How do we engage specific communities/groups in our Citizen Observatory?
[before, during, after]
Last updated
[before, during, after]
Last updated
Every person, regardless of their gender identity, dis/ability, nationality, and socio-economic or cultural background, has the right to participate in citizen science. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that "Everyone has the right freely (…) to share in scientific advancement and its benefits” (UNDHR, Article 27).
Reviews of and experiences from citizen science projects (Blake et al., 2020; Pateman et al., 2021), show that most participants tend to be homogenous in their demographics. In the context of environmental pollution issues such as air quality, when diverse communities are not represented, their voices and concerns are likely to be poorly represented within the city or region in question, and therefore any measures taken to address those issues may exclude them from the benefits of those actions.
Efforts need to be taken to redress this balance. Some people may face obstacles for joining a CO. They may not be aware of its existence as it has not been advertised through channels they use. Some may not be available to join when the CO holds its meetings. Others may find the technical aspects too complicated. Seeking to engage various communities will benefit the CO beyond impact. However, some people may not be able to join due to a lack of time. In that case, it is important to involve their voices in the CO; diversifying perspectives will make knowledge more accessible and share the benefits of the CO widely.
A first step for engaging diverse communities is mapping the coverage of the CO: which areas are being covered through measurements, and which areas in the neighbourhood/region are not represented by participants or are not being measured? For this step we must be aware of not collecting personal data which can infringe on the privacy rights of people. The mapping should thus rely on local knowledge from participants aided by online map tools. Such as, which areas from the city/region are not covered by sensors? Do these areas overlap with areas which are known to have high air pollution (for example next to a road with heavy traffic)? Are the members of our CO as diverse as the members of the city/region?
The next step is to determine which communities the CO could seek to engage. This might result on a long list. The CO can prepare a strategy of which communities will be approached first, based on the resources available such as time and volunteers, and on whether said communities have their own organisations. Approaching community leaders can facilitate contact points, as they are aware of the needs and issues their communities face. An open and honest listening attitude is of high relevance during all the exchanges.
It is important to note that engaging diverse communities is an ongoing process that develops slowly. Building up connections with communities that are not yet participating takes time and requires dedicated attention. It is possible that the various communities will not be represented in a CO. However, it is important to stay open to all groups and make sure the interests and voices of the community at large are well represented in the CO.
On a final note, it is worth to note that it will be impossible for a CO to engage all the communities, however the toolkit offers various resources that cover specific groups which can be used when required.
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TOOLKIT: The CitSci4All Toolkit contains a variety of tools for planning and constructing Citizen Science for climate change initiatives with Deaf and hard-of-hearing adults (DHH). While the kit includes the basics on Citizen Science and Citizen Science for Climate Change in sign language, there are specific tools on DHH involvement:
TOOL: Roger Hart's Ladder of Youth Participation A tool to think about the levels of youth voice that programs incorporate.
GUIDELINE: The CitSci4All project has worked on guidance for Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) engagement in citizen science projects based on the input and insights gathered from DHH trainers and citizen science experts. We have prepared a shorter version of their document with ways to facilitate inclusion OF DHH adults in citizen science projects. [The document can be found on Appendix IV; it will be uploaded in the online version of this toolkit].
GUIDELINE: Best practices for a diverse and inclusive project. This guideline has been extracted from a deliverable by the EU Horizon2020 project CSI-COP focusing on Guidelines for Diverse Citizen Science Recruitment. [The document can be found on Appendix V; it will be uploaded in the online version of this toolkit].
PAPER: Oxfam's Beyond Consultation: Unpacking the most essential components of meaningful participation by refugee leaders. This paper proposes actionable recommendations for community leaders on how to operationalize the concept of ‘meaningful refugee participation’ to go beyond tokenistic participation and to genuinely empower refugees.
Unit 3: Deaf and hard-of-hearing adults Involvement in Citizen Science projects
Unit 4: Technologies for Deaf and hard-of-hearing adults
Unit 5: Engaging Deaf and hard-of-hearing adults with Citizen Science projects
PAPER: In The Politics of Tek: Power and the ‘Integration’ of Knowledge, Paul Nadasdy reflects on power imbalances that can prevail when projects seek to integrate aboriginal or indigenous knowledge, and how communities are forced to express themselves in ways that conform to what policy makers and scientists see as useful data.
PAPER: The YouCount project's Inclusive & transformative Citizen Social Science with young people report. The document summarises learnings from webinars on “Citizen Social Science with young people” in which co-creation, inclusiveness and transformative impacts were the guiding topics. It includes insights in the work of practitioners active in Y-CSS, and the presentation and discussion of co-created webinar topics as issues of concern to people active in the field.
FURTHER READING: CitiMeasure’s Guidelines on Competencies for Digital Inclusion. These guidelines unpack 27 clusters of skills, knowledge, and attitudes for digital inclusion of different actors in citizen science projects, as well as 32 specific recommendations on how to enhance those competencies better.
CitiMeasure. (n.d.). Guidelines on Competencies for Digital Inclusion.
CitSci4all. (n.d.) Toolkit for Citizen Science for climate change initiatives with Deaf and hard-of-hearing adults (DHH).
Fletcher, A. (2008). Hart’s Ladder of Participation.
Nadasdy, Paul. “The Politics of Tek: Power and the ‘Integration’ of Knowledge.” Arctic Anthropology, vol. 36, no. 1/2, 1999, pp. 1–18. .
Oxfam (2022). Beyond Consultation: Unpacking the most essential components of meaningful participation by refugee leaders.
YouCount (2022). Inclusive & transformative Citizen Social Science with young people.