The FjordPhyto team, was thrilled to attend the Citizen Science Association Conference in St. Paul, Minnesota May 17th to 20th, 2017. CitSci2017 hosted a jam-packed event full of new ideas, shared hopes, and best practices for the emerging and growing international citizen science community. Multiple sessions touched on challenges and opportunities to improve the work of citizen science projects. During the event, we were reminded that citizen science is about so much more than simply collecting data. Research collaborations with the public reinvigorate interest in science and broaden the ability of science in answering some of the world’s most pressing questions. The power of citizen science extends beyond the capacity of normal academic research and provides benefit to researchers, citizens, policy-makers, the economy and society.
Mark your calendars for the third Citizen Science Conference held in Raleigh from March 13th to 17th, 2019. Spread the word!
For more examples of the impact citizen science can have on the world, watch this new four-part public television series, The Crowd & The Cloud.