Citizen science is growing rapidly and is helping to tackle climate change, biodiversity loss and public health problems by directly involving people in research. Over the last two decades, Citizen Science has also grown significantly due to technological advances, social factors and strong support from European institutions and national governments, but to meet the increased expectations placed on it, a number of challenges need to be overcome.
The European Citizen Science Association's position paper outlines the importance of citizen science for improving scientific research, societal engagement and policy-making. It also includes recommendations related to citizen science and the upcoming Framework Program (FP10) for a more robust, inclusive and democratic European society: ECSA and its partners call on the EU to provide dedicated funding for citizen science.
The RIECS project, in which the OeAD is also involved, is also explicitly mentioned. RIECS aims to design a new research infrastructure for citizen science. This is to take place within the framework of the future Strategy Forum for Research Infrastructures (ESFRI), which involves numerous interest groups and places society at the center. The project will co-design a comprehensive catalog of resources and services, incorporating technical, legal and ethical considerations as well as sustainability and governance frameworks for implementation. Ensuring adequate infrastructure will enable projects to engage underrepresented groups, facilitate effective data management and ensure long-term collaboration.
The statement was prepared by ECSA's Policy, Strategies and Partnerships Working Group and the European Citizen Science Project. They are now inviting all supporters of the vision for the future of Citizen Science to join the initiative. Particularly welcome are CSOs, citizen science managers, science funders, government agencies and advocacy organizations.
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