evaluating citizen science programs with the port phillip ......from streets to sea: evaluating...
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From Streets to Sea:Evaluating Citizen Science
Programs with the Port Phillip EcoCentre
Nick Bergstrom, Sarah Duquette, Madison Healey, Nick Sorensen
11/12/2017
Acknowledgments
"We are on the land of the Yalukit Willam Clan of the Boon Wurrung language group, part of the Kulin Nations.
We pay respects to their Elders past, present and emerging and value and uphold their connection to the land."
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The Team
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Figure 1. Nick Bergstrom
Figure 3. Madison Healey
Figure 2. Sarah Duquette
Figure 4. Nick Sorensen
Why are we here?
To evaluate and improve the EcoCentre’s street and river auditing programs to enhance their functionality and usefulness when using citizen science.
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Citizen science is scientific research by non-professional volunteers
5Figure 6. (Galaxy Explorer, n.d.) Figure 7. (Your DNA and Trip Planning, 2015)
Figure 5. (Become a Trainer, n.d.)
Citizen Science provides a platform for public involvement and long-term data collection
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Engagement
Science Education
Figure 8.
We need to build stakeholders’ trust in data collected through citizen science
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Figure 9. (Ever Thought of Becoming a Citizen Scientist?, 2009)
Figure 10.
There is no sufficient evaluation process for
citizen science projects
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Why not make one?
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Element Subelement Level 0 Level 1 Level 2 Level 3Category 1 Subcategory 1 Novice Developing Refining Mastery
Figure 11.
We conducted interviews with citizen science experts
10Figure 17. (Vnpa, 2017)
Figure 12. (Marine Care Ricketts Point, 2017)
Figure 18. (EPA Victoria, 2017)
Figure 13. (State Government of Victoria, 2014)
Figure 16. (Love Our Street, 2017)
Figure 19. (Australian Citizen Science Association, 2017)
Figure 15. (Yarra Riverkeeper Association, 2017)
Figure 20. (Litter Free Beaches, 2017)
Figure 14. (EcoCentre, 2002)
We participated in citizen science projects
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Figure 21. (3182 St Kilda Beach Patrol, 2017)
Figure 22.
Interviews and observations were coded to determine key characteristics of successful projects
12Figure 23.
Found 3 main elements to a citizen science program
● Spreading Awareness
● Recruitment and Retention
● Scientific Contribution
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Engagement
Science Education
Figure 24.
After much deliberation, a rubric was born
14Figure 26.
Figure 25.
We developed an evaluation and improvement process
15Figure 27.
Step 1: Understand the subelement and ask these questions of your program
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Figure 28.
Step 2: Determine a target level for the subelement
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Figure 29.
Figure 30.
Step 3: Determine the level of the current state of the project for the subelement
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Figure 30.
Figure 29.
Step 4: List improvement strategies to fill the gap between target and current state
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Figure 30.
Figure 29.
Step 5: Complete steps 1-4 with each subelement
20Figure 31.
Step 6: Prioritize the subelement improvements
21Figure 31.
Step 7: Create an improvement plan
22Figure 32.
Implement and Repeat
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Recommendations For Using the Rubric
● Use the rubric periodically to re-evaluate the state of a particular citizen science project
● Evaluate with persons from each level of the program (directors to volunteers)
● Keep records of previous level scores● Use the evaluations when seeking funding to indicate continuous
improvement
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Evaluating and improving the
Baykeeper street audits
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We piloted Neil’s litter auditing methods
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Figure 33.
Figure 34.
Figure 35.
We observed litter audit training and conducted a roundtable discussion with volunteers
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Figure 36.
Figure 37. (EcoCentre, 2017)
The best practice rubric was used to evaluate the Baykeeper street audits
28Figure 38.
An improvement plan was formalized following the Baykeeper evaluation
29Figure 39.
Recommendations For Street Audits
1. Clearly define and document the scientific research question2. Develop a media/social media communication plan3. Further develop training materials4. Make the database accessible to volunteers and prospective volunteers5. Collaborate with university scientists for peer review and data analysis
strategies6. Continuously search for funding to sustain the program7. Continue to expand the networks
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An instructional and promotional training video was created to help complete the improvement plan
31Figure 40. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5pqMhgRdgY
Take home thoughts
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● Citizen science programs are increasingly common, especially in environmental research
● Previously there was no sufficient method for evaluating these projects
● We developed a best practice rubric and process for evaluating citizen science programs
● This rubric can be used with any citizen science program
● We evaluated the Baykeeper street litter audit program using the process
● We created an improvement plan for the program
Our references include...3182 St Kilda Beach Patrol. (2017, November 11). St Kilda West Beach 11 Nov 17: Thanks to the 54 volunteers (including 10 children) who turned our this beautiful
sunny (at last!) morning and collected 70 kg of litter and 1,275 cigarette butts [Facebook status update]. Retrieved fromhttps://www.facebook.com/3182StKildaBeachPatrol/photos/pcb.1440035816107026/1440033782773896/?type=3&theater
Australian Citizen Science Association. (2016). Retrieved from https://www.citizenscience.org.au/Become a Trainer. Reef Check Australia, Retrieved from https://www.reefcheckaustralia.org/become-a-trainer.htmlEcoCentre. (2002). Retrieved from http://www.ecocentre.comEcoCentre. (2017, November 30). The team de-briefing on their findings [Facebook status update]. Retrieved from
https://www.facebook.com/ecocentrestkilda/photos/pcb.10154865869197676/10154865862722676/?type=3&theaterEPA Victoria. (2017). Retrieved from http://www.epa.vic.gov.au/about-usEver Thought of Becoming a Citizen Scientist? (2009). Retrieved from http://www.open.edu/openlearn/nature-environment/natural-history/ever-thought-becoming-citizen-scientistGalaxy Explorer. Retrieved from http://galaxyexplorer.net.au/Litter Free Beaches. (2017). Retrieved from https://beachpatrol.com.au/Love Our Street. (2017, April 2). Retrieved from
https://www.facebook.com/LoveOurStreet3184/photos/a.532853720202325.1073741827.526400437514320/619709988183364/?type=1&theaterMarine Care Ricketts Point. (2017). Retrieved from http://marinecare.org.au/State Government of Victoria. (2014). Victorian litter action alliance. Retrieved from http://www.litter.vic.gov.au/Vnpa. (2017). Retrieved from https://vnpa.org.au/Yarra Riverkeeper Association. (2017, ). Retrieved from http://yarrariver.org.au/Your DNA and Trip Planning: The Genographic Project. (2015). Retrieved from https://astridtravel.com/blog/your-dna-and-trip-planning-the-genographic-project 34