Citizen Science Projects
Best Practice Examples in Citizen Science
These best practices are implemented at UNIVERSEH’s partner universities.
Citizen science is an important tool to lower barriers between science and the public, as it actively involves non-scientists in the knowledge-producing process. It does this by involving citizens in scientific research and therefore fostering public engagement.
Citizen science activities are categorized according to the level of public engagement, in particular, distinguishing among four participation levels. While on the first level participants engage occasionally and might act as consultants or to give a short feedback, on the fourth, their engagement is the most comprehensive and includes involvement in the problem definition, data collection, and analysis, hence in all stages of the scientific process.
Are you interested in engaging in our Citizens Science Projects?
Implemented at AGH University of Science and Technology in Poland.
Project summary
The Cosmic-Ray Extremely Distributed Observatory (CREDO) is an ongoing research project involving scientists and the public from around the world, dedicated to observing and studying cosmic rays and cosmic-ray ensembles [P. Homola, et al. (CREDO Collab.), Symmetry 2020, 12(11), 1835, 2020].
Thus far cosmic-ray research has focused on detecting single air showers while the search for ensembles of cosmic rays, which may overspread a significant fraction of the Earth, is an unexplored territory. As large-scale time correlations are the experimental goal of the project, the size of the CREDO network and the number of detecting stations is of critical importance. Hence, one of the key ideas of CREDO is to expand its network and involve non-scientists and their pocket devices in the experiment. Smartphones simultaneously help non-scientists to explore nature on a fundamental yet understandable level.
Main objectives
The project involves many citizen scientists who are not required to have any specialized knowledge or skills. It offers its project’s participants the opportunity to experience science and become part of the scientific process, learn from professionals, and contribute to scientific research on cosmic ray ensembles (CRE). The CRE observations (or lack thereof) will provide a qualitatively new method of studying the Universe and a new information channel as part of a multi-band research strategy in the field of particle astrophysics.
Output and impact
The CREDO enables everyone to take part in cutting-edge research, creating opportunities for enthusiasts to unlock answers, contribute to real discoveries and become a co-author of scientific publications. The “Particle Hunter”, a team competition organized by CREDO, has aroused the interest of primary and secondary school pupils in cosmic rays. The competition has strengthened the young people’s understanding of scientific work as well as their theoretical and methodological skills.
Implemented at Heinrich Heine University Duesseldorf in Germany.
Project summary
Fridays for Future Meets Citizen Science involved not only researchers of the Institute of Social Sciences but also members of the global youth movement Fridays for Future.
The research project differed from previous projects in its methodology. The activists were made part of the knowledge-producing process. In their role as co-researchers, they became equal partners and therefore had a say in all project matters such as determining the research question, the design of the study, the methodologies applied, etc. The project particularly focused on the decision-making process within the Fridays for Future movement, the question of how decisions are made, and which factors play a decisive role in the process. Collaboration between the researchers and the citizen scientists mainly took place in the workshops. Having the activists on board allowed for a much more in-depth microanalysis of the Fridays for Future movement as the activists had an exclusive perspective of their movement and therefore offered comprehensive access to the field – a unique asset most studies do not hold.
Main objectives
This research project aimed at feeding into this research gap and contributing to the sparse empirical side of the debate. To gain an internal perspective of this youth phenomenon and generate inside knowledge to better understand the internal decision-making process, the project followed a participative approach. The methodological citizen science rationale is that the activists in their role as citizen scientists are better equipped to address the relevant questions and methods of their movement than traditional scholars as they are Friday for Future experts. Hence, the citizen science approach aimed at making the activists co-researchers and therewith co-producers of knowledge by including them in all phases of the research project and the decision-making process.
Output and impact
This citizen science project not only strengthened the young activists’ understanding of scientific work and their theoretical and methodological skills but simultaneously brought scientists closer to citizens. The project not only contributed to closing a relevant research gap regarding the decision-making processes of the Fridays for Future movement but also respected the ideas and aims of the participating activists.
Implemented at Luleå University of Technology in Sweden.
Project summary
Botnia Living Lab is not an activity but a concept and method on how to use citizens in research and innovation processes. Botnia Living Lab has been used for numerous research projects during the last decade. It is an environment for citizen science, user-centric research, development, and innovation. The lab is a user-panel and consisting of thousands of people from all over Sweden. Since its beginning, it has been an important booster in the creation of novel and valuable IT services and products as well as for research. The volunteers contribute to research in a non-controlled environment under real-life conditions. Usually, their input is given already at a conceptual and immature level of the research.
The panel of citizen volunteers has been involved in a significant number of research and innovation activities, with researchers and companies from Sweden and abroad and in several different application areas related to for example Smart Cities.
