Question number

Question text

Answers

Weights

Society 4

How much responsibility is offered to the participants? (with options depending on interests, availability and knowledge).

Not much

0

Something in the middle

8

A lot

16

I don't know

4

Society 8

Are the participants satisfied with the process of participation in the project?

Yes, and it has been measured

12

Yes, but it has not been measured

10

No

0

I don't know

4

Society 12

Are participants aware they are contributing to a research project?

Yes

14

No

0

I don't know

4

Question number

Question text

Answers

Weights

Society 1

In which phases of the project do participants play a role?

Background research

2

Identifying a research question

2

Grant proposal writing

2

Project initiation

1

Definition of project activities

1

Design and development of technology and equipment for the project

1

Collecting data

1

Analysing data

1

Monitoring in ways other than collecting data

1

Passive participation (for example, contributing computer resources or social media information which is harvested by the project)

0

Recruiting or engaging other participants

1

Training other participants

1

Sharing of outputs (including publications and arranging project events)

1

Assessment of project impacts

1

Acting on the results of the project

1

Closure or handover of the project

1

I don't know

0

Society 2

Are participants offered multiple project activities which they can take part in?

Yes

13

No; participants only have one activity they can take part in

0

I don’t know

4

Society 3

Are participants offered different levels of involvement in each project activity depending on their interest, availability and knowledge?

Yes

13

No

0

I don’t know

4

Recommendations

Lower score

Higher score

Participants can contribute to many more phases of a project than collecting or analysing data. Think about other phases of the project participants could be involved with in the future, such as sharing the outputs or assessing impact. Remember that different participants will have different interests, knowledge and availability, so try to offer them different levels of involvement and multiple project activities to take part in.

0

10

The degree of involvement of participants in a project is an important aspect of citizen science, and includes involving participants in multiple stages of the project, offering them multiple activities to take part in, and offering different levels of involvement depending on individual interests and availability. This project could consider whether there are more stages of the project that participants could be involved in for example by considering co-design or co-evaluation.

11

29

The degree of involvement of participants in a project is an important aspect of citizen science, and this project goes to great lengths to ensure that participants are involved in multiple stages of the project. It is positive that participants are offered multiple project activities to take part in, and that they are offered different levels of involvement depending on their individual interests and availability. Good work!

30

42

Question number

Question text

Answers

Weights

Governance 34

Does the project's data or findings lead to the enforcement of existing regulations or policies?

Yes

8

No

0

I don't know

4

Governance 35

Which policy frameworks does the project consider?

Organisational frameworks

1

Local frameworks

1

Regional frameworks

1

National frameworks

1

Global frameworks

1

The project does not consider any policy frameworks

0

I don't know

0

Governance 36

Does the project explicitly inform any governmental policy process?

Yes, at the local level

4

Yes, at the regional level

6

Yes, at the national level

8

Yes, at the international level

10

No

0

I don't know

1

Governance 37

Does the project have any explicit impact on external organisational policy?

Yes

8

No

0

I don't know

4

Recommendations

Lower score

Higher score

It looks like policy influence might not be a priority for the project. Of course, not every project can affect policy and some projects have a large impact on governance without ever interacting with official policy. If you're interested in the idea of citizen science as a form of socio-technical governance you can read more in this paper

If the project is interested in influencing policy, it could find inspiration from example projects in this report. It might not be a viable option if the project has already started, but citizen-science projects most often have success influencing policy when specific policies are considered in the design of the project and policy makers are engaged from the start of the project.

0

7

The project's score for this indicator suggests it has started to have some impact on policy already. Well done! A common barrier to policy influence for citizen science is concerns about the data. The project could therefore consider addressing concerns surrounding the quality of citizen-science data and aligning the project with the data standards of the policy makers.

8

19

The project might not look like it has the highest score for policy influence, but the answers given suggest it is actually among the more successful citizen-science projects in terms of policy. The most commonly considered impact on policy is citizen-science data as a source of information for decision makers. But citizen science can also directly impact policy as an object of research policy or as a policy instrument. Policy influence can also include affecting organisational policy not just governmental policy. It might be helpful to consider how the project is influencing policy currently and whether any of the other forms of policy influence could also be achieved in the project. The project might find further inspiration from example projects in this report.

