Through periodic challenges to participate in campus-based studies led by NC State Investigators, the Pack Science Challenge engages students as collaborators in ongoing research about their environment.

Upcoming Challenge

The Campus Canopy Census

Oct. 12th – 16th, 2026

Our Campus Urban Forester Needs YOU

There are thousands of valuable trees scattered across campus requiring monitoring and maintenance for proper stewardship. All students are invited to contribute data to the Campus Canopy Census to help us learn about the health of our campus trees, the carbon they sequester, and reasons why they are important to you. Read how to participate.

Past challenges

Check out what student participation in citizen science has helped us learn so far

Spring 2026: Fridge Factor

Links between fridge habits, food disposal, and foodborne illness.

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Spring 2025: STATE H20

Water samples collected on campus helped validate a new, lost-cost method to detect lead and other toxic metals.

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Spring 2024: Sound Around Town

Exploration of the acoustic environment of campus at “listening stations”.

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Spring 2019: Never Home Alone

Observations of insects and other life encountered in homes, dorms, and apartments.

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Spring 2018: Where’s Delftia?

The hunt for the microbe Delftia acidovorans – it poops gold and laughs in the face of mouthwash.

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Spring 2017: Take a Walk on the Wild Side of the Triangle

Observations of plants, animals, and fungi in the Triangle area for the City Nature Challenge.

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Fall 2016: Take a Walk on the Wild Side of Your Campus

Camera traps helped make discoveries about the mammals living on campus.

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