ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT The potential impacts of citizen science initiatives are increasing across the globe, albeit in an imbalanced manner. In general, there is a strong element of trial and error in most projects, and the comparison of best practices and project structure between different initiatives remains difficult. In Brazil, the participation of volunteers in environmental research is limited. Identifying the factors related to citizen science projects' success and longevity within a global perspective can contribute for consolidating such practices in the country. In this study, we explore past and present projects, including a case study in Brazil, to identify the spatial and temporal trends of citizen science programs as well as their best practices and challenges. We performed a bibliographic search using Google Scholar and considered results from 2005-2014. Although these results are subjective due to the Google Scholar's algorithm and ranking criteria, we highlighted factors to compare projects across geographical and disciplinary areas and identified key matches between project proponents and participants, project goals and local priorities, participant profiles and engagement, scientific methods and funding. This approach is a useful starting point for future citizen science projects, allowing for a systematic analysis of potential inconsistencies and shortcomings in this emerging field.
Subject(s)
Humans , Research Design , Volunteers , Community Participation/methods , Science , BrazilABSTRACT
The management of urban water resources plays an important role for developing countries. The Tietê and Pinheiros Rivers (São Paulo, Brazil) are affected by domestic and industrial effluents and by the diffuse pollution. This research aimed to quantify 134 variables in the water of Tietê and Pinheiros Rivers (approximately 7,200 and 6,600 analyses, respectively) from August 2007 to December 2008. The idea was to verify if the fact that both rivers are located in the same basin is enough to consider the application of a single management plan for both. Data showed that the rivers presented significant anthropogenic interference. The results suggested that such rivers must be subjected to individual management plans since there were exclusive occurrences (variables that were only detected in one of the rivers). Moreover, there was a statistically significant difference between rainy and dry periods for eleven variables (p*<0.05, ANOVA), reinforcing the special importance of the temporal component within the monitoring program. It is expected that this study subsidize environmental recovery programs in the Tietê River, to which is recommendable to focus on prosecution of illegal wastewater releases, and in the Pinheiros River, to which special attention is suggested to the pollution derived from the pesticides load to the water body.
O gerenciamento dos recursos hídricos urbanos desempenha um papel importante para os países em desenvolvimento. Os rios Tietê e Pinheiros (São Paulo, Brasil) são afetados por efluentes domésticos e industriais e pela poluição difusa. Esta pesquisa teve como objetivo quantificar 134 variáveis da água dos rios Tietê e Pinheiros (aproximadamente 7.200 e 6.600 análises, respectivamente) de Agosto de 2007 a Dezembro de 2008. A ideia foi verificar se o fato de os dois rios se localizarem na mesma bacia hidrográfica é suficiente para que se considere a aplicação de um único plano de manejo para ambos. Os dados mostraram que os rios apresentam significativa interferência antrópica. Os resultados sugeriram que tais rios devem ser submetidos a planos individuais de gerenciamento, uma vez que houve ocorrências exclusivas (variáveis que foram detectadas em apenas um dos rios). Além disso, houve diferença estatisticamente significativa entre os períodos seco e chuvoso para onze variáveis (p*<0,05, ANOVA), o que reforça a especial importância da componente temporal do programa de monitoramento. Espera-se que esse estudo ofereça subsídios para programas de recuperação ambiental do rio Tietê, para o qual é recomendado foco na repressão de lançamentos clandestinos de águas residuárias, e do rio Pinheiros, para o qual se sugere especial atenção à poluição derivada do aporte de pesticidas ao corpo de água.