Authors
Martin Brocklehurst,
Chair of the Citizen Science Global Partnership and Project Partner, the EU Citizen Science Horizon Research Project AURORA – Tackling Climate Change.
People from outside institutional research groups, including Indigenous Peoples, have always had a part to play in scientific research. What is different today is that we have the technical ability to connect with almost every person on the planet and to tap into their local knowledge in way that was not possible before the era of modern communication tools. Linked to AI systems we can gather data from people, ensure it is validated, and then presented back as information that they can use to manage risks and enhance their daily lives.
Many definitions, (see below from the European Commission) exist for citizen science, but what really matters is that scientists and the public are reaching out to jointly engage in scientific research. And millions of people are showing that they are prepared to join citizen science programmes across the
European Commission Definition
“Citizen Science refers to the general public engagement in scientific research activities when citizens actively contribute to science either with their intellectual effort or surrounding knowledge or with their tools and resources.”
planet. In the USA research by the Pew Research Centre suggests 1 in 10 of the US Population has taken part in a citizen science research project. Such programmes are also not confined to the global north. In the global south, active participation in scientific inquiry has long taken place through community-led monitoring, intercultural research, and locally rooted knowledge systems. What recent developments in citizen science contribute is increased visibility, institutional recognition, and the use of digital technologies to strengthen and connect these practices. From tiny Pacific Islands to the Amazon Rainforest, these initiatives, often led by Indigenous Peoples and other local actors, are not only advancing scientific understanding, but also transforming lives. They empower people with new skills, and knowledge, that directly enhance their health, food sovereignty, and future prospects that can enhance their life chances.
In the early part of this century, when the modern citizen science movement was developing almost nothing was written about citizen science. Today the scientific literature is full of papers on citizen science as we advance our thinking on how citizen science can contribute to the global triple planetary crisis. We still hear claims that citizen science data is unreliable, that many programmes are little more than hobbying, that data sets and projects are too time limited to be of real value, that they do not address the global challenges of our times, and that they are only applicable to the global north. In reality all these arguments have been shown to be outdated, out of touch with the rapid development of citizen science across the planet, as people realise that they can drive change through citizen science. Scientists are embracing citizen science as they realise they can tap into a data source that is unattainable by any other method. That they can obtain research data at a scale, speed and accuracy that cannot be matched by traditional means and when linked with remote sensing data opens up new opportunities to track and understand the changes that are happening to our planet.
The United Nations throughout this journey have remained a stalwart supporter of citizen science and continues to evaluate is role in delivering global environmental benefits. Early work with the European Environment Agency, and the emerging European Citizen Science Association was supported by UNEP. Working with pioneers the community undertook to develop an early global programme to understand and map the changing patterns of mosquito species capable of carrying disease into new areas of the planet. Today that work acts a blueprint on how to scale up local citizen science programmes into a truly global approach. Launched last year as part of the Global Mosquito alert programme people anywhere on the planet can now take part and see their data appear on the Global Mosquito Observations Dashboard . Understanding the location of mosquito species is a critical first step in tackling the disease risks they carry. The growth of data points on this platform continues to expand away from its traditional core in Europe, USA and Australia with a rapid growth in South-East Asia, and India followed by Africa and South America.
Supporting the growth of citizen science a network of associations have developed in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, South and Central America and the United States. These associations are in place to support people who want to take part in citizen science, and develop the skills sets that scientists need, to build genuine partnerships with public participants. With the rapid pace of global change citizen science offers a genuine opportunity to build a “whole of society approach” that not only gathers data but influences behaviour change, something that is now so essential if we are to succeed in mitigating the growing environmental challenges of our time.
The Associations have developed the 10 principals of citizen science to guide participants and ensure people are not exploited simply as data gatherers, and that they receive effective feedback and information on how their data is being used and “what the research, policy or societal outcomes are” . They are now supported by a Data Ethics Toolkit essential when working with large numbers of people. These are the principles that the citizen science movement believe should underlie good practise in citizen science.
As recognition has grown about the power of citizen science to support efforts to tackle the three global crises of our time, Climate Change, Biodiversity loss and Pollution, the United Nations Science Policy Business Forum encouraged the Regional Citizen Science Association to band together to form a global organisation. With a vision to advance the development of citizen science as part of international efforts to solve planetary issues the Citizen Science Global Partnership (CSGP) was formed in 2017, and became a registered NGO in 2022. It is a unique collaboration of the world’s leading regional and national citizen science associations and their members. The CSGP has an overarching goal to advance global sustainability efforts, and foster citizen science partnerships and initiatives at all scales across regions, particularly where support is most needed. A key role is “to coordinate actions with international organizations, national agencies, research institutions, public and non-government organizations, private companies, individuals and established and developing citizen science networks, which share the goal of addressing global sustainability issues through citizen science”.
The CSGP has also worked closely to develop a citizen science component to the World Environment Siutation Room (WESR) where information on key citizen science programmes that are operating at the global scale or have the potential to do so, are shared. The World Environment Situation Room is a digital platform managed by UNEP that provides a centralised source of environmental data, information and knowledge. It is designed as a resource to support anyone interested in environmental data, supporting decision making, policy setting and action. The citizen science component of this platform draws on information from regional and national citizen science platforms that are now available across the world. The WESR is now being integrated into the Global Environmental Data Strategy (GEDS) and discussions continue on how citizen science data can be integrated into this strategy. Further work is being undertaken by the Collaborative on Citizen Data to ensure citizen data can fit within national data ecosystems. Both these initiatives are key to understanding how citizen science can support world environmental programmes.
As the global citizen science movement grows in strength and confidence it is promoting the idea that citizen science needs to be integrated into the delivery of multilateral environmental agreements. The CSGP on behalf of the Regional Associations has developed a Charter for Citizen Science and multilateral agreements and is calling on Member States to incorporate citizen science into future and existing UNEA resolutions. Such an approach could mirror what has now been put in place for the Kunming Montreal Biodiversity Framework where citizen science is part of the implementation strategy, simply because so much of the global biodiversity data now comes from people participating in citizen science programmes.
With the right investment from Member States and with a “whole society approach” we can accelerate the pace of global change through adopting citizen science into multilateral environmental agreements.
We can genuinely make this the DECADE OF CITIZEN SCIENCE.
Martin Brocklehurst
Chair Citizen Science Global Partnership
DISCLAIMER:
The views and opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author and do not reflect the official position of UNSPBF or any United Nations organization. UNSPBF is dedicated to fostering a balanced, impartial, and equitable space to share science-based perspectives to address the planetary crisis and to boost transparency and accountability across sectors.