In 2020, my team at AKSON Russian Association of Science Communication launched the national citizen science platform, People of Science. Here’s what we achieved:
- Public Campaign: Pitched articles about citizen science to nearly all major Russian media outlets and partnered with digital science magazines for regular coverage of CS.
- Workshops: Conducted a series of workshops in major Russian universities to train researchers in launching citizen science projects.
- Guidelines and Online Support: Developed "How to Start" guidelines and provided online support for researchers in project design and citizen engagement.
- White Paper: Produced a white paper on citizen science in Russia and presented it to various policy makers.
- Government Support: As a result of our efforts, citizen science received government support for the first time in Russia in 2022, being included in the "Decade of Science and Technology" initiative.
- Platform Growth: Within less than two years, People of Science hosted over 150 citizen science projects and built a community of thousands of citizen scientists.
- Publication: Co-authored the "Handbook of Citizen Science," currently in print.
Check out
my TEDx talk where I share what citizen science means to me and how I've been involved in advancing it.