- Convenors:
-
Teresa Schaefer
(ZSI - Center for Social Innovation)
Renata Cervantes (IPL - Polytechnic Institute of Lisbon)
Carina Veeckman (imec-SMIT, Vrije Universiteit Brussel)
Elizabeth Archer (University of Essex)
Send message to Convenors
- Format:
- Roundtable
Short Abstract
Experts from different European countries will share their experience involving a diverse group of children as citizen scientists in their research projects. The audience is invited to join the lively debate with their questions, challenges and comments related to citizen science with young people.
Description
Citizen science holds great potential for children and pupils. It involves them as active contributors and experts of their life world in all steps of the research process: They can gain hands-on experiences with science, understand scientific methods, contribute to finding solutions for todays’ great societal challenges and have fun. But still, when scientists approach younger people, important challenges immediately arise:
How to design scientific activities adaptable to a diverse group of children of different age, coming from different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds, engaged via formal and informal education?
What ethical and privacy issues to consider and how to manage communication with parents and legal guardians?
How to best collaborate with schools and youth organisations to bring benefits for all (educators, pupils, parents, researchers, policy makers etc.)?
How to measure the impact of involvement in a non-intrusive but meaningful way?
The InChildHealth project will share their rich experience of doing citizen science with more than 2.000 pupils aged mainly 6-13, coming from 7 regions in Europe. The LEARN project will showcase lessons learned from designing a boardgame for educational purposes about indoor air quality for children aged 9-12 years old. Last, educational materials from the EDIAQI project will be presented. The three projects work on the topic of indoor air quality and health, but lessons learned are transferable to other topics.
The roundtable will start with short presentations and then invite the audience for a lively debate on their questions, challenges and comments related to citizen science with young people.
Accepted contributions
Short Abstract
The LEARN project has created a board game for children to learn about indoor air quality in schools. Children learn about the main air pollutants, the potentially damaging effects on their health and cognition, and mitigation measures that can be implemented.
Abstract
The LEARN project has developed a board game to support health promotion and disease prevention on indoor air quality for school environments. The board game is targeted at children (aged 9 – 12 years old), parents and caretakers. Its aim is to raise awareness of indoor air quality in a fun and accessible way.
In a playful way, the game shares information about how indoor health and well-being can be protected and promoted. The questions in the board game cover general knowledge about air contaminants that are often found in schools and how these may or may not harm the health and safety of children (in the long-term). It also proposes targeted strategies to surpass and minimize children’s exposure to these pollutants in school and home environments.
The LEARN board game has a clear educational goal and is part of a broader awareness raising campaign on indoor air quality and health within schools. The game is disseminated in schools in the consortium countries and via the LEARN network and the IDEAL cluster. The board game is available in the following languages: English, Danish, Dutch, Greek, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish. You can request a physical copy on the LEARN website, or download a digital copy.
During the roundtable session, we discuss good practices related to development of the board game and its current impacts.
Short Abstract
University of Essex scientists discuss their experiences of engaging >500 pupils (aged 9-11) with microbiology and air quality via campus visits and interactive classroom workshops. They will offer advice on activities, building connections with teachers, and measuring outreach impact via surveys.
Abstract
University of Essex scientists discuss their experiences of engaging >500 pupils (aged 9-11) with microbiology and air quality via campus visits and interactive classroom workshops. They will offer advice on activities, building connections with teachers, and measuring outreach impact via surveys.
Short Abstract
This paper explores how more-than-human encounters in environmental citizen science can contribute to lived eco-citizenship in young people while they are in formal schooling.
Abstract
Drawing on doctoral research, this paper explores how environmental citizen science can contribute to lived eco-citizenship in young people while they are in formal schooling. The research took a qualitative, in-depth, multi-method, case study approach, exploring the experiences of school-based participants (n=74, pupils, teachers and scientists) across three different school-based citizen science projects. Drawing on place-responsive and new materialist orientations, situational analysis was the analytical approach applied throughout this research. A major finding is that environmental citizen science experiences offer opportunities to connect pupils with scientific research practices in a way that offers authentic citizenship opportunities not ordinarily available in schools. This paper will describe, in particular the the ways in which the eco-citizenship capability to ‘live with and in relation to the world of nature’ (Nussbaum, 2011) was found to be supported by more-than-human encounters during school-based citizen science projects. The inter and intra-actions with other living things as a part of the citizen science project provided a starting point to increasing understanding of and empathy with other species, and fear and disgust were reduced through exposure to invertebrates and other potentially fear-inducing organisms through citizen science projects. Being reciprocally responsive through place-based encounters within the environmental citizen science fieldwork experience afforded pupils the opportunity to think about and consider their impact on the environment in a more meaningful way than can be afforded in a traditional classroom setting, which is of value in our precarious contemporary environmental context.
