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About Scott Loarie

Executive Director at iNaturalist

X / @loarie
Compiled from 12 entries (1 tweets, 10 articles) / updated 1d ago / v1

Scott Loarie is the Executive Director and co-founder of iNaturalist, an open-source citizen science platform that empowers millions of nature enthusiasts to document biodiversity through photos and observations. His thinking centers on harnessing big data from user-generated nature sightings to advance scientific research, protect species, and reconnect people with the natural world. He emphasizes the surprising power of everyday observations in addressing global challenges like climate change and biodiversity loss.

iNaturalist: Building a Global Citizen Science Platform

Scott Loarie co-founded iNaturalist with Ken-ichi Ueda as an open-source platform enabling millions of users to collect and identify biodiversity data.[3][4][5][10] As Executive Director, he leads its growth into a leading citizen science tool used by researchers worldwide.[1][4][7] The app transforms casual nature photos into actionable scientific data, with examples like identifying 5,000 fish species in under 24 hours via community efforts.[2]

The Power of Everyday Nature Observations

Loarie challenges people to 'go outside and take a picture of a living thing,' highlighting how such simple acts contribute to a global dataset.[1][6][8][9] He shares stories of users whose photos reveal unknown species distributions and threats, underscoring that 'your nature sightings matter more than you think.'[9] This democratizes science, turning hobbyists into key contributors.[7][11]

Big Data for Biodiversity Protection

iNaturalist leverages big data analytics to protect biodiversity, helping scientists identify species and monitor threats like climate impacts.[7] Loarie connects this to broader topics like climate and energy, using aggregated observations for conservation insights.[bio][7] The platform's data powers research on millions of species, many poorly known.[9]

Personal Passion and Community Impact

A lifelong nature enthusiast obsessed with California plants, Loarie's work fosters social impact by connecting people to nature and promoting civil discourse among 'nature nerds.'[5][10] His TED Talk amplifies user stories, inspiring broader participation.[6][8] iNaturalist blends fun with science, as users aid research while enjoying outdoor activities.[11]

Broader Applications and Future Vision

Loarie envisions citizen science scaling to tackle environmental challenges, from species identification to policy-relevant data on climate and energy.[bio][7] The platform's success demonstrates how social impact and data analytics intersect to drive real-world change.[4][5]

Key themes

Citizen Science via iNaturalist

Co-founding and directing iNaturalist to crowdsource biodiversity data from millions of users.

  • Co-developers of iNaturalist enabling millions to collect data [3]

  • Co-director of citizen science site [4]

  • Co-founder of iNat app [5]

Power of Nature Photos and Observations

Encouraging simple acts like taking photos to generate valuable scientific data.

  • Challenge to take picture of living thing [1]

  • TED Talk on surprising power of nature photos [6][8]

  • Nature sightings matter more than you think [9]

Big Data and Analytics for Conservation

Using aggregated user data to identify species, threats, and support biodiversity protection.

  • Protecting biodiversity with big data [7]

  • 5,000 fish species identified in 24 hours [2]

  • Data for scientists on species threats [7]

Connecting People to Nature

Reconnecting individuals with nature for personal joy, community, and civil discourse.

  • Mission to connect people to nature [5]

  • Users have fun while aiding science [11]

  • Lifelong interest in nature [10]

Social Impact and Climate Applications

Applying platform data to climate/energy challenges and broader societal benefits.

  • Topics: Climate/Energy, Social Impact, Data/Analytics [bio]

  • Nature nerds saving civil discourse [5]

  • Biodiversity threats via data [7]

Sources (12)

Every entry that fed the multi-agent compile above. Inline citation markers in the wiki text (like [1], [2]) are not yet individually linked to specific sources — this is the full set of sources the compile considered.

  1. Climate Papa: The Power of Noticing: Scott Loarie on Building a Global Biodiversity Movement with iNaturalistpodcast_episode · 2026-04-14
  2. The Surprising Power of Your Nature Photos - Creatipixarticle · 2026-04-14
  3. i'Ve iNputted iNformation iNto iNaturalist - Talking Plantsarticle · 2026-04-14
  4. scott loarie (@loarie) / Posts / X - Twitterarticle · 2026-04-14
  5. Alumni Profiles Series: Scott Loarie | The Graduate Schoolarticle · 2026-04-14
  6. Can Nature Nerds Save Civil Discourse? - Pepperwood Preservearticle · 2026-04-14
  7. Bring Back the Fireflies - The Sparrow Undergroundarticle · 2026-04-14
  8. Protecting Biodiversity with Big Data - California Academy of Sciencesarticle · 2026-04-14
  9. Scott Loarie - Facebookarticle · 2026-04-14
  10. Why Your Nature Sightings Matter More Than You Think - Mediumarticle · 2026-04-14
  11. loarie's Profile - iNaturalistarticle · 2026-04-14
  12. How iNaturalist app users have fun while aiding science - CBS Newsnews_article · 2026-04-14