The role of citizen science in addressing grand challenges in food and agriculture research

Author:

Ryan S. F.12ORCID,Adamson N. L.3,Aktipis A.4ORCID,Andersen L. K.1,Austin R.5ORCID,Barnes L.6,Beasley M. R.7ORCID,Bedell K. D.8ORCID,Briggs S.9,Chapman B.10,Cooper C. B.11ORCID,Corn J. O.12,Creamer N. G.13,Delborne J. A.11ORCID,Domenico P.14,Driscoll E.13,Goodwin J.15ORCID,Hjarding A.1617,Hulbert J. M.18ORCID,Isard S.1920,Just M. G.21ORCID,Kar Gupta K.22,López-Uribe M. M.23ORCID,O'Sullivan J.24,Landis E. A.25,Madden A. A.1ORCID,McKenney E. A.126ORCID,Nichols L. M.1ORCID,Reading B. J.1,Russell S.27,Sengupta N.28,Shapiro L. R.1ORCID,Shell L. K.26,Sheard J. K.29ORCID,Shoemaker D. D.2ORCID,Sorger D. M.126ORCID,Starling C.30,Thakur S.31ORCID,Vatsavai R. R.32,Weinstein M.33,Winfrey P.34,Dunn R. R.1ORCID

Affiliation:

1. Department of Applied Ecology, NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC, USA

2. Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA

3. Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation/USDA NRCS ENTSC, Greensboro, NC, USA

4. Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA

5. Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC, USA

6. Lincoln Heights Environmental Connections Magnet Elementary School, Fuquay-Varina, NC, USA

7. Knightdale High School of Collaborative Design, Knightdale, NC, USA

8. School of Education, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA

9. NC Plant Sciences Initiative, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC, USA

10. Department of Agricultural and Human Sciences, NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC, USA

11. Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources, NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC, USA

12. William and Ida Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC, USA

13. Department of Horticultural Science, NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC, USA

14. Curriculum Enhancement Programs at Wake County Public School System, Cary, NC, USA

15. Department of Communication, NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC, USA

16. North Carolina Wildlife Federation, Charlotte, NC, USA

17. The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC, USA

18. Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa

19. Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA, USA

20. Department of Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA, USA

21. Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC, USA

22. Biodiversity Lab, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, NC, USA

23. Department of Entomology, Center for Pollinator Research, Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA, USA

24. Center for Environmental Farming Systems, North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro, NC, USA

25. Department of Biology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA

26. Research and Collections, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, NC, USA

27. Millbrook Environmental Connections Magnet Elementary School, Raleigh, NC, USA

28. Consultant - Biodiversity Conservation & Sustainable Development, Auroville, Tamil Nadu, India

29. Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen University, Copenhagen, Denmark

30. Heritage High School, Wake Forest, NC, USA

31. College of Veterinary Medicine, NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC, USA

32. Department of Computer Science, NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC, USA

33. Evaluation and Accountability Coordinator Extension Administration, NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC, USA

34. Arizona State University Biodesign Institute, Tempe, AZ, USA

Abstract

The power of citizen science to contribute to both science and society is gaining increased recognition, particularly in physics and biology. Although there is a long history of public engagement in agriculture and food science, the term ‘citizen science’ has rarely been applied to these efforts. Similarly, in the emerging field of citizen science, most new citizen science projects do not focus on food or agriculture. Here, we convened thought leaders from a broad range of fields related to citizen science, agriculture, and food science to highlight key opportunities for bridging these overlapping yet disconnected communities/fields and identify ways to leverage their respective strengths. Specifically, we show that (i) citizen science projects are addressing many grand challenges facing our food systems, as outlined by the United States National Institute of Food and Agriculture, as well as broader Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations Development Programme, (ii) there exist emerging opportunities and unique challenges for citizen science in agriculture/food research, and (iii) the greatest opportunities for the development of citizen science projects in agriculture and food science will be gained by using the existing infrastructure and tools of Extension programmes and through the engagement of urban communities. Further, we argue there is no better time to foster greater collaboration between these fields given the trend of shrinking Extension programmes, the increasing need to apply innovative solutions to address rising demands on agricultural systems, and the exponential growth of the field of citizen science.

Funder

Division of Research on Learning in Formal and Informal Settings

National Institute of Food and Agriculture

Publisher

The Royal Society

Subject

General Agricultural and Biological Sciences,General Environmental Science,General Immunology and Microbiology,General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology,General Medicine

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