Bridging the Science-Society-Policy Interface: A Comparative Case Study on Citizen Science for Policies

Bridging the Science-Society-Policy Interface: A Comparative Case Study on Citizen Science for Policies

Cheng, Hsin (TU Delft Technology, Policy and Management)

Zuiderwijk, AMG (mentor)
Enserink, B. (mentor)
Jeng, W. (mentor)

Delft University of Technology

Engineering and Policy Analysis

2020-08-18

The rise of citizen science has drawn policymakers' attention. With a shift towards participatory and transparent governance, linking policies to citizen science could contribute to create the evidence base and social acceptance for policy-making, and further counter-play populism and post-truth politics. This study aims to gain empirical understanding on how citizen-generated data from citizen science initiatives could contribute to political decision-making and problem-solving in different contexts; more specifically, we aim to explore how citizen science initiatives were formed, what opportunities and challenges are for citizen-generated data, how such initiatives lead to a citizen-driven solution in the problem-solving process, and how the contextual settings and actors’ perceptions and actions interplay and potentially play a part along the process. In this study, a conceptual model was set up through a systematic literature review. Two case studies — the case of Hollandse Luchten in the Netherlands and the case of AirBox in Taiwan — were carried out and analyzed as guided by the conceptual model. Based on the findings and insights gained from the case studies, a revised, empirically-enhanced model of citizen science for policies was developed, whereby policy recommendations were formulated.

Citizen Science
Citizen Sensing
Citizen-generated data
Air quality sensing
Case studies

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:61d261d7-4850-4e7b-972a-2582362dd568

Student theses

master thesis

© 2020 Hsin Cheng