Citizen Science on tour: conferences, kids university and the iDiv summer school 2019

During summer, many conferences on Citizen Science and other events are happening. To spread the word about Citizen Science and share our experience in creating interactive Citizen Science apps, we had quite a schedule this year..

iDiv Biodiversity Conference

29. - 30. August 2019, Leipzig, DE
Right after the Citizen Science Summer School, the iDiv conference on biodiversity took place in Leipzig. We had a chance to present a preview version of the Citizen Science clip, we produced during the iDiv Summer School. At our stand, we had many exciting exchanges about SPOTTERON, and the impact, a modern and immersive toolkit can have on the public and policymakers. At the conference, we used real Citizen Science apps like Nature's Calender and the new SpiderSpotter app to show how easy it can be to contribute to Citizen Science. One more thing to note is that the iDiv conference is 100% vegetarian, which is a must in times of the imminent climate crisis.

iDiv Summer School

21. - 28. August 2019, Leipzig, DE
Being a mentor at the Summer School by the "iDiv - German Center for integrative biodiversity research" was an enjoyable experience. The participants were a diverse group, not only from Europe but also with young researchers from Brazil, Indonesia, or the United States. Our main task was to lead the group "Citizen Science & communication" and share our experience in how to create video clips and use online media for reaching out. As a co-created project, we made a concept and produced a video clip together with the group, which can be used to get people interested in Citizen Science. Titled "EXPLORE CITIZEN SCIENCE", the clip introduces different actors doing Citizen Science, from biodiversity monitoring to bird watching and water analysis. With a long verison and 3 short espidoe versions planned, there is still some work ahead to cut and produce this Citizen Science video. To have the co-created work from the iDiv Sumemr School reach as much impact as possible, we will release all clips as Creative Commons to be shared and used freely by the CitSci Community. Stay tuned and follow up on twitter or subscribe to our Newsletter at www.spotteron.net to see the videos as soon as they are released officially!

Read more about the iDiv Summer School 2019 in the official press release here: https://www.idiv.de/en/news/news_single_view/news_article/idiv_summer-1.html

5th Austrian Citizen Science Conference 2019

26. - 29. June 2019, Obergurgl, AT
The 5th Austrian Citizen Science Conference took place in Obergurgl, Austria this year. The location is the most elevated university institute in Austria and is situated in the Ötztal mountain range. The Citizen Science conference is organized by "Österreich forscht", the national hub for Citizen Science in Austria. We held a talk on the protection of personal data in Citizen Science apps and how privacy in an online world works and shared some tips how to run Citizen Science tools without privacy issues. At the conference, we had a table to present SPOTTERON and the new Citizen Science projects, running on the platform to the attendees. We were especially happy that many of the Austrian projects, running on the SPOTTERON platform were present at the conference. Thomas Hübner (ZAMG) gave a talk about how mobile apps increase participation in the phenology Citizen Science program "Nature's Calender" of Austria, Taru Sanden (AGES) introduced the new Tea Bab Index App and Dido Frigerio (KLF) talked about data quality in Citizen Science apps from her team's experience with the "Forschen im Almtal" and "Waldrapp" CitSci Apps.

AGIT 2019

3. - 5. July 2019, Salzburg, AT
The Austrian Geo-Informatics Symposium took place in Salzburg, Austria with an opening keynote bythe European Space Agency ESA and a special session about Citizen Science later during the 3 days of the conference. We were contributing to the poster session with an overview of the SPOTTERON platform and how the synergies effects for projects work in detail. At the AGIT 2019, we also met up with contacts from the University of Salzburg to talk about a possbile new Citizen Science and Science Education project, which will perhaps have its release on the SPOTTERON Platform in 2020.

Kinderuni Linz & Kinderuni Almtal

8. & 10. July 2019, Linz, Scharnstein, AT
Quite a contrast to the conferences, we did teach at the "University for kids" at two locations this year. Being a "professor" at the Kids University is always a great experience. We introduced Citizen Science to the young generation and took various Citizen Science apps to test with the group. In our view, it is not only essential to getting the young generation involved in interactive science but also to get feedback from this group of users. Citizen Science smartphone apps are the natural form of communication for those who are growing up in a connected world. Both Kids Universities have been a great success and it is always a vital experience.