MICS case study sites

Research projects in the four sites (in the UK, Italy, Hungary and Romania) are currently studying how nature-based solutions can support urban and rural ecosystems. These sites will work together to explore the co-creation of citizen science in regions with differing needs, contexts and approaches to environment management, using various levels of citizen science application. In some of the sites selected, MICS adopts the FreshWater Watch method, through which volunteers monitor nitrates and phosphates in freshwater ecosystems.

Impact of citizen science

MICS tools measuring the impacts of citizen science could make it easier to communicate the benefits of nature-based solutions, leading to increased funding and uptake for these interventions. 

More generally, the MICS project aims to measure broader impacts of citizen science on the environment, science, society, the economy and governance.

MICS will create a platform which could be used to assess the impact of any citizen science project, whether it is at the planning stage or years after the project’s completion. Providing a clear framework for measuring impact will help to make citizen science more efficient and effective, reduce costs, and spread the use of citizen science more widely. All of this will strengthen the role played by citizen science in research and informing policy.

Luigi Ceccaroni, coordinator of the project, said: “It’s totally applicable to any citizen science project, and MICS plans to integrate its impact assessment tool into platforms like EU-Citizen.Science and COS4CLOUD. The project might help to demonstrate that the citizen involvement angle has serious legs and that millions of people using apps to monitor the environment can make a difference. This citizen participation can build crucial political support for environmental action.”