Led by Dr Gabriela Lopez Gonzalez, Head of water@leeds
Workshop participants discussing how community engagement can enhance water quality monitoring in Yorkshire.
Citizen science is the active involvement of everyday people – especially non-academics and local communities – in scientific research. It goes beyond basic data collection, encouraging people to shape research questions and influence decisions. It builds a bridge between science, policy and society while fostering environmental responsibility and educational value.
Highlights
- Active public involvement in scientific research – not just passive data collection
- Includes local people, volunteers and individuals from diverse backgrounds
- Uses local knowledge for more relevant and accurate insights
- Often uses low-cost tools (for example, iNaturalist app) to enable participation
- Bridges science, policy and society
- Helps raise awareness and create a sense of shared environmental responsibility
By involving the public and local stakeholders, projects can cover larger geographic areas at a lower cost while gaining detailed insights from the community. There’s also strong potential for collaboration across sectors – connecting environmental efforts with public health, education, and policy. Shared platforms and protocols (like CASTCO) can unify data and amplify the impact across Yorkshire and beyond.
Highlights
- Opportunity for cross-project collaboration and data sharing
- Ecosystem-wide analysis using locally gathered data
- Integration with education (schools) and public services (NHS)
- Increased community engagement and ownership
- Shared learning across geographical regions and organisations
- Development of shared protocols and platforms to coordinate and unify efforts.
Citizen science brings many advantages, including cost savings, broader geographic coverage, and local engagement. It promotes environmental awareness and enables communities to act as stewards of their ecosystems. However, challenges such as funding constraints, volunteer reliability, land access, and data quality concerns can hinder success. Addressing these challenges requires structured support and long-term planning.
Pros
- Cost-effective method of large-scale data collection
- Wide geographic coverage, especially in remote/rural areas
- Access to rich local knowledge and community insight
- Encourages the use and protection of blue/green spaces
- Inclusive engagement with diverse population groups
- Helps pinpoint site-specific environmental concerns
Cons
- Short-term funding and limited resources
- Inconsistent volunteer engagement in bad weather or remote areas
- Health and safety concerns, land access issues
- Challenges in coordinating and training volunteers
- Perceived lower data reliability and standardisation
Several strategies can help overcome citizen science barriers. These include establishing centralised platforms like CASTCO to coordinate projects, providing training and context to volunteers and ensuring long-term funding. Encouraging participation through schools and digital tools improves inclusivity. Aligning data use with policy enforcement – for example, using fines to fund river health strengthens impact. Raising awareness of stakeholder responsibilities further supports sustainability.
Highlights
- Develop CASTCO to coordinate citizen science across Yorkshire
- Train volunteers on safety, equipment use, and data context
- Use digital tools to engage diverse participants (for example, youth, remote communities)
- Collaborate with education providers to embed citizen science in curricula
- Secure consistent, long-term funding (including public-private models)
- Use citizen data to support enforcement actions on pollution.