26 May 2016
By Jennifer Shirk
In support of our core values: A conference decision

In support of our core values: A conference decision

#CitSci2017, AAPS News, Conference
Integrity And Survival, Flickr image by Jeremy Brooks (CC BY-NC 2.0) Monthly Letter from Greg Newman (the CSA Board Chair) to all CSA members...May 25, 2016 • Fort Collins, Colorado “Values have been like the middle children of the nonprofit sector, wedged between the older brother Vision and the 'me-me-me’ baby of the family, Mission, whom everyone has to pay attention to all the time. Or maybe Mission is the bossy older brother, and Vision is the baby. Or maybe Mission is like the mom who makes us eat our vegetables, and Vision is like that cool but aloof cousin.…
Read More
20 May 2016
By Jennifer Shirk
Citizen Science: Theory and Practice journal launched!

Citizen Science: Theory and Practice journal launched!

Journal
Volume 1, Issue 1 of Citizen Science: Theory and Practice has been published! This open access, interdisciplinary, and international journal is sponsored by the Citizen Science Association in cooperation with the European Citizen Science Association and the Australian Citizen Science Association. It has been launched by a team of editors, associate editors, editorial board members, and reviewers - not to mention authors. The publication represents a milestone for the field - congratulations to all who have contributed to this process. The link above takes you to the issue overview page on the Ubiquity Press journal site. Accessing issues from the…
Read More
06 May 2016
By Jennifer Shirk
Seeking Community Input Regarding a Conference Conundrum

Seeking Community Input Regarding a Conference Conundrum

#CitSci2017, AAPS News, Conference
Planning for our second conference of the Citizen Science Association, scheduled for February, 2017 in Raleigh, NC, has been under way for more than one year. In fact, the planning started as soon as the last conference ended. Getting 1,000 people together in one location for a valuable and meaningful experience is a huge undertaking. We’ve hired a conference planner, signed contracts, and built a relationship with local partners including the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, North Carolina State University, and the Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau —and volunteers on our Program and Local Host Committees have already…
Read More
06 May 2016
By Jennifer Shirk

Details on difficult conference choices and options

#CitSci2017, Conference
Please read a parallel post that introduces the issue of North Carolina House Bill 2 (HB2) and its implications for CSA's current plans to host a February 2017 conference in Raleigh, North Carolina. As that post says, "doing nothing is not an option." Here we offer a brief summary of reasoning behind some of the options we face. MOVE THE CONFERENCE: On one hand, numerous organizations are moving their business out of North Carolina, both to make a stand against the law and to provide a safer venue for their constituents. One option is to follow in these footsteps. Additionally,…
Read More
06 May 2016
By Jennifer Shirk
CSA Board Candidates 2016

CSA Board Candidates 2016

AAPS News
It has been gratifying and overwhelming to see the wealth of nominations submitted for new CSA Board members, and the willingness of so many individuals to share their expertise towards the growth of this organization. Many thanks to our members for these nominations, and to all of the nominees for their dedication to the advancement of this field. The CSA Governance and Nominations Committee has had the difficult and thankless task of narrowing this amazing selection of over 60 nominees to a ballot of just thirteen individuals. In making this selection, the committee was guided by priorities in Board development…
Read More
28 Apr 2016
By Jennifer Shirk
Exploring Citizen Science for Conservation in Southern California

Exploring Citizen Science for Conservation in Southern California

AAPS News
Among the various events in celebration of Citizen Science Day have been a number of Symposia. The one described here pre-dated #CitSciDay by a few months, but this post gives a sense of how a Symposium can create connections to invigorate citizen science research, partnerships, and participation. Many thanks to the Aquarium of the Pacific for sharing their reflections on this event. Have thoughts on a Citizen Science Day activity in your area? Get in touch!  Post by Cassandra Davis, education volunteer coordinator, Aquarium of the Pacific What role does citizen science play in the urban landscape of Southern California? Over…
Read More
19 Apr 2016
By Jennifer Shirk
Citizen Science: Theory & Practice – previewing the first issue

Citizen Science: Theory & Practice – previewing the first issue

Journal
By Rick Bonney, Co-Editor of Citizen Science: Theory & Practice -- Launching a new journal is daunting. The myriad tasks include defining the journal's niche, establishing an open-access infrastructure, and developing a sustainability plan. Tasks also include finding people willing to do the work required to make a journal happen: a publisher, editors, reviewers, and most of all, potential authors. Now, one year after announcing that the Citizen Science Association planned to publish a new journal focused on the emerging field of citizen science, all those pieces have come together. The first issue—Volume 1, Number 1—of Citizen Science: Theory and…
Read More
14 Apr 2016
By Jennifer Shirk
The Crowd & The Cloud #CitSciDay video

The Crowd & The Cloud #CitSciDay video

Citizen Science Month
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pc4e9haLeaM Have you heard of The Crowd & The Cloud, the upcoming 4-part television series about citizen science and big data?The team behind this major media initiative has just produced an amazing video in support of Citizen Science Day. Almost guaranteed that this will be the best 65 seconds of your day!Feel free to link to and share this video in promotion of your own #CitSciDay events (or the celebration as a whole).Many thanks to Geoff Haines-Stiles and The Crowd & The Cloud!
Read More
08 Apr 2016
By Jennifer Shirk
Planning a conference in North Carolina

Planning a conference in North Carolina

#CitSci2017, Conference
Citizen Science 2017 will be hosted in Raleigh, North Carolina, "City of Oaks." CSA is pleased to be working with two strong local host institutions, the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences and the Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau. Current news out of North Carolina, however, complicates prospects for holding a conference in that state. The recently-signed Public Facilities Privacy and Security Act - House Bill 2 (HB2) bans local municipalities from establishing anti-discrimination protections for LGBT individuals. A growing number of states, cities, and organizations are protesting this law, with some protests including travel bans to North Carolina.…
Read More
24 Feb 2016
By Jennifer Shirk
Introducing the Ethics Working Group

Introducing the Ethics Working Group

AAPS News, Ethics
The purpose of the CSA Working Group on Ethics is to explore and address a range of ethical concerns for which people (members of the public and practitioners) may be unprotected when public participants are involved as contributors and collaborators in various configurations of citizen science. The nuanced and complex relationships among practitioners, individual participants, and communities can lead to ethical issues not yet fully addressed by current best practices for research with human subjects. While there are ethical codes and reasoning in fields such as ethnobotany, informatics, community health, and geography, these are great starting points (not end points)…
Read More