Student Research Reports

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Mangrove ecosystems play an important role in coastal protection, biodiversity, and water quality. In urban coastal areas such as Cartagena, Colombia, these ecosystems are affected by pollution, land-use changes, and other human activities, which makes monitoring their condition especially important. This research proposal is guided by the following questions: What indicators of mangrove health can be identified through biomonitoring using GLOBE protocols, bird counts, and basic microbiological analysis? and How does water quality vary among different urban mangrove sites in Cartagena under different levels of urban pressure? The objective of this study is to assess the health of urban mangrove ecosystems in Cartagena using bioindicators. The project combines field-based scientific research with citizen science and active learning approaches involving high school and university students. Data will be collected using standardized GLOBE Biosphere and Hydrosphere protocols, complemented by bird counts as biodiversity indicators and basic microbiological water analyses. Student-collected data will be compared with existing GLOBE datasets and satellite imagery. As this is a research proposal, we expect that mangrove sites exposed to higher urban pressure will show lower water quality, reduced biodiversity, and changes in biological indicators compared to less impacted sites. These differences are expected to reflect variations in overall ecosystem health. This study aims to show that biomonitoring and citizen science are effective tools for evaluating urban mangrove ecosystems and for strengthening environmental awareness among students. Future research could include longer monitoring periods and additional study sites to support conservation actions and urban coastal management. Keywords: mangrove health, biomonitoring, urban ecosystems, water quality, citizen science