Not sure which level to start at?
Ask Gazza. Ten questions, five minutes. Based on your field experience, ecological literacy, and what you're looking to get out of the program, Gazza will recommend the right starting point.
Take the Gazza Placement InterviewReading the site — what shorebirds are doing, what the tidal cycle is doing, what the combination tells a Steward about disturbance pressure and site condition. And then the harder skill: interpreting what you are both watching for the family, the dog walker, the photographer — whoever is at the waterline.
- Full Level 1 digital course book — five modules
- Site reading guide — shorebird behaviour, tidal ecology, and what you are seeing at the waterline
- Tidal cycle module — the two-hour window, habitat availability, and why timing defines everything
- Disturbance science — what a flush costs, flight initiation distance, and the difference between a startled bird and a stressed one
- Field tools introduction — Roost Management Decision Tool and Shoreline Assessment in the context of what you have just observed
- Field record submission — every visit entered into the shared dataset that builds the longitudinal picture of the site
- Waterline Scripts — four encounter types: the family, the dog walker, the photographer, the curious stranger. A framework for each
- Interpreting the science and the wonder for whoever is at the site
- Gazza AI Tutor access — 24 hours, 7 days, six months from enrolment date
- Two supervised field visits with a delivery partner
- 3D printed Gazza silhouette Shorebird Steward badge — issued on assessment pass
- Field assessment at the end of Level 1
- Level 1 Steward certification on assessment pass
- Access to the Steward portal and field records network
- Mapping the Mudflats — contribution to the shared roost dataset from Day 1
Research vessel, field site access, and JWEEC staff included. Participants make a catering contribution — amount set by Jacobs Well EEC. This is your first full field immersion — two days on Moreton Bay, reading the site, using the tools, and interpreting what you find to the group.
Behavioural ecology applied to management decisions — and public interpretation at full deployment. You are reading the site, producing the record, interpreting what you see for the public at the waterline, and speaking from that record to whoever needs to hear it. For practitioners who are already near the waterline and want the tools to make what they see count for the birds and the people watching them.
- Full Level 2 digital course book — six modules
- Disturbance science and FID module — field application
- Energy budget and departure weight — why March disturbance at Moreton Bay has consequences in Alaska in September
- Full Roost Management Decision Tool training — VISIT/12 + AUDIT/20 protocol
- Full Shoreline Assessment training — eight-section longitudinal record
- All six Waterline Script types — including land manager and authority encounters
- Advanced public interpretation — reading complex ecological situations aloud in real time, for any audience, without reducing the science to reassurance
- Background Reading Series — complete set of scientific background documents
- Gazza AI Tutor access — full expert mode, no restrictions — six months from enrolment date
- Three supervised field visits including one independent field audit
- 3D printed Gazza silhouette Shorebird Steward badge — issued on assessment pass
- From observation to authority — using the longitudinal record to engage land managers, councils, and rangers from evidence
- Level 2 Steward certification on assessment pass
- Priority placement at a delivery partner site
Research vessel, field site access, and JWEEC staff included. Participants make a catering contribution — amount set by Jacobs Well EEC. At Level 2 this is a field assessment camp — you lead, you record, and you interpret what you find. Participants make a catering contribution.
For the experienced field naturalist, long-time QWSG member, or conservation practitioner who is already doing this work. No course required. You attend the JWEEC camp, contribute your expertise to the cohort, and are formally recognised as a Shorebird Steward.
- ✓Two-day field camp at Jacobs Well EEC — research vessel, field sites, JWEEC staff
- ✓Gazza AI Tutor access — six months from enrolment date
- ✓3D printed Gazza silhouette Shorebird Steward badge
- ✓Recognition as Honorary Senior Steward — formal acknowledgment of existing expertise
- ✓Access to the Steward portal and field records network
Before you enrol
Payment is not required to register interest. The Register Interest form captures your name and email so we can keep you informed as planning progresses. Payment is processed when the first cohort formally opens — Late July / August 2026. Your six-month Gazza AI Tutor and portal access begins from your enrolment date.
Which level? The Gazza placement interview recommends the right pathway — Level 1, Level 2, or Honorary Senior Steward — based on your ecological knowledge, field experience, and how you approach human encounters at the site.
Field experience is mandatory. Both levels require field visits with a delivery partner — Jacobs Well EEC, REF Environmental, or BIEPA. Your location and field site will be confirmed when the cohort opens.
Questions? Contact [email protected]