Citizen Science, Law and Policy - I

Abstract

This session explores the inter-connections between “citizen science,” laws, policies, standards, and regulations. In many countries, citizen science has gained public policy support in recent years, often touted for expanding scientific literacy, producing useful scientific data, and spurring innovation. At the same time, a growing number of scholars are highlighting how citizen science can contribute to progressive social change, bringing attention to social movement activists, union organizers, and scientists who are using citizen science to argue for better protection of the environment and human health. Papers in this session will probe questions such as: How is citizen science and public policy co-produced? How are neoliberal policies implicated in the advancement of citizen science? What are the implications when citizen scientists choose to align (or not) their data and methods with existing regulatory standards? How is the field of citizen science governed? How do citizen science practices encourage or inhibit politicized actions by volunteers? In alignment with the conference theme of innovation, this session also explores how citizen science helps innovation in regulatory science, advocacy strategies, legal arguments, and government policies.

Individual Presentations

• A Tale of Two Publics: Constructing Credible Data in Alberta, Canada - Sarah Blacker, Munich Center for Technology in Society, Technical University of Munich

• Atmospheric Politics and the Aporias of Citizen Science in Delhi - Rohit Negi, School of Global Affairs, Ambedkar University Delhi

• But Is It “Safe?”: Water Quality Regulations, Citizen Science, and Power in the Flint Water Crisis - Ben Pauli, Kettering University; Michael Mascarenhas, University of California, Berkeley

• Citizen Science as/in Public Works: How Validating a Low Cost Air Monitoring Tool in a Sewage Treatment Plant Transformed its Metrics and Impact - Sara Wylie, Northeastern University; Garance Malivel, York University; Lourdes Annette Vera, Northeastern University

• “Reconstruction” After Fukushima: Citizen Scientists or Silent Voices? - Rina Kojima, Laboratoire Techniques, Territoires et Sociétés

Session Organizer

• Aya Hirata Kimura, University of Hawaii