The Team

Tomer is an expert in the field of biodiversity informatics, with extensive experience in the development of technological infrastructures and knowledge management. His PhD research focused on biodiversity research in a data-rich era - development of tools and methodology. As head of the center, Tomer is responsible for establishing and developing advanced technological systems, creating collaborations, and promoting public involvement in research.

Manages the network of citizen science projects at the center. She has extensive experience in the field of civil science, in planning, consulting, leading and supporting projects. She is the coordinator of citizen science at the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel. One of her research interests is integrating citizen science into schools. She was a researcher at the Israeli Center for Civic Science in the School (TCSS) and a co-consultant for research in the field. She is a researcher and lecturer in the Faculty of Education at the Technion and directs the National Teachers' Center for Environmental Education, Climate Change and Sustainability there.

Yaela is a senior researcher at the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, where she manages research and development of citizen science at the center. Her research focuses on public involvement in science, creating dialogue between science and the public, and ways to make science accessible and relevant to diverse audiences. Dr. Golombik has developed and managed citizen science projects across various fields, leading mutual design processes while examining the benefits and challenges of citizen science for science and society.

As the technological leader of the Israel Center for Citizen Science, Naama focuses on establishing the technological infrastructure for collecting and processing citizen science data through the local implementation of the Living Atlas system. This efficient and secure system is designed to meet the needs of citizen science communities. Naama's role requires understanding and working with a wide variety of databases, programming languages, and server management tools. Additionally, she is responsible for the iNaturalist localization project.

Zohar develops and designs training materials for projects collaborating with the center, as well as for platforms utilized in citizen science. She holds a master's degree in ecology from Tel Aviv University, gaining expertise from Hamaarag. Her master's research focused on analyzing citizen science data from rare butterfly surveys.

Shlomo is the professional translator for the Israeli Center for Citizen Science. He is also a PhD student in Professor Tamar Dayan's laboratory, conducting ecological research on human-predator conflict in the Golan Heights. As part of his work at the center, Shlomo translated the iNaturalist network's website and applications into Hebrew, making the world of citizen science more accessible to the general public in Israel.

An expert in biodiversity information management, specializing in quality management for citizen science observation data. He established, developed and manages the software systems and databases of the citizen science project 'National Butterfly Monitoring Program' from its inception and is a key player in the program's management.

Researches the field behavior of small mammals to understand their ecology, focusing on behavioral adaptations to their physical and social environments, as well as environmental changes related to human activity. His research employs data loggers attached to animals to measure their activity in nature (bio-logging), and he is involved in developing methods for analyzing this data. He is also interested in integrating citizen science into behavioral ecology research.

Dorit Wolenitz is currently the chair of ICOM NATHIST. She recently retired in 2021 from her role as director and curator of the Man and the Living World Museum, a natural history museum situated in Ramat Gan, Israel. Dorit holds a master's degree in zoology and a diploma in museology studies from Tel Aviv University. She is the founder of the Education Department at the Zoological Center in Ramat Gan. From 2008 to 2016, she served as the chair of both the Israel Association of Museums and ICOM Israel, and she is a member of the advisory committee for the Museum Council of Israel on academic museum studies. As a curator, she was involved in curating most of the Man and Living World Museum's exhibitions, and as director, she led the museum in structuring policies to establish it as a leading institute in the community for sustainable society. She is currently working as a freelance curator and museology adviser.

Bella is conducting a literature review on citizen science as a tool for connecting people to nature and encouraging nature conservation. As part of her work at the center, she investigates the specific characteristics of citizen science projects that influence participants to develop a connection to nature and engage in nature conservation. Bella holds a master's degree in zoology from Tel Aviv University, where she conducted her master's research on house sparrow cognition in Prof. Arnon Lotem's laboratory.