Generating knowledge with the help of citizen scientists

Abstract

The exploration of the biodiversity and ecology of freshwater bacteria is the topic of two Citizen Science research projects of the program “Sparkling Science”, funded by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research. A research group of the University of Innsbruck, Research Department for Limnology, Mondsee, works together with school classes and other groups of citizens. The aim is to involve citizen scientists in the whole process of creating scientific knowledge. Citizen scientists are especially involved in the discovery and description of new bacterial genera and species. Their efforts are visible in the resulting scientific publications. These projects are supposed to aim at attracting attention to the invisible world of microorganisms, their crucial role for our ecosystems as well as their huge and largely unexplored biodiversity.