How did Citizens4Water come about?

Koen: “When we launched the IHP-IX programme in 2022, it was the first time that citizen science was officially included as a theme in our hydrological programme. We wanted to gain insight into what was already happening worldwide in the field of freshwater management. There were local and European initiatives, but no global overview yet. At UNESCO, we saw the opportunity to change that and, together with Scivil, set up a broad inventory."

Karen: “For Scivil, this project is special because it has a truly global reach. We usually work within Flanders and in a European context, but through UNESCO we now have the opportunity to apply our knowledge and experience on a more international level. In conversations with project leaders and researchers, we've already noticed a strong need for an overview: what already exists, who is doing what, and how can we learn from each other? Citizens4Water aims to make exactly that possible."

What can visitors find on the citizens4water.org platform?

Karen: “The platform at citizens4water.org provides an overview of citizen science projects focused on freshwater. To be included, projects must address freshwater issues and meet the ten principles of citizen science defined by ECSA. The platform is designed as an open tool. Projects can register themselves, but we also actively add initiatives that meet the criteria. This autumn, we're launching a wide communication campaign: reaching out to hundreds of projects worldwide, inviting them to register, sending newsletters, and posting on social media to strenghten our network. Our goal is to build a vibrant community where people can connect and learn from one another through the platform."

Koen: “For the CitizenScience4Water conference in Delft in June 2025, we received around 250 abstracts from projects around the world, with around hundred participants attending the conference in person. That's remarkable, given that existing databases listed only a handful of citizen science projects focused on freshwater management. It clearly shows the need for a platform that brings these initiatives together. The database is also dynamic, we want it to keep growing and evolving."

So it's not just a database, but also about collaboration?

Koen: “Absolutely. We see the inventory as a community of practice. Researchers can explore which topics are gaining attention, policymakers can gain insight into the societal value of citizen science, and citizens can find inspiration to get involved themselves. In the long term, we also want the gather 'lessons learned' and 'good practices' from different projects on the platform and translate them into a publication on the state of citizen science for freshwater management. We hope that Citizens4Water will help bring citizen science truly into the mainstream of water management worldwide."

Karen: “The platform can also be valuable for local authorities. It makes visible what's happening in a given region and can spart new collaborations. Ultimately, we want everyone involved in citizen science and water to know about Citizens4Water and add their project to the platform."

What's to come in the next couple of months?

Koen: “The soft launch of the platform took place in June 2025 during the conference in Delft. The official launch will follow in spring 2026, accompanied by an international webinar. In the meantime, we're working on a publication about the role of citizen science in water management, as well as on integrating the Citizen Science Toolbox, an open-source tool developed by UNESCO to support countries in setting up citizen science initiatives. The Toolbox and Citizens4Water are highly complementary: on the one hand, we collect projects and data; on the other, we provide tools to help new projects get started."

Karen: “We're still at the beginning, but the enthusiasm is immense. If, by the end of the project, we've built an active international community where projects connect, strenghten and learn from each other, then Citizens4Water will have achieved its goal in my view."

Interview and editorial work by Sanne Strouven