Co-creating a sustainable campus through citizen science

This workshop creates a space for students to share their experiences with sustainability issues on their campus and to explore how these challenges can be addressed through citizen science by actively involving those affected including students, staff, and other campus users. Through simple, interactive methods, participants identify and prioritise key ecological, social, and economic challenges, shaping everyday campus life. These identified challenges form the basis for introducing core principles and methodologies of citizen science. Citizen Science refers to a research methodology, where member of the public take on active parts in scientfic projects and contribute to the co-production of knowledge. Working in small groups, students then develop initial project ideas that explicitly consider how other people affected by these issues could be involved as participants, contributors, or co-creators. Over snacks and pizza, students will engage in discussion with representatives from the institution’s sustainability office, receive feedback on their ideas, learn about current needs and constraints, and explore how their initiatives could connect to ongoing campus sustainability efforts.