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Short Abstract

Armed conflicts cause hidden environmental damage. This talk presents a citizen science framework using sensors, participatory mapping, and satellite data to help communities and NGOs safely document impacts and support advocacy and post-conflict restoration.

Abstract

Armed conflicts leave unattended environmental destruction, from polluted water sources to impaired ecosystems, that frequently remains undocumented because of poor institutional access. This contributions presents how citizen science approaches can be adapted to conflict-affected contexts, filling the gap in data that such regions experience. The work will present a pilot framework integrating low-cost sensors, participatory mapping, and open satellite imagery (Sentinel-2, LIDAR) with which local communities, displaced people, and NGOs will document environmental impacts in a safe way.

The contribution will discuss ethical protocols to protect participants’ identities, data sovereignty challenges, and strategies to validate community-generated data under insecure conditions. By learning from existing grassroots monitoring efforts (e.g. CEOBS and partner organisations), it aims to highlight concrete pathways for integrating citizen-collected evidence into advocacy, remediation planning, and post-conflict environmental restoration.