Citizen science is an important way in which diverse groups of people can participate and collaborate in research and innovation. This could include crowdsourcing data, working with volunteers to analyse existing datasets, collaborating with communities in designing research programmes, and approaches to innovation that involve diverse groups of people in the innovation process.
Citizen science can potentially add value to any project. Yet embedding citizen science methods into the routine way that science is done requires a capacity building approach, where researchers and innovators who are unfamiliar with citizen science are supported to assess their capacity and need for citizen science.
Through this call, up to 20 successful applicants will be awarded up to £20,000 to explore opportunities for building citizen science methodologies into their research.
Successful applicants will be expected to undertake activities such as capacity building work, small proof of concept pilots, and/or collaborative workshops to explore project ideas, data sources or volunteer opportunities.
It is the intention of this funding call to support researchers and innovators to explore approaches to citizen science that could form the basis of future projects which may be supported through other funding sources, including through a proposed follow-up phase of UKRI funding between 2020-2023.
The call is available to all active UKRI grant holders in any discipline across research and innovation and is open from 01 October 2019. The deadline for submitting a full bid is 16:00 on Tuesday 12 November 2019.
More information about the call and details of how to apply can be found here: Citizen Science Exploration Grants
This funding call is part of UKRI’s new approach to public engagement. See UKRI’s new vision for public engagement for more information.