To support the process, researchers have developed a Living Lab methodology named FormIT, adopted by many Living Labs around Europe and exploited by industry. This methodology supports user involvement when developing digital innovations. It´s also a methodology for user empowerment, to capitalize on the strength of the crowd. This is an iterative and interactive innovation-process methodology with user engagement in all phases of the innovation process.
Main objective
Is to engage citizens in various ways in the total research and innovation process, from need-finding and idea-generation, through concept- development and prototype and usability testing to service piloting.
Output and impact
When engaging citizens in a Botnia Living Lab, the goal is always to achieve social inclusion, equity, and democracy. Anyone who wants to contribute should be able to do so. Citizens, “ordinary people”, become decision-makers and have for example a real impact on the output of a research result or an innovation. When citizen engagement is carried out democratically and inclusively way, the result will be more easily adopted by future users.
Implemented at Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées in France.
Project summary
The Institute of Research in Astrophysics and Planetology (Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planétologie, IRAP) of the Université de Toulouse (Campus Paul Sabatier) has launched a new citizen science project: CLAXSON (Classification of X-ray Sources or Novices), consisting of supermassive black holes (Active Galactic Nuclei) and rarer objects such as X- ray binaries, IRAP has conceived the CLAXSON which enables citizens to help astronomers. It trains people to identify the objects contained in the 4XMM-DR10 catalog. Once they have learned this process, they can look for black holes on their own.
Main objectives
The main objective is to build a sufficiently large reference sample to enable a computer to identify the objects detected. Thanks to the help of CLAXSON users, it will be possible to gather larger samples of known sources, so that machine learning experiments can identify the remaining sources more reliably. These achievements can potentially be of great help to scientists and the general public to better understand black hole populations.
Output and impact
Since the project is just emerging, participants are currently students, researchers, and people interested in science who have been informed about the project through lectures or the newsletter connected to the activity of a telescope.
This activity was very well received by the students and teachers found it a good pedagogical resource. Some students continued taking part in the experiment in their free time.
Implemented at Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées in France.
Project summary
The citizen science project described below is part of the larger project of the Réserve Internationale de Ciel Étoilé du Pic du Midi (RICE), dedicated to the protection and preservation of the quality of the night in the fight against light pollution.
The aim of the RICE is multifold: educating the public and influencing local authorities to replace the traditional lighting devices with eco-friendly ones. The project organizes many activities such as night hikes, astronomical observations, exhibitions, workshops, lectures, debates, etc. The project also initiated a program dedicated to children called “Les petits citoyens de la nuit”, as local authorities recognized the importance of raising awareness among the area’s population, especially children, of environmental issues.
Main objectives
The main objective of the Gardien des Étoiles is to assess the quality of the sky using citizens’ observations. It is also to make children and their parents aware of the negative effects light has on biodiversity and health and of the necessity to reduce light pollution.
Output and impact
Preserving the night is no longer just an astronomers’ problem but has now become a cultural, environmental, and ecological stake. Involving the public, children included, raises awareness of the problem, and enables more efficient leverage on local authorities.
Implemented at Université du Luxembourg in Luxembourg.
Project summary
Public History as the New Citizen Science of the Past (PHACS) develops public history and participatory models for interpreting the past. PHACS is hosted at C²DH, the Luxembourg Centre for Contemporary and Digital History, and is the University of Luxembourg’s third interdisciplinary research center, focusing on high-quality research, analysis, and public dissemination in the field of contemporary Luxembourgish and European history. It promotes an interdisciplinary approach with a particular focus on new digital methods and tools for historical research and teaching.
Main objectives
PHACS is inspired by the evolution of digital participatory sciences; PHACS facilitates interactions between academics, cultural institutions, groups, associations, and the general public to contribute to democratization not only of access but also of the production of history.
Output and impact
Research on a history thesis in the domain of contemporary history. Development and evaluation of participatory practices in public history. Contribution to the development of public history training in Europe.
Implemented at Université du Luxembourg in Luxembourg.
Project summary
The collaborative citizen research project ‘Eisegaart’ involves community gardeners, allotment holders, and natural and social scientists from the Natural History Museum and CELL, the Centre for Ecological Learning Luxembourg.
Main objectives
The project aims to train community garden facilitators and develop a website that enables citizens to find a community garden. The idea is to create a seed production with the help of artisanal seed producers, who are at present very active due to the hiegh demand for seed. Its objective is to determine how to engage citizens in participatory research, and how to involve them in all stages of the research process from defining the research question, creating interdisciplinary teams to tackle the research questions as well as to identifying reasons for the success of the project.
Output and impact
Thus far, three participative citizen research projects have been conducted. One of the projects in 2021 was developed entirely by gardeners with the support of two scientists. Their interest in diversified cultures was fuelled by the fact that common gardens are often small and urban spaces. The research question underlying the project was if vegetable production changes in two mixed cultures of varying densities.
