What is Project NightWatch?
At the Bat Conservation Trust (BCT), our vision is of a world rich in wildlife where bats and people thrive together, so we launched the NightWatch project in 2021. NightWatch is a community science project which aims to ensure that everyone can access the benefits of connecting with nature, particularly those from minority ethnic communities, and people with disabilities.
Anyone and everyone can take part, it is free, and no previous experience or knowledge is needed. Audio sensors offer a simple, accessible and engaging way of ‘eavesdropping’ on urban night-time wildlife. NightWatchers receive their survey kit, and a prepaid return envelope in the post. They then survey their chosen location, be it a garden, balcony, or even a windowsill, by putting out the sensor overnight, and watching and listening for other wildlife such as foxes, badgers and owls, for one hour. BCT analyses the recordings made by NightWatchers and sends them a personalised report about the bat species they have discovered, together with resources to help and inspire them to continue their journey with nature.
Here at Project NightWatch, co-design is at the heart of everything we do, and we are focused on breaking down the barriers that can cut city-dwellers off from the wellbeing benefits of connecting with nature. Together, with local people of colour and those with disabilities, and steered by our volunteer Champions, we curate bespoke opportunities for urban residents to step confidently into the world of night-time nature monitoring. With your help, we can continue delivering our training and events and enlist and support Local NightWatch Coordinators who help us make a difference for urban bats and people.
Why does our work matter?
Natural experiences provide a range of powerful and well-studied health and wellbeing benefits. At the same time, providing communities with the opportunity to connect with nature in their local area empowers them to discover their local wildlife and green their own surroundings, providing benefits for biodiversity and climate change resilience.
However, the 80% of the population who live in English towns and cities are less likely to participate in natural experiences than their rural counterparts, and under-represented communities such as minority ethnic groups, people from lower socio-economic backgrounds and those with disabilities face further barriers to accessing nature. NightWatch offers a unique opportunity for people in urbans areas and from under-represented backgrounds to derive the proven benefits of connecting with nature.
Urban areas can provide vital habitat for a wide range of species, but this habitat is often fragmented and under pressure from climate change and development. NightWatch provides valuable data to assess how bat populations respond both to pressures and conservation action, and more widely to inform the design of habitat restoration, rewilding and climate change mitigation initiatives. As well as local communities, we also work directly with owners/managers of urban green spaces to collect data on the value of these sites for bats and inform habitat improvements that would increase the activity levels and diversity of bat species these sites support.
The NightWatch story so far
Since 2021, NightWatchers have collected thousands of bat records at over 750 sites across Britain. In 2023 alone, NightWatchers collected so much data that if the data was put on old fashioned floppy disks we would need 56 million of them! Spread out on the ground this would be the size of 186 football fields. Stacked on top of each other they would reach 225km into the sky, which is the mid thermosphere!
We couldn’t do the work we do for bats without the amazing volunteers who make up our NightWatch community. Volunteer Champions are driving the communications and engagement vision of the project, our community partners have helped us deliver events to over two thousand city-dwellers, and specially trained Local Coordinators help us reach new audiences by conducting bat walks and surveys.
Our work on NightWatch has shown that indirect engagement (such as via traditional or social media) is not enough to reach our target communities, and that reliance on these engagement methods reinforces barriers to these communities connecting with nature. With your help, we can provide high-impact engagement and codesigned events that build nature connection around community needs and interests. You can be part of the NightWatch footprint, creating lasting impacts for urban bats and people.
Where you can help NightWatch go next
Your support will be fuelling inclusivity, urban biodiversity, and the next generation of conservation champions. With additional funding, we will scale up efforts to collect important bat data, engaging at least 300 additional NightWatchers who will collect local bat data, and hundreds more through our events and training programme. We will run high-impact training and engagement events across London, Manchester and Birmingham, and empower Local Coordinators to bring bat monitoring to their communities. Together, we can shape resilient, nature-friendly cities.
Rewards
To thank you for your support we have the following rewards on offer.