A lot of research has been done on the paternal heritage, in various disciplines such as biology, history and demography. This research is often done via the successful collaboration with citizens that are curious about their genealogical heritage. On the other hand, research on the maternal heritage is scarce. This is because the general public has a greater interest in paternal heritage, and because analysing maternal DNA is harder and more expensive. However, with the necessary funding and computational power, it is now possible to research maternal heritage and the mitochondrial DNA that is only passed on from mother to child. The first step in this research, is building a large database with data about maternal heritage and DNA analysis.

Citizen scientists are involved in this research by exploring their family tree and maternal lineage. When there are familial connections in direct female lineage, saliva is collected from these volunteers, so that researchers can examine the link between the lineage and the mitochondrial DNA.

In the first stage of the project, trained volunteers help citizens collect the documents by which they can explore their maternal lineage and enter the data in an online platform. These volunteers are at the disposal of citizens via events and online.

In a second stage of the project, 200 pairs of citizens with a maternal connection in the period 1600-1900 will be selected. The researchers will then collect DNA samples from these pairs and analyse their DNA sequences.

By the end of the project, these citizens will receive a personal maternal lineage, a report on their DNA analysis, and an overview of overall results.