Slides from a talk to UCL Institute of Global Prosperity soundbites event - 5th November 2015. With a growing emphasis on civil society-led change in diverse disciplines, from International Development to Town Planning, there is an increasing demand to understand how institutions might work with the public effectively and fairly. Extreme Citizen Science is a situated, bottom-up practice that takes into account local needs, practices and culture and works with broad networks of people to design and build new devices and knowledge creation processes that can transform the world. In this talk, Muki will discuss the work of UCL Extreme Citizen Science group within the wider context of the developments in the field of citizen science.He will cover the work that ExCiteS has already done, currently developing and plans for the future. https://www.igp.ucl.ac.uk/igp-events-pub/muki-haklay-extreme-citizen-science

1. Extreme Citizen Science:
current development
Muki Haklay
Extreme Citizen Science (ExCiteS) research group, UCL
@mhaklay

2. Outline
• Where have we come from?
• Citizen Science in a historical perspective – underlying
trends
• Extending citizen science to the extreme – process,
technology & examples
• Current activities in the Extreme Citizen Science
• Where next?

3. Paolo Isoardi, 2006, Creation of London 21 Green Map using Google Maps API
2006

4. Ellul, C., Haklay, M. Francis, L. And Rahemtulla, H., 2009, A Mechanism to Create Community Maps for Non-Technical users, The International Conference on
Advanced Geographic Information Systems & Web Services – GEOWS 2009
2007

5. 2007
Lewis, J. (2012). Technological Leap-frogging in the Congo Basin, Pygmies and Global Positioning Systems in Central Africa: What has happened and where is it going?.

6. 2010

7. Positioning Extreme Citizen Science
• The usual line: ‘citizen science is not new, predating
modern science’ is only partially true
• Societal and technological trends reveal the difference
from past public engagement in scientific research …
• … but also the limitations

8. Citizen Science (OED 2014)
citizen science n. scientific work undertaken by members of the
general public, often in collaboration with or under the direction
of professional scientists and scientific institutions.
citizen scientist n. (a) a scientist whose work is characterized by
a sense of responsibility to serve the best interests of the wider
community (now rare); (b) a member of the general public who
engages in scientific work, often in collaboration with or under the
direction of professional scientists and scientific institutions; an
amateur scientist.

9. Citizen Science & Science
Early science
(1600’s – early 1800’s)
Professional science
(late 1800’s – 1900’s)
Opening Science
(since 2000s)

10. Citizen Science & Science
Early science
(1600’s – earl 1800’s)
Professional science
(late 1800’s – 1900’s)
Opening Science
(since 2000s)
Illiteracy
Basic to
High-school
Higher
Education

11. Citizen Science & Science
Early science
(1600’s – early 1800’s)
Professional science
(late 1800’s – 1900’s)
Opening Science
(since 2000s)
Illiteracy
Basic to
High-school
Higher
Education
Citizen Science
as Gentlemen/
Gentlewomen
science
Mary Anning (1799-1847)

12. Citizen Science & Science
Early science
(1600’s – early 1800’s)
Professional science
(late 1800’s – 1900’s)
Opening Science (since
2000s)
Illiteracy
Basic to
High-school
Higher
Education
Citizen Science
as Gentlemen/
Gentlewomen
science
Citizen Science
diminishing
© WMO–No. 919
Volunteer rainfall observer Rick Grocke checks
the rain gauge at Tanami Downs cattle station in
the Northern Territory of Australia

13. Citizen Science & Science
Early science
(1600’s – early 1800’s)
Professional science
(late 1800’s – 1900’s)
Opening Science
(since 2000s)
Illiteracy
Basic to
High-school
Higher
Education
Citizen Science
as Gentlemen/
Gentlewomen
science
Citizen Science
diminishing
Citizen Science as
open & inclusive
science

14. Why Now?
• Societal trends:
– Education and qualifications
– Healthy aging
– Leisure
– Sharing economies / peer production systems
• Technological trends:
– GPS & GNSS
– Internet access (broadband)
– Mobile devices
– Collaborative Web
– DIY electronics

15. Increased level of education
0
5
10
15
20
25
1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010
UK - educational attainment for total population, 1950-2010, age 25+
tertiary education, %
Source: World Bank

16. Increased level of education
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010
Millions
Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both
sexes (number)

17. Understanding scientific concepts
© Cambridge University Press
© Sanja Gjenero (sxc.hu)

18. Example: London
• Lots of well educated
people
Source: ONS

19. Source: ONSSource: DCMS
Amanda Slater
Stephen Matthews

20. Leisure
Satisfaction with the amount of leisure time (2011) Source: ONS

21. Sharing economies
• In many areas, especially in production and sharing of
information

22. 1st May 2000 – GPS selective availability
• ‘In plain English, we are
unscrambling the GPS signal. It is
rare that someone can press a
button and make something you
already own more valuable – but
that’s exactly what’s happening
today. All the people who’ve bought
a GPS receiver for a boat or a car...
will find that they are ten times
more accurate as of midnight
tonight.’
Dr Neal Lane, Assistant to the
President for Science and
Technology.
David Fulmer

23. Web access

24. Broadband growth

25. Active mobile-broadband subscriptions, 2007-2013*

26. Collaborative Web

27. DIY electronics

28. A new era of citizen science
• As a result of technical and societal trends citizen
science re-emerged in the past decade
• Types:
– biodiversity/conservation observations recording;
– volunteer computing;
– volunteer thinking;
– Do It Yourself (DIY) science;
– community/civic science
Haklay, M., 2013, Citizen Science and Volunteered Geographic Information –
overview and typology of participation in Crowdsourcing Geographic Knowledge

