As part of the European project “RIECS-Concept”, in which the OeAD is one of 13 partners, a wide range of participatory formats have been carried out since October 2025. The aim of the project is to jointly develop concepts for a future citizen science research infrastructure together with citizen scientists and subject-matter experts. The perspectives of young people also play an important role in this process.
The participating students, all of whom have been involved for some time in the Sparkling Science project “BiodiverCITY Island Hopping”, contributed their experiences during the co-creative workshop. The project focuses on planting urban areas to provide better habitats for insects. At the same time, the citizen scientists study the occurrence of different insect species.
At the beginning of the workshop, the students exchanged ideas and jointly identified challenges they face as citizen scientists that make research more difficult. They then developed solution ideas using creative methods and presented them. In addition to approaches for improving data transparency, new AI applications and better technical equipment were also discussed.
The workshop results are now being compiled and will be incorporated into an analysis that includes input from several hundred participants across different European countries. These results will form the basis for the technical requirements and implementation plans of the research infrastructure.
