Citizen Science: Introduction
What is Citizen Science?
Citizen science broadly refers to the active engagement of the general public in scientific research tasks. Citizen science is a growing practice in which scientists and citizens collaborate to produce new knowledge for science and society. (The Science of Citizen Science)
Citizen science can be described as the voluntary participation of non-professional scientists in research and innovation at different stages of the process and at different levels of engagement, from shaping research agendas and policies, to gathering, processing and analysing data, and assessing the outcomes of research. (European Commission, Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, 2020)
Citizen science projects actively involve citizens in scientific endeavour that generates new knowledge or understanding. Citizens may act as contributors, collaborators, or as project leader and have a meaningful role in the project. ECSA (European Citizen Science Association). 2015. Ten Principles of Citizen Science. Berlin.
Citizen science is a global movement where individuals, family members, friends, community groups, or anyone does science to address real-world questions. (SciStarter)
Other Related Guides Available
UCD and Citizen Science
UCD’s publication Engage your Research : An Introductory Guide to Engaging
& Involving the Public in Research states:
“Citizen Science encompasses a wide variety of activities and practices that recognises non-professionals as valued and empowered actors in advancing knowledge, research and innovation.”
UCD Citizen Science Community of Practice
Ten Principles of Citizen Science
- Ten Principles of Citizen ScienceCompiled and published in 2015 by the European Citizen Science Association (ECSA)
- The ECSA Characteristics of Citizen ScienceThis document created by the European Citizen Science Association, attempts to represent a wide range of opinions in an inclusive way, to allow for different types of projects and programmes, where context-specific criteria can be set.
Maps & GIS Librarian
Maps & GIS Librarian
R250, Level 2
James Joyce Library
University College Dublin
Belfield
Dublin 4
Tel: 01 716 7532
jane.nolan@ucd.ie
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License