How could citizen science support the Sustainable Development Goals?

This briefing from the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) explores how citizen science—the collaboration between scientists and volunteers to answer real-world questions—can support the implementation, monitoring, and definition of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It details the different types of citizen science projects, their benefits for data collection and public engagement, and strategies to overcome challenges regarding data quality and statistical validity.

• Citizen science is categorized into three main types based on the level of volunteer involvement: contributory projects, where volunteers provide or process data requested by scientists; collaborative projects, where volunteers may also assist in project design, analysis, or dissemination; and co-created projects, where scientists and citizens jointly set research questions and design methods.
• Citizen science offers significant benefits beyond data collection, including increasing the geographic reach and volume of data, raising public awareness of issues, encouraging sustainable behavior changes, and demystifying the scientific process for the general public.
• While concerns exist regarding data quality, literature indicates that well-designed citizen science studies produce data comparable to that of professional scientists. Quality can be improved through clear instructions, piloting materials, volunteer training, and screening data at the point of submission.
• Statistical validity in citizen science is challenged by self-selection bias, particularly when participants have a stake in the outcome. This can be mitigated by maintaining detailed metadata on who collected the data and using analytical techniques to control for uneven sampling.
• Citizen science can support the SDGs in three primary ways: defining targets (by interpreting vague wording like 'affordable' or 'reliable' energy in local contexts), monitoring progress (by filling data gaps and disaggregating national data), and implementing action (by educating participants and providing a platform for decision-making).
• Citizen science is particularly valuable for reaching marginalized groups who are often under-represented in national statistics, providing rich, detailed information necessary to achieve universal SDG targets.

APA

West, S., & Pateman, R. (2017). How could citizen science support the Sustainable Development Goals? Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/SEI-2017-PB-citizen-science-sdgs.pdf

Chicago

West, Sarah, and Rachel Pateman. How could citizen science support the Sustainable Development Goals? Stockholm Environment Institute, 2017. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/SEI-2017-PB-citizen-science-sdgs.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=West |first1=Sarah |last2=Pateman |first2=Rachel |title=How could citizen science support the Sustainable Development Goals? |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=2017 |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/SEI-2017-PB-citizen-science-sdgs.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{west2017how, author = {West, Sarah and Pateman, Rachel}, title = {{How could citizen science support the Sustainable Development Goals?}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2017}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/SEI-2017-PB-citizen-science-sdgs.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }