Citizen Science: Collective Knowledge Empowers

In the last two years, BRAL, Cosmopolis and many citizens groups have learned to measure how polluted the air is that we breathe every day, and to problematize the question to defend all Bruxellois. In this handbook we present the experiences of researchers and practitioners with citizen science, in the AirCasting Brussels project and in other non-environmental examples. We also engage in a collective reflection on the methodology of these projects, both from a perspective of civic education and of political mobilisation.
Through the curiosity and the exchange between academics, citizens, and public officials, we become aware of a techno-scientific barrier to a democratic governance of the city. This barrier can be crossed if we believe in the intelligence of all actors, and in their potential to act collectively to better govern the city.

Publication year:2019

Accessibility:Open