 13 to 14 in the UNESCO biosphere reserve of Gwangneung Forest, located in Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province.
‘BioBlitz Korea’ is a biodiversity citizen science program first introduced domestically by the Korea National Arboretum in 2010. Celebrating its 16th event this year, the program consists of field-centric exploration activities where citizen scientists investigate and record species over a 24-hour period.
This event is sponsored by Shinhan Bank and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Participants will engage in programs such as the ‘Species Recording Challenge,’ where they take photographs of species and collaboratively compile a list using smartphones and field guide resources. They will also participate in ‘report production.’
Additionally, there will be a exploration of the habitat of the Black Woodpecker, a representative bird of Gwangneung Forest, alongside birdwatching activities. The event will be conducted in a carbon-neutral manner, taking into account the forest’s carbon absorption capacity.
Anyone above middle school age can participate. Along with professional exploration and educational programs, beginners are welcome to join as well.
General registration will be conducted on a first-come, first-served basis from noon on August 11 to August 22. Applications can be made on the Korea National Arboretum’s website.
Lim Young-seok, President of the Korea National Arboretum, expressed that this is an opportunity to directly explore and record the biodiversity of Gwangneung Forest and plans to continue activities to raise awareness of biodiversity conservation and expand citizen scientists.
