Reserve your spot at the Early Career Researchers Workshop!

A growing number of Early Career Researchers (ECRs) are using Citizen Science, either as a core component of their research or as an outreach tool. Despite the multiple forms these Citizen Science projects may take, ECRs face common challenges in their implementation: limited network, language barriers, time and budget constraints, etc..

This workshop offers ECRs a platform to exchange about the challenges, issues, and possible solutions for organizing Citizen Science projects at early academic stages (master’s to PhD). It takes place on the very first day of the conference as an opportunity to network. The workshop will mix open and focus discussion, and showcase concrete tips for successful implementation of Citizen Science. Lastly, the workshop’s outcomes will be summarized and drafted as an ECRs strategy, to be delivered to the ECSA committee on the last day of the conference.

Workshop format

Part 1 (1h30):

Introduction to the Session (5min)
Speed talks (25min). Examples of ECRs’ CS projects (3x5min + 10min questions)
Jelena Belojevic: The Home River Bioblitz, a world citizen science event
Angelika Kiebler: National inventory of an endangered species with Citizen Science
Maximilian Schrade: Children and the Hidden River biodiversity
Group Workshop (1h). By table of 4-6 people, discuss the provided questions at your table, write down the key points of the discussion, and be ready to share some with the whole group

15 minute Coffee Break

Part 2 (1h15):

Whole group open discussion (45 min). Share and comment the key points discussed at tables.
Drafting the ECSA ECR strategy (30 min). Write a summary of the main points of the table + whole-group discussion, and outline a statement.

Format: 3h Session

Who can join: All early career researchers
Cost: Free
When: Monday March 2nd, 13:00-16:00
Where: University of Oulu, Tellus Stage
Duration: 3 h

Sign up now

Join us for an informal icebreaker event in Zivago, a trendy locally owned bar and restaurant in the city center. It offers a diverse menu and an extensive vegan and vegetarian menu. They also offer a great cocktail, wine, and beer selection. Come meet and network with fellow ECSA 2026 participants Monday evening before the conference program begins!

Who can join: All conference participants
Cost: entrance free, food and drinks are self-paid
When:  Monday March 2nd, 19:30-23:00
Duration: 3.5 h
Where: Zivago restaurant and bar, Kirkkokatu 29, 90100 Oulu

As part of the 2026 European Citizen Science Association Conference, a pop-up social and interactive artistic space – The Rhizome Salon – will be open to conference attendees throughout the week. The venue will host participatory art-making activities, tasting sessions, sound art performances, and a cinema programme. Curated by members of the University of Oulu’s SAFIRE and FORbEST research teams, in collaboration with artists Riikka Keränen and Kimmo Ylönen and other invited guests, the salon will respond to the conference themes of “Citizen Science bridging Centre and Periphery” through a collective exploration of rhizomatic being-doing-thinking.

Perhaps best known to Arts and Humanities scholars through the philosophical writings of Deleuze and Guattari (1980), rhizomes are nonhierarchical and unpredictable. They represent a “plane of immanence”, a site where relations and possibilities are ongoing and emergent. In soils and roots, plant rhizomes exist in close community with fungi and microbes, forming reciprocal and co-constitutive loops in which each lifeform alters and supports several others. In a similar way, science and citizens have the opportunity to co-create knowledge together, rather than continuing limiting hierarchies. Through a rhizomatic spirit, knowledge production involves growing and changing together through shared perspectives, practices, and priorities. We invite conference guests to join us, and to join in with several collective and cultural rhizomatic meetings throughout the week in room LO124 at the University of Oulu. Entrance is free.

Join us for a special reception hosted by the City of Oulu in our beautiful City Hall. The Mayor of Oulu, Ari Alatossava, will warmly welcomes ECSA 2026 participants during this year as host of European Capital of Culture. The evening programme will consist of a celebratory welcome drink for attendees, some words from representatives from the city and conference team, a light buffet meal, and musical performances by accordionist Kaisa Risitluoma.