Short Abstract
We will introduce the vast variety of citizen science activities related to indoor air quality and health, conducted with more than 2000 children in Europe. We will share learnings from assessing the impact of these activities and introduce a genuine Science Kit to engage children in learning about
Abstract
The InChildHealth project, a Horizon Europe initiative focused on children’s health and indoor environments, has been implemented in primary schools in seven cities across Europe with a strong citizen science component. The project actively involves children, teachers, and families in exploring indoor air quality and its impacts on health and well-being. With this aim a wide variety of citizen science activities were developed and implemented with more than 2000 children across Europe. First, we will show practical examples of these activities, the created material and hands-on citizen science activities, and introduce the evaluation of benefits from the involvement for pupils. We will share insights on the practical handling of questionnaires in classrooms, and how to create a setting where children don’t feel they are “being tested” but still take the task of filling in the questionnaires seriously.
Second, one of the most impactful outcomes of these activities has been the creation of a dedicated Science Kit, developed in collaboration with educational partners and created in collaboration with educational partners and distributed to all 18,000 primary school children in the municipality of Loures, (Portugal). The kit is designed to spark children’s curiosity about science through playful, interactive experiments while raising awareness of indoor air quality. We will share good practices from the development and distribution of the kit, its reception among children and families, and the potential for wider dissemination across other countries participating in the InChildHealth project.
Short Abstract
We present experiences from engaging rural schoolchildren in aquatic ecosystem research in Armenia through a citizen science project. Challenges, successes, and practical approaches for inclusive, participatory research with young people will be shared for interactive discussion.
Abstract
Citizen science offers a unique opportunity to engage children as active contributors to research, fostering scientific literacy and local environmental awareness. This presentation focuses on involving students from rural schools in the Hrazdan River basin in aquatic ecosystem research through co-designed participatory activities that are inclusive and locally relevant.
We share insights from the EcoServ project, implemented in Armenia and Austria, where trained schoolchildren collected water quality and biodiversity samples and assessed ecosystem services in their communities. The initiative included teacher training, hands-on student workshops, and the provision of field equipment, enabling meaningful engagement. Beyond data collection, the project promoted mutual learning, a sense of ownership, and transformative impacts on local attitudes toward aquatic ecosystems, particularly in a post-Soviet context shaped by historical economic and cultural practices.
Key lessons include adapting methods to diverse ages, socio-economic backgrounds, and educational contexts; addressing ethical considerations; and fostering strong school-community collaborations. Additional benefits included student presentations at school projects and conferences, reinforcing learning outcomes and community recognition.
This initiative represents one of the pioneering citizen science efforts in Armenia, demonstrating how participatory approaches strengthen environmental stewardship, local knowledge, and community engagement. The presentation will encourage discussion on designing inclusive citizen science projects, overcoming engagement challenges, and enhancing research impact on young participants and their communities. Participants will gain practical strategies for fostering collaboration between schools, communities, and researchers, applicable to other regions and environmental topics.
Short Abstract
"CitizER Science in Action" is an educational workshop that integrates co-design, citizen science, and game thinking to engage teenagers in civic participation. Through co-creating citizen science app mockups, over 500 students enhanced digital skills, collaboration, and civic awareness.
Abstract
Engaging teenagers in citizen science is crucial for nurturing active, informed, and responsible citizens. In this light, we developed an educational workshop integrating three complementary approaches: (i) co-design, (ii) citizen science, and (iii) game thinking. This methodology aims to equip teenagers with conceptual and digital skills while fostering civic awareness and engagement.
The workshop follows a five-step structure: (1) introduction to key concepts and interactive quizzes; (2) warm-up activity (a hands-on citizen science experience); (3) co-design session for the group creation of low-fidelity mockups; (4) presentation of the co-designed mobile apps; and (5) evaluation through feedback and reflection. As a final outcome, participants co-design mockups of citizen science mobile apps addressing local social or environmental issues such as urban accessibility, sustainability, biodiversity conservation, or sustainable mobility and tourism.
By participating in these hands-on citizen science–related activities, teenagers experience a powerful threefold impact: (i) they develop new scientific and digital skills, (ii) they learn through practical, collaborative experiences, and (iii) they strengthen their sense of civic responsibility and belonging to their local territory. Such involvement transforms teenagers from passive learners into active contributors, fostering both personal growth and community well-being.
The initiative was implemented and evaluated within "CitizER Science", a project led by Agenda Digitale of the Emilia-Romagna Region, which promotes digital innovation and the expansion of citizen science practices, while supporting the use of open data in policymaking. Through this collaboration, we engaged more than 500 students aged 12 to 18 across several cities in the region.
Our findings reveal two main outcomes: (i) the workshop significantly enhanced teenagers’ perception of and engagement in civic participation, and (ii) the co-design process generated valuable insights and creative proposals for citizen science projects capable of empowering young people to actively contribute to their communities and local environments.