29. Biological recording/Environmental
observations

30. Volunteer computing
You can join World Community Grid at http://www.worldcommunitygrid.org/

31. Volunteer thinking
See Zooniverse projects at http://www.zooniverse.org/

32. Community/Civic Science
– Early warning system (~30
Volunteers)
– Visual observations, Ash
collection, Equipment
maintenance
– Communicate information from
scientists  community
– Organise community response
Stone., J., et al. 2014, Risk reduction through community-based monitoring: the vigías of
Tungurahua, Ecuador Journal of Applied Volcanology

33. Typology of Citizen Science
• Contributory projects, designed by scientists and members
of the public primarily contribute data
• Collaborative projects, designed by scientists and members
of the public contribute data but may help in project design,
analysis, or dissemination
• Co-created projects, designed by scientists and members of
the public working together and at least some of the public
participants are actively involved in most/all steps of the
scientific process
Bonney, Ballard, Jordan, McCallie, Phillips, Shirk, & Wilderman. 2009. Public Participation in Scientific Research

34. Participation in citizen science
• Collaborative science – problem
definition, data collection and analysis
Level 4 ‘Extreme/
Up-Science’
• Participation in problem definition
and data collection
Level 3 ‘Participatory
science’
• Citizens as basic interpreters
Level 2 ‘Distributed
intelligence’
• Citizens as sensors
Level 1
‘Crowdsourcing’
Haklay. 2013. Citizen Science and volunteered geographic information: Overview
and typology of participation, Crowdsourcing Geographic Knowledge

35. Problem
definition
Data collection
Visualisation &
analysis
Action
Classification
& basic analysis
Basic School
High School
Postgraduate
PhD
Literacy
Current Citizen Science
University/
College

36. Problem
definition
Data collection
Visualisation &
analysis
Action
Classification
& basic analysis
Basic School
High School
University/
College
Postgraduate
PhD
Literacy
Where next for Citizen Science?

37. Extreme Citizen Science
Extreme Citizen Science (ExCiteS) is a situated,
bottom-up practice that takes into account local
needs, practices and culture and works with broad
networks of people to design and build new devices
and knowledge creation processes that can transform
the world.
Technologies, methodologies & activities - separating
them is harder than you’d think!

38. Jerome Lewis, ExCiteS

39. Engagement: Free, Prior Informed Consent
40

40. Participatory Software design

41. Training and support

42. Openness & Control
• Managing community data require free, prior informed
consent (FPIC)
• Some information should be shared, but some
information is sensitive culturally, or shared only with
trusted partners
• Community data collection should be linked to tools &
social network that already operate and can help to
manage it

43. http://geokey.org.uk/

45. Citizen Science for everyone
• We want leverage the power of geographical technology to
allow any community, regardless of literacy, to develop
and own citizen science projects
• We have data collection tools that are designed for
traditional ecological knowledge (Sapelli, CyberTracker,
Open Data Kit - ODK)
• GeoKey provides the infrastructure for managing data
• but can we provide the information back?

46. Community Maps

47. Towards Intelligent Maps

49. Participatory Action Research
• Meshing ExCiteS ‘North’ &‘South’ cases
• Cases evolve through close collaboration with
community groups
• Examples for topics of research include:
– Community resources monitoring (Congo, Amazon)
– Environmental nuisances – air pollution & noise
– Disaster preparedness – earthquakes
– Studies of Citizen Science –public initiated scientific research
– Science of Citizen Science – patterns, learning, motivations

50. Scrutinising ExCiteS development

51. Ashaninka village “Apiwtxa”
José Frank Melo

52. Community based monitoring
Carolina Comandulli

53. Mapping for Change

57. Community-led air quality studies

58. Over 20 communities across London replicating the
methodology, independently. Many using the online
community map to record their results.

59. Earthquake preparedness
Patrick Rickles, Gretchen Fagg

60. Patrick Rickles, Gretchen Fagg

61. Studying Public Lab Community
Cindy Regalado

62. Data: GiGL Map: G Gliozzo

63. Methodologies
• Varied according to context, research aims and
researcher’s goal
• Including participatory design, playshops, design
provocations, participatory mapping, participatory
action research
• Applied STS/Philosophy of Technology/Sociology of
Technology & Human-Computer Ineraction/Usability
Engineering

64. Mapping for Change Process
Participatory Research:
 Co-design
 Co-determination
 Flexibility
 Iterative cycles
 Alternative pathways for
different levels of
participation
 Varies according to nature of
community engaged

65. DIY science playshops
Cindy Regalado

66. Christian Nold

67. Christian Nold

68. Learning
• Co-design – especially when open ended – require strong
attention to process, transparency about tools,
capabilities and power
• Iterative and open tool development require significant
and sustained investment
• Operating across cases, disciplines and practices require
attention (e.g. having technical disciplines seating next
to social ones)
• Intermediaries and collaborations are critical – we’re
part of many networks

69. Learning
• There are similarities between online and offline
projects, be careful of novelty assumptions
• Co-creation doesn’t work quickly, although participatory
approaches are not necessarily slow/expensive
compared to other approaches (e.g. transport studies,
social surveys etc.)

70. What’s next?
• Continue the development of tools and methodologies
for participatory citizen science
• Growing attention to citizen social science and the
conditions that make it successful
• The relevance of methods in cross cultural and
disciplinary contexts
• Policy context: how citizen science used for different
issues and does it open up new opportunities for
democratic participation?

71. • Follow us:
– http://www.ucl.ac.uk/excites
– Twitter: @UCL_ExCiteS
– Blog: http://uclexcites.wordpress.com
• The work of ExCiteS is supported
by EPSRC, EU FP7, RGS, Esri, FPP,
Forests Monitor, WRI and all the
communities that we’ve worked
with over the years