There are some rocky areas there where there are tons of algae, so you can already see quite a lot of different species around those spots!
By joining the project, I was surprised by how many small species I observed. Identifying them was sometimes challenging, but it helped me learn.
Today I tried to take photo of a small insect but it was too fast! I followed it for like 5 minutes but still couldn’t get clear picture. Finally it flew away. I learned that taking good photos for science is not easy. Next time I will be more patient and maybe use burst mode. But even though I didn’t get the photo, I still enjoyed watching the insect. Sometimes just observing is also fun!
Today I didn’t go alone – I brought my classmate from EADA. At first she was just walking with me, but then she got interested and started looking for plants too! She asked me “what is this plant?” and I actually knew it was Carpobrotus! I felt so proud teaching someone else 
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Yesterday I went to the beach and had a fun day with a friend, spending time relaxing and observing plants and birds
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Today I was walking and almost stepped on a small plant. Then I remembered: don’t step on dune vegetation! So I walked around. Before this project I never noticed these plants. Now I see them everywhere. And I protect them. Small change in my behavior but I think it’s important.
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Today I noticed something I never saw before: the sand on the dune is not staying still. One day the shape is like this, another day it’s different. I read somewhere that wind moves sand and that’s how dunes grow. I didn’t upload much pictures today, but more to just sat and watched. I think sometimes observing without taking photo is also part of learning. Before this project I never paid attention to sand. Now I see it’s alive too.
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Today I saw a bird walking on the sand. It was brown and yellow. I remember from the workshop slides there was a bird called robin ? Maybe that’s it! I tried to take photo but it flew away when I got close. Next time I will stay far and use zoom. Still happy I saw something new today.
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I’ve been to Somorrostro Beach yesterday and, despite the challenges of finding something meaningful, I managed to capture interesting details and was really happy about it. This has also taught me to value small things and attention to detail.
I think this project really changed how I see everyday environments, especially places like beaches that I used to take for granted.
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One thing that could improve the project is giving more feedback to participants so we can better understand the impact of our contributions.
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Another interesting aspect was how people reacted when we were collecting data, which helped raise awareness beyond the project itself.
What struck me the most about this project is just how diverse Barcelona’s beaches are. The first time I did the activity, I went to Barceloneta Beach and found it incredibly difficult to find a varied number of species, as I mainly observed seagulls.
A few weeks later I visited the beaches of Castelldefels and Gava, and the difference was huge. There was plenty of fauna, and I was able to take pictures of over half a dozen different species, many of which I would have never seen in Barceloneta. This made me realize how tourism or heavily crowded areas can be detrimental in attracting local species. I am happy I made the trip to visit Gava and Castelldefels, as it allowed me to see a side of Barcelona I did not know existed.
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Something similar happened to me. While I was in Castelldefels someone asked me If I were doing the Minka Project, because nearby there was a Minka poster encouraging people on the beach to join the initiative. I thought it was a neat way of trying to bring people into the fold
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I would also say that it’s interesting how unevenly distributed this pollution is. Places like Barceloneta or close to Barcelona have much more visible pollution than beaches such as Gavà or Castelldefels, which I believe is a key reason as to why there is more biodiversity there.
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After today’s class, I went to the beach to do this MINKA project, and I found that it helped me learn about a lot of plants I hadn’t known before. It also made me more curious and observant about new things in the environment.
Compared to my previous observations, I feel that my ability to identify targets for observation has improved significantly.
It was a really cool experience. I didn’t expect to notice so many different species on the beach.
Sometimes it was a bit tricky to identify them, especially when they looked similar, but it got easier with time.
Overall it made me more aware of the biodiversity around us.
I really enjoyed the activity because it was both interesting and surprising. I hadn’t realized there were so many kinds of living things along the shore. At first, telling some of them apart was not always easy since a few looked almost the same, but little by little it became more manageable. In the end, the experience helped me better understand how rich and varied nature is around us.
Yes, I agree, and it also made me realize how important small individual actions can be when they are part of a larger collective effort.