CitizenScience


 In a growing world of technology and science, it is necessary to meet that evolution. Through the use of citizen science and crowdsourcing, the federal government engages the American public in advancing science, technology, and innovation. 

What is CitizenScience.gov?

CitizenScience's mission is in "helping federal agencies accelerate innovation through public participation." The site serves to accelerate the use of crowdsourcing and citizen science. Crowdsourcing is when organizations submit "an open call for voluntary assistance from a large group of individuals for online, distributed problem solving. Citizen science is when the "public participates voluntarily in the scientific process, addressing real-world problems in ways that may include formulating research questions, conducting scientific experiments, collecting and analyzing data,  interpreting results, making new discoveries, developing technologies and applications, and solving complex problems." Through these actions, the American public can help address societal needs and advance science. 

As a result of the Crowdsourcing and Citizen Science Act of 2016, the CitizenScience.gov site has three components:

  • a catalog of federally supported citizen science projects
  • a toolkit to assist federal practitioners with designing and maintaining their projects 
  • a gateway to a community of hundreds of citizen science practitioners and coordinators
Catalog

The public can view a catalog of projects that have been validated by federal employees and are available to join. Currently, there are 501 projects available that can be filtered by status, agency, and the field of science. Some of those projects are:

Toolkit

CitizenScience.gov released a Federal Crowdsourcing and Citizen Science Toolkit in 2015 for individuals who want more information and guidance on how to start a project on the site. It outlines the process for planning, designing, and carrying out a crowdsourcing or citizen science project. It also has case studies, models, and stories of various projects. 

The first section in the toolkit highlights the 5 basic process steps for planning, designing and carrying out a project. They are as follows:
  1. Scope Your Problem
  2. Design A Project
  3. Build A Community
  4. Manage Your Data
  5. Sustain and Improve Your Project

The next section provides case studies as models and success stories to consider while planning a project. The stories touch on all different challenges and successes projects have encountered. 

 The last section in the toolkit is the Resource Library. It holds information on what Citizen Science is, how to use it, examples, implementation reports, and journal articles.
 

Other Resources

Learn more about CitizenScience and their projects.

Learn about the federal government's platform for sharing America's open source software and another crowdsourcing community.

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