Let's say you're running an urban tree monitoring project.
You've figured out your goals for the project and decided on all the different
variables you're going to collect in the field.
Now it's time to train crews and support them during their field work.
When more time is spent on training and technical assistance
during the field season, the data will likely be more consistent with
fewer data quality issues. A well-designed training protocol will
help guide these efforts.
Okay, I'm ready. What do we need to do to train the crews?
Part of the training can take place indoors. During training supervisors can
review the field guide and go into greater depth on the more difficult sections.
Trainees should become familiar with all
the equipment they will be using in the field,
what are the items used for, what are they called, what units to use,
and what are the common mistakes for anyone new using that equipment.
Simple activities can be done to learn about each tool.
For example, D-tape is a specialized measuring tape
used by foresters and arborists to measure the diameter at breast height of a tree.
Crews could practice measuring diameters
of each other's wrists in the classroom before practicing on trees outside.
The supervisor can ensure that everybody is reading the D-tape correctly.
This all sounds fine so far, but when I've trained crews, too much
time indoors can get boring. Great point. A mix of indoor and outdoor
training is better. The supervisor can also train on species
identification indoors using images of trees paired with leaf samples.
Later, you can practice the same exercise outdoors.
It is also important to get everyone to
practice making observations, taking measurements, and recording data.
They can also practice call and response for recording data.
Here, try this.
You'll be the person measuring the tree, and I'll be the recorder.
Tell me a pretend tree trunk measurement.
Okay, I measured 10.2 inches at 4.5 feet from the ground.
I heard 10.2 inches at 4.5 feet
Ah, call and response. Got it. Is that to make sure we don't make mistakes by hearing
each other incorrectly? Exactly. Now let's go back to the indoor part.
The indoor session is also a good time
to discuss safety concerns and safety related protocols.
These protocols may vary by organization and city, but should generally include
safe practices for drivers and pedestrians, any locally specific threats
such as tick-borne illnesses or poisonous plants that could cause rashes.
Crews should also be told how to report an incident.
I like that. Safety should always be front and center. Absolutely
Aside from safety issues that might vary city to city, there will also be
differences in interactions with pedestrians and
residents in different places and for different programs.
Supervisors should coach field crews regarding what to say
during these interactions such as a short explanation of the study goals
and who the public can contact for more information.
A script for field crews to follow during these conversations
or a handout for them to distribute, would be helpful. We also recommend
having an explicit discussion with trainees about the potential sources of error.
The purpose of this discussion is to encourage field crews to imagine the
way in which they might make mistakes, explain how to reduce those mistakes
and discuss how to respond to errors if they are discovered after the fact.
Data does not necessarily need to be identical across
every trainee, but should be within reasonable bounds for study goals.
That makes sense, let's get the crews thinking about potential mistakes before they happen.
So all this training how long should it take?
You know, it really depends on the skills
and experience that crews already have, and also the complexity of the data collection.
If crews have prior experience and
they've been asked to record mainly location, trunk diameter, and
mortality status, then a half day training might be enough.
But if the crew needs a lot of support with species identification
or if there are extra variables being recorded, then spend at least a whole day training,
or maybe even two to three days.
And then, to support the crews while they're getting the hang of the field methods,
it's best to accompany them their first week on the job.
That way the supervisor is right there in person to answer questions and
resolve any issues that arise. A whole week! Really?
Um hum, a whole week.Training and supervising field crews
is not a side job. If you want the monitoring data to be high quality
and ensure accuracy with species identification,
recording location, and tree measurements, then plan on having a staff person
or a graduate student fully devoted to this monitoring project,
at least for the data collection season.
Wow! Okay, what else should we know about managing the fieldwork and supervising the crews?
Well, one strategy for managing efficient field work,
is to plan the day-to-day route in advance.
Whether that's driving, using public transportation, or biking.
Part of the planning is also having a realistic
estimate for how many trees your crews can get to each day,
which will depend a lot on traffic and other transportation considerations.
Another strategy is to have a plan for regular data backups.
If you're using a paper data collection, store those in a safe office location
and scan them or make copies every week or so.
If you're doing mobile data collection, make sure your device is backing up
automatically, and if not, download all the data at the
office at least once per week. Having regular check-in meetings with
the crew is important. Once the crews are working pretty
independently, it's a good idea to meet in person to go over their progress and
address any concerns or questions they might have.
Maybe they need some help with hard to identify trees, or maybe they have a
story to share about interactions with residents.
These office meetings could be paired with other tasks like backing up data,
or planning transportation routes.
Last but not least, supervisors should
settle on a quality control protocol for the project.
This could include how often to check the data in doing re-measurements on
some trees or plots to make sure crews were following the prescribed methods.
So there really is a lot of work for the project supervisor to do.
I can see where that would be a full-time summer job to keep track of
everything, but what about citizen science
monitoring projects - if I wanted to use volunteers?
Great question. Plenty of urban forestry non-profits and cities have used
volunteers for data collection. It's feasible, but requires a lot of time
to train and support these volunteers. If they are novices, you might want to
consider what data quality is realistic; things like genus level identification
rather than species level. It's also important to make the data
collection fun since citizen scientists are volunteering their time.
And where can I go for more advice about training and managing field crews?
Check out the links below for more information. We've got more tips and
references in the resource guide for urban tree monitoring
and the field methods themselves are laid out in the field guide.
Thanks for watching and have a great time monitoring your trees.