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What is citizen science?

Citizen science refers to any activity where researchers (often scientists) partner with members of the public to answer scientific questions. The use of citizen science methodologies has grown exponentially in recent years as scientists, policymakers, and non-governmental organizations see the value of conducting research in this way. Citizen science has the potential to generate data at scale, democratize knowledge production, and connect people with environmental issues and research that affects their lives.

Here are a few resources which give more information.

Citizen science: what's it all about? (short perspective, SEI)

Ten principles of citizen science (research paper with summary)

The ECSA Characteristics of Citizen Science (research paper summary)

History of citizen science (short perspective, UCL)

Citizen Science (podcast, SEI)

How to do citizen science - explainers

Here are a few resources on different aspects of using citizen science.

Citizen science at different stages of the research process (feature)

Q&A: How can we make volunteer biological recording more inclusive? (feature)

Ecological citizenship and the co-design of inclusive and resilient pathways for sustainable transitions (research paper with summary)

Co-creating the future: exploring practices of citizen science research across Europe (research paper with summary)

Training opportunities

The organisations below run courses and/or one off sessions to train people in using citizen science methods.

Citizen Science Academy (UCL)
University College London

Delivers community-based, practice-led research training to empower communities to lead change through social action and shaping policies that impact their livelihoods.

SciStarter

Free online self-guided citizen science training modules, including 'Foundations of Citizen Science' and 'Building Data Literacy Through Community and Citizen Science', 'Teaching in Higher Education with Citizen Science' and 'Data Ethics for Practitioners'.

ECS (European Citizen Science) courses

Free courses including an Introduction to Citizen Science, which provides a basic introduction to citizen science for practitioners and researchers, and Citizen Science in Schools, which guides educators through the process of incorporating citizen science in their daily school practices.

Association for Advancing Participatory Sciences

Free webinars and some paid for courses such as their Strategic Communication for Participatory Science Practitioners Course. 

Latest research

Find the latest citizen science research in these journals.

Citizen Science: Theory and Practice (CSTP)

An online, open-access, peer-reviewed publication focused on the global field of citizen science and other participatory sciences.

BES Special Feature on Citizen Science (2021)

This Special Feature assesses the the contribution of citizen science to the advancement of ecological and people and nature-based knowledge. Organised by the British Ecological Society (BES), it brings together articles in Journal of Applied Ecology, Journal of Animal Ecology, Journal of Ecology, Methods in Ecology and Evolution People and Nature and Ecological Solutions and Evidence.

Other resources

These websites offer additional resources and tools to support people to use citizen science.

Citizenscience.eu

An online platform for sharing knowledge, tools, training and resources. Managed by European Citizen Science and populated by users. It hosts 270+ resources to support planning and running citizen science projects and 90+ training resources as well as connecting you to other users and platforms.

Association for Advancing Participatory Sciences (AAPS) Resource Centre

A wealth of tools, guidance, and information for researchers, facilitators, project leaders educators, practitioners and participants.

Biological Records Centre

Resources include the guides ‘Choosing and using citizen science’ and ‘Guide to citizen science’ which review the breadth and utility of citizen science for monitoring biodiversity and the environment.

QGIS 

A free and open source Geographic Information System.