Eye on Earth (EoE), Citizen Science and the Invasive Alien Species project

1. Eye on Earth (EoE),Citizen Science and the Invasive Alien Species project Malene Bruun NRC’s for EISJune 17, 2011

2. Eye on Earth objectives • To provide a user-friendly global system for sharing georeferenced environmental data and information to: • Provide a platform environmental data (historical and NRT) • Enable user interaction through feedback and ratings • Initiate and facilitate ”citizen science” activities • To engage a wide variety of communities and individuals at different levels of complexity

3. Interacting with the public EEA Data & indicators Data & indicators Data, indicators and assessments Feedback Information and ratings Public Public Public

4. What do we (want to) get from the public? • Citizen science: • “I’ve counted 1 007 352 • butterflies in Caix today” • Here’s the noise level • in Amalienborg measured • on my Android • This is a picture of • something Henri shot near • Eremitage Lodge • Feedback: • “I love Eye on Earth” • “It would be good to • have more info on . . ” • Ratings: • “This location is good” • “It’s noisy here” Crowdsourcing

5. Why Citizen Science? • Increasing interest in Citizen Science • Commitment to engage with more target audiences • Advancement and availability of Information, Communication, Technology (ICT) tools

6. Citizen Science • Public involvement in projects or ongoing programmes of scientific work by which individual volunteers or networks of volunteers, many of whom may have no specific scientific training, perform or manage research-related tasks such as observation, measurement or computation

7. Citizen Science – added value • Generates large amounts of data from many different people in several regions in a relatively short period of time • Experienced volunteers can deliver more accurate/ consistent information than ‘short term’ technicians • Useful when aiming to identify trends and spatial differences/ similarities in parameters or species observed

8. To engage the public in the observation and reporting of environmental data and information to fill important gaps in our knowledge and understanding of Europe’s environment Our vision

9. Overall objectives • To design and implement Citizen Science activities enabling the Agency to fill gaps in European environmental data and information • To establish citizen science as an important monitoring activity in Europe and ensure that it is properly managed across relevant networks, and in relation to key EU bodies and stakeholders • To establish the success criteria required to properly design and evaluate Citizen Science projects

10. Why this project? • Political interest the monitoring of Invasive Alien Species (IAS) • Expert emphasis on the need for ‘surveillance and monitoring activities’ • Biodiversity monitoring is costly and active communities already exist

11. The vision • To engage citizens in the observation and reporting of invasive alien species to fill gaps in our knowledge about changes in these, and hopefully contribute to the establishment of an IAS Early Warning and Rapid Response System.

12. Aim of this project • Test new ways of monitoring the invasion of alien species in Europe • Create a pilot with a longer term vision for an IAS monitoring system based on Citizen Science • Raise general awareness of Invasive Alien Species • Operate within the frame of the future EU strategy on IAS, ongoing activities in EU member states, and global IAS strategies (CBD)

13. Process foreseen • Initial emphasis on IAS expert involvement • Citizen science as a tool to monitor IAS • Networks • Species • Country involvement • Connecting with existing initiatives • Securing proper data flows, data import and verification • Technical developments • Web and smart phone applications • Web services • Pilot based on Citizen Science available when the longer term EU vision for an IAS monitoring system is ready

14. External Applications Community 5 Community 1 Community 2 Community 3 Community 4 Mobiles Machines Desktops GBIF P2P … LINUX MAC PC Android Windows 7 Iphone/IPad Services Tabular services Time aware Mapping services Feature services Modeling services Platform EoEplatform Externalplatform’s Time aware… Geospatial… Configurable…

15. What are we looking for? • Volunteers for the pilot • System in place • Data available for import • National citizen Science activities (information, contacts) • Innovative environmental applications (web, smart phones)

16. What do we offer in return? Communication • Facilitate communication amongst communities and viz a viz EU Infrastructure • GIS Expertise • Common platform • Mapping applications • Map services • Processing tools (produce messages) • Development resources • App/Tools to accommodate accurate data collection • Positioning/Picture verify • Access to data • Access to own data and data by others Local to global connectivity • Enable local/ national iniatives to connect with/ relate to the overall picture • Provide European/ global exposure to national/ local initiatives Bring communities together • Establish contacts with other countries/ regions collecting similar information • Enable data comparison & exchange of best practices • Language (translation) Contribute to EU Strategies/ policy work • Establish connections between citizen science activities and EU policy Broaden the network • Engage new/ emerging communities

17. EEA does not intend to • Create our own community • Take away ownership from others Keep project mutually beneficial

18. Thank you Tel. 00 45 33 36 71 65 Malene.bruun@eea.europa.eu