What ECSA is
Our vision
Our mission
To realise our vision, ECSA aims to:
- become the central hub for new and existing citizen science initiatives and networks, in Europe and beyond
- contribute to building a strong and engaged citizen science community
- provide high-quality tools and training materials to increase the number of well-trained citizen science practitioners
- set standards for good practice in citizen science and share them among the community
- strengthen the links between citizen science practice and policy
- support the dissemination and use of quality-assured data, in science and by decision-makers
- enhance the validation of citizen-generated datasets and support technological advancements
- advocate for citizen science as an approach for tracking progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
- provide a legal framework that gives our members the support they need to carry out citizen science projects without legal objection.
ECSA sees citizen science as an open, inclusive approach. We support the exploration of how citizen science should be understood and practised, and help to shape different aspects of the citizen science movement, in Europe and around the world. Ultimately, we believe that this will lead to a better understanding of citizen science, and support the use of its outcomes in decision-making processes.
ECSA members have contributed to many significant documents in the field of citizen science, especially the 10 Principles of Citizen Science, and the Characteristics of Citizen Science.
What science is
ECSA refers to science as a collective human enterprise that encompasses a wide range of activities. We recognise the definition given by the Science Council:
“Science is the pursuit and application of knowledge and understanding of the natural and social world following a systematic methodology based on evidence.”
In this definition, science is not only concerned with knowledge of nature and the universe but also with the social world, and refers to the pursuit of knowledge rather than knowledge itself.
Executive board
The executive board is responsible for the formal representation of ECSA and its business conduct. It is elected at each ECSA General Assembly for a period of three years and instructs the ECSA headquarters. The current executive board was elected at the ECSA General Assembly in November 2020.
President: Prof. Dr. Johannes Vogel
Director general of the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin
Chair: Dr. Susanne Hecker
Leader, Bürger schaffen Wissen at the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin
Board of directors
ECSA’s board of directors advises the executive board and sets the scientific guidelines for ECSA’s work. Each ECSA General Assembly appoints up to seven ECSA members to the board of directors for a period of three years. The board of directors meets at least once a year and makes decisions by a simple majority. The current board of directors was elected at the ECSA General Assembly in November 2020.
ECSA treasurer: Svetlana Klessova
Director, Research and Innovation Partnerships, GAC Group
Zentrum für Soziale Innovation
Citizen Science Netværket / ScienceAtHome, Aarhus University
ICM-CSIC
KempleyGREEN Consultants
Science for Change
University of St. Gallen, Switzerland
ECSA Headquarters Team
The ECSA Headquarters is currently housed in the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin. From here, the association is led by the management, in consultation with the Executive Board. It supports the activities of the working groups, manages ECSA’s external and internal communication and organises ECSA’s events. It advises ECSA members on how to link their activities to ECSA’s objectives. ECSA headquarters also works on citizen science projects.
managing director
project officer
project officer
project officer
project officer
communications and community manager
project officer
Marcos Pereira
accountant
project officer
student assistant
communications and community officer
communications and community officer
project officer
communications and community officer
project officer
operations manager
Advisory board
The advisory board guides ECSA on strategic and policy matters, and reviews annual reports and ECSA accounts. The members meet regularly and report to the general assembly. The advisory board consists of up to 12 people, who are not ECSA members. Advisory board members are elected for three years at ECSA general assemblies, and any ECSA member can nominate someone. Advisory board members can be academics, political actors or people interested in citizen science. Our current advisory board members represent research councils, regulatory organisations and government agencies, as well as members of the public.
- Dan Stanton, Arizona State University
- Darlene Cavalier, Arizona State University / SciStarter / Science Cheerleaders / ECAST
- Henrietta L. Moore, Institute for Global Prosperity / UCL
- José Miguel Rubio Iglesias, European Environment Agency
- Julie Dirwimmer, Quebec Office of the Chief Scientist
- Renee Sieber, McGill University
- Sven Schade, Joint Research Center of the European Commission
Former members
Former team members: Alicia Moreno Muñoz, André Mascarenhas, Andrea Troncoso, Barbara Carneiro, Ciara Davies, Claire Murray, Claudia Göbel, Franziska Sattler, Gaia Agnello, Gerhard Schleenstein, Gina Maskell, Giulia Melilli, Helen Feord, Holly Woodward, Margaret Gold, Mariana Vidal Merino, Marzia Mazzonetto, Simone Rüfenacht, Soledad Luna, Tim Woods, Veronika French
Former board members: Aletta Bonn, Andrea Sforzi, Enrico Balli, Katrin Vohland, Lucy Robinson, Luigi Ceccaroni, Margaret Gold, Muki Haklay, Soledad Luna, Uta Wehn, Zen Makuch
Former advisory board members: Alan Irwin, Eileen Scanlon, Ferdinando Boero, Heiner Benking, Ines Mehu-Blantar, Jan Riise, Michael Sogaard Jorgensen, Roger Owen
Partners
The following organisations have supported ECSA by hosting our conferences and general assemblies.
If you would like to work with ECSA, please get in touch with ECSA headquarters and let us know what you would like to do − we’re happy to hear about what you have in mind and open to new ideas!