Creating Communities in Citizen Science Projects

One of the most important aspects of Citizen Science is recognizing that participants voluntarily invest their time and effort into contributing to scientific projects—without compensation. While their passion for nature and curiosity about the environment drive participation, another crucial motivator is often overlooked: the desire to engage and ...

Citizen Science App Green Growth Wildlife Suriname

Suriname has roughly 14 languages - the official and most spoken language is Dutch. One of Suriname's indigenous languages is Trio, which is spoken by the Tarëno, a conglomeration of analogous subgroups and distinct Amerindian groups (Mirella Nankoe, 2017). The total Tarëno population (Tarëno means "people from here") in Suriname can...

It is often the case in Citizen Science Apps that participants have different levels of experience, tools, or knowledge levels. Examples of this can emerge in many research topics, from experts on species classification to people with measuring equipment. With the new SPOTTERON platform feature "User Roles," we have created the basis for an extenda...

Imagine a Citizen Scientist asking a question inside your project's App. What if a reply directly reaches the user on the smartphone with a beep as soon it is posted? This next level of immediacy is now a reality with the new "User Mention" feature for all Apps on the SPOTTERON platform. The new functionality enables direct and personal commun...

Sometimes, Citizen Science contributions are happening long after the sun has set. To reduce the blinding effect of a smartphone display, we have included a new night mode option for all Citizen Science apps on the SPOTTERON platform.

We are happy to announce the release of the new SPOTTERON version 2.6.0! The next SPOTTERON Update brings 3 new extension, available for all Citizen Science apps running on the SPOTTERON platform. In the following blog entry we are going to explain these new features and their function.

Who are the Citizen Scientists? Which profession or education do they have? Why are they participating in my Citizen Science project? With the new user profiles, these questions are a central element in the Citizen Science Systems SPOTTERON. The Citizen Scientists can now extend their user account with background information directly in the smartphone apps. Additionally, users can upload their own profile picture - because Citizen Science is also a personal matter.

Citizen Science often happens out in the field where network coverage can be weaker. That's why it can be especially helpful and pratical to pre-download map sections and save them locally on a smartphone for excursions and hiking trips.

With the new SPOTTERON platform version 2.5 we bring two more highlights to all apps on the Citizen Science platform: First of all, the Offline Maps & Spots feature allows users to download map areas and spots on their phone for having them present, even when there is no internet connection available. This feature is a big improvement, specially for Citizen Science Apps, in which the main activity takes place often outdoors in the field where web connectivitiy is not always a given thing.

When developing a Citizen Science app, you can influence usability in many ways. But these crucial decisions can be decisive factors when it comes down to whether they enjoy using it and do so regularly.