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Short Abstract

Marine citizen science is limited by access and reporting gaps. Our nationwide eDNA projects engage students in sampling, analysis, and interpretation, achieving 72% success. They produce reliable data for conservation, early-warning, and policy, fostering ocean literacy and community stewardship.

Abstract

Citizen science has traditionally excelled in large-scale biodiversity monitoring. However, marine citizen science faces challenges due to limited accessibility and the absence of well-developed reporting systems compared to terrestrial programs. Moreover, genuine co-production—where participants engage in all stages of the scientific process—remains rare. At the same time, accelerating environmental change and cumulative human pressures on marine ecosystems demand scalable, inclusive, and high-quality monitoring frameworks.

We have developed a series of nation-wide projects demonstrating how environmental DNA (eDNA) methods can be integrated into participatory frameworks that extend beyond sampling to include molecular analysis and data interpretation. These projects have had more than 10.000 high school students participating over a total of ten years. Anchored at the Natural History Museum of Denmark and developed in collaboration with the Society of Danish Biologists, these initiatives engage high school students and teachers in collecting, extracting, and analyzing eDNA from marine and coastal environments. Citizen scientists achieved a 72% analytical success rate—comparable to trained researchers—showing that community participants can produce scientifically robust data suitable for national-scale species monitoring.

Our case studies illustrate how citizen-led eDNA data can contribute to early-warning systems, inform conservation, detect invasive or toxic species, and strengthen policy-relevant marine management. Together, these projects demonstrate that when rigorous protocols and training are paired with local ownership, citizen science can simultaneously generate high-quality ecological data and foster ocean literacy, community engagement, and shared stewardship. They exemplify a pathway toward inclusive, technologically advanced “blue citizen science,” where distributed molecular monitoring supports both scientific and societal resilience in rapidly changing marine environments.