Mapping the current landscape of citizen-driven environmental monitoring: a systematic literature review

Abstract

Citizen observatories can be defined as socio-technical constellations designed to make people who are nonprofessional scientists empowered entities. By enabling citizens to monitor their environment via collection and sharing of data, citizen observatories can be viewed as an application or iteration of citizen science. This article contributes to mapping out the current landscape of citizen engagement and participation in environmental monitoring. We draw on a systematic analysis of 57 peer-reviewed papers and argue that citizen observatories have the potential to make a substantial social impact by bringing together different stakeholders and digital technologies. We also discuss the challenges of civic participation, quality of the data gathered, and long-term sustainability. The article identifies several critical gaps in the field that provide a guide for future studies on citizen observatories. Furthermore, it encourages deeper engagement within developing nations and investigates the impact of this approach on nurturing sustainable societies globally.

Keywords

• citizen observatories
• citizen science
• civic participation
• sustainability