IMPORTANT: As the venue has a strict capacity limit, numbers of attendees are limited (300 max). For this reason, you MUST register in advance to be able to attend. Once you have registered, your conference name badge, marked with a special symbol, will be your ticket to this event. If you forget it, you will unfortunately not be able to enter.

Who can join: Conference delegates who have registered in advance for the event
Cost: entrance free, food and drinks are self-paid
When:  Tuesday March 3, 18:30-20:00
Duration: 1.5-2 h
Where: Oulu city Hall, Kirkkokatu 2, Oulu

Sign up now

Come get to know your colleagues better while experiencing Finland’s most renowned pastime: a waterside, wood-fired sauna. Koivuranta Sauna is a traditional Finnish lakeside sauna located on the Oulujoki River, just a short distance from Oulu’s city centre. It combines a cosy wood-heated sauna with a floating, pontoon-style structure that allows visitors to enjoy both steaming and swimming year-round. It’s a popular spot for locals and visitors alike—both for its authentic Finnish sauna experience and its unique setting directly on the water. S this is a public sauna suitable for collegial conference-goers, bathing suits are mandatory.

We have reserved the entire sauna for two evenings during the conference, exclusively for ECSA guests. After the sauna, guests can cool off with a refreshing dip through a hole cut right in the ice (“avanto” in Finnish). Drinks and snacks, such as waffles, are available for purchase. Vegan and vegetarian options available!

Disclaimer:  Sauna sessions prices are increased due to the private booking for ECSA2026 participants only. Individual bookings are also possible on other days and times.

Who can join: All ages welcome (maximum 20 participants per 1.5-hour session)
Cost: 30 € per person
When:
• Tuesday, 3 March, 19:00 – 00:00 
• Wednesday, 4 March, 16:00 – 00:00
Duration: 1.5 hour sauna turn
Where: Koivurannan sauna boat, https://koivurannansaunalautta.fi/
What to bring: Swimsuit, towel, water bottle, and a payment method for snacks and drinks (should hunger or thirst beckon)

Sign up now

As part of the 2026 European Citizen Science Association Conference, a pop-up social and interactive artistic space – The Rhizome Salon – will be open to conference attendees throughout the week. The venue will host participatory art-making activities, tasting sessions, sound art performances, and a cinema programme. Curated by members of the University of Oulu’s SAFIRE and FORbEST research teams, in collaboration with artists Riikka Keränen and Kimmo Ylönen and other invited guests, the salon will respond to the conference themes of “Citizen Science bridging Centre and Periphery” through a collective exploration of rhizomatic being-doing-thinking.

Perhaps best known to Arts and Humanities scholars through the philosophical writings of Deleuze and Guattari (1980), rhizomes are nonhierarchical and unpredictable. They represent a “plane of immanence”, a site where relations and possibilities are ongoing and emergent. In soils and roots, plant rhizomes exist in close community with fungi and microbes, forming reciprocal and co-constitutive loops in which each lifeform alters and supports several others. In a similar way, science and citizens have the opportunity to co-create knowledge together, rather than continuing limiting hierarchies. Through a rhizomatic spirit, knowledge production involves growing and changing together through shared perspectives, practices, and priorities. We invite conference guests to join us, and to join in with several collective and cultural rhizomatic meetings throughout the week in room LO124 at the University of Oulu. Entrance is free.

Come get to know your colleagues better while experiencing Finland’s most renowned pastime: a waterside, wood-fired sauna. Koivuranta Sauna is a traditional Finnish lakeside sauna located on the Oulujoki River, just a short distance from Oulu’s city centre. It combines a cosy wood-heated sauna with a floating, pontoon-style structure that allows visitors to enjoy both steaming and swimming year-round. It’s a popular spot for locals and visitors alike—both for its authentic Finnish sauna experience and its unique setting directly on the water. S this is a public sauna suitable for collegial conference-goers, bathing suits are mandatory.

We have reserved the entire sauna for two evenings during the conference, exclusively for ECSA guests. After the sauna, guests can cool off with a refreshing dip through a hole cut right in the ice (“avanto” in Finnish). Drinks and snacks, such as waffles, are available for purchase. Vegan and vegetarian options available!

Disclaimer:  Sauna sessions prices are increased due to the private booking for ECSA2026 participants only. Individual bookings are also possible on other days and times.

Who can join: All ages welcome (maximum 20 participants per 1.5-hour session)
Cost: 30 € per person
When:
• Tuesday, 3 March, 19:00 – 00:00 
• Wednesday, 4 March, 16:00 – 00:00
Duration: 1.5 hour sauna turn
Where: Koivurannan sauna boat, https://koivurannansaunalautta.fi/
What to bring: Swimsuit, towel, water bottle, and a payment method for snacks and drinks (should hunger or thirst beckon)

Sign up now

As part of the 2026 European Citizen Science Association Conference, a pop-up social and interactive artistic space – The Rhizome Salon – will be open to conference attendees throughout the week. The venue will host participatory art-making activities, tasting sessions, sound art performances, and a cinema programme. Curated by members of the University of Oulu’s SAFIRE and FORbEST research teams, in collaboration with artists Riikka Keränen and Kimmo Ylönen and other invited guests, the salon will respond to the conference themes of “Citizen Science bridging Centre and Periphery” through a collective exploration of rhizomatic being-doing-thinking.

Perhaps best known to Arts and Humanities scholars through the philosophical writings of Deleuze and Guattari (1980), rhizomes are nonhierarchical and unpredictable. They represent a “plane of immanence”, a site where relations and possibilities are ongoing and emergent. In soils and roots, plant rhizomes exist in close community with fungi and microbes, forming reciprocal and co-constitutive loops in which each lifeform alters and supports several others. In a similar way, science and citizens have the opportunity to co-create knowledge together, rather than continuing limiting hierarchies. Through a rhizomatic spirit, knowledge production involves growing and changing together through shared perspectives, practices, and priorities. We invite conference guests to join us, and to join in with several collective and cultural rhizomatic meetings throughout the week in room LO124 at the University of Oulu. Entrance is free.

As part of the 2026 European Citizen Science Association Conference, a pop-up social and interactive artistic space – The Rhizome Salon – will be open to conference attendees throughout the week. The venue will host participatory art-making activities, tasting sessions, sound art performances, and a cinema programme. Curated by members of the University of Oulu’s SAFIRE and FORbEST research teams, in collaboration with artists Riikka Keränen and Kimmo Ylönen and other invited guests, the salon will respond to the conference themes of “Citizen Science bridging Centre and Periphery” through a collective exploration of rhizomatic being-doing-thinking.

Perhaps best known to Arts and Humanities scholars through the philosophical writings of Deleuze and Guattari (1980), rhizomes are nonhierarchical and unpredictable. They represent a “plane of immanence”, a site where relations and possibilities are ongoing and emergent. In soils and roots, plant rhizomes exist in close community with fungi and microbes, forming reciprocal and co-constitutive loops in which each lifeform alters and supports several others. In a similar way, science and citizens have the opportunity to co-create knowledge together, rather than continuing limiting hierarchies. Through a rhizomatic spirit, knowledge production involves growing and changing together through shared perspectives, practices, and priorities. We invite conference guests to join us, and to join in with several collective and cultural rhizomatic meetings throughout the week in room LO124 at the University of Oulu. Entrance is free.

Citizen Science Festival on March 6 (2026) at the shopping mall Valkea, downtown Oulu, from 17.00 to 20.00. Free and open to all.

The festival introduces the public to citizen science through interactive stations, where researchers from Oulu, Finland, and across Europe will present their work. Visitors can learn about different research topics and try hands-on activities. The program is designed for all age groups, including families with children, students, professionals, retirees, and tourists. The goal is to make science accessible and engaging for everyone. Participants will have the chance to explore ongoing projects, talk with researchers, and take part in simple experiments, aimed at encouraging curiosity and public involvement in scientific discovery. The evening concludes with a screening of citizen science films, highlighting stories from the projects and participants.