20

31

The project is among the most successful on this platform at influencing policy. Congratulations! To get a score this high, the project must already have a lot of experience interacting with policy. But if the project wants to achieve the top scores for this indicator, it will have to consider and explicitly inform governmental policy at all scales (local, regional, national and global). Additionally, the project needs to be confident it has had an impact on external organisational policy and contributed to the enforcement of existing regulations or policies. It's a lot to ask, so don't be worried if the project is happy as it is; it has already achieved a lot!

32

37

The project is among the most successful on this platform at influencing policy. Congratulations! This suggests the project is quite exceptional in its interactions with policy makers. Maybe consider how you could share your experience with other projects so they can get inspiration and have similar success with policy influence.

38

42

Question number

Question text

Answers

Weights

Governance 38

Is the project team aware of what the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are?

Yes

2

No

0

I don't know

1

Governance 39

Is the project at all related to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)?

Yes

4

No

0

I don't know

2

Governance 40

Which of the following Sustainable Development Goals is the project related to?

(1) No Poverty

2

(2) Zero Hunger

2

(3) Good Health and Well-being

2

(4) Quality Education

2

(5) Gender Equality

2

(6) Clean Water and Sanitation

2

(7) Affordable and Clean Energy

2

(8) Decent Work and Economic Growth

2

(9) Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

2

(10) Reducing Inequality

2

(11) Sustainable Cities and Communities

2

(12) Responsible Consumption and Production

2

(13) Climate Action

2

(14) Life Below Water

2

(15) Life On Land

2

(16) Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions

2

(17) Partnerships for the Goals

2

Governance 41

Does the project include data which match a specific indicator of a Sustainable Development Goal?

Yes

12

No

0

I don't know

6

Governance 43

Does the project contribute data to the official reporting for a Sustainable Development Goal indicator?

Yes

18

No

0

I don't know

6

Recommendations

Lower score

Higher score

The Sustainable Development Goals are a collection of 17 interlinked global goals designed to be a "blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all". However, citizen science has a much broader remit, so it is ok that your project does not directly consider them. You can find more information on SDGs here, to see if there are any possible links between their aims and your project.

0

2

The project must be very closely aligned to the SDGs, either contributing data to the official reporting of the SDGs or with targets related to the majority of the goals. This makes this project one of the most impactful citizen-science projects with regards to the SDGs.

36

42

The project is related to an improbably high number of SDGs. So improbably high, in fact, that it has broken our scoring system for this indicator. Excellent work!

43

100

Question number

Question text

Answers

Weights

Economy 16

Does the project explicitly improve economic productivity through diversification, technological upgrading or innovation?

Yes; the project doubled the GDP of a country

420*

Yes; but it wasn't as successful as that!

42

No

0

I don't know

21

Recommendations

Lower score

Higher score

Well done! Can you give us a loan to improve MICS further?

420

420

It is great that the project has produced outputs that contribute to the economy through industry, commerce, innovation or technological development. If you haven't already, it might be worth considering any legal implications through a dedicated IPR plan

42

42

We know that economic productivity isn't a priority for most citizen-science projects. If you are interested in improving the economic productivity of the project, it might help to fully appraise any potential developments and advances made through the creation of a dedicated IPR plan. This will help reveal any economic potential that might have been overlooked, and support its exploitation.

0

21

Question number

Question text

Answers

Weights

Economy 15

Does the project have explicit plans to sustain its activities after the current funding received has ended?

Yes

11

No

0

I don't know.

5

Economy 12

Does the project have an explicit exploitation plan?

Yes

10

No

0

I don't know.

5

Economy 24

Does the project require recurring investments in technology (for example, software licences or app/platform maintenance) that affect its long-term sustainability?

Yes

0

No

11

I don't know.

5

Economy 25

What is the estimated, approximate cost per observation (in £, € or $) (observations as defined by the project)?

Observations are not a significant element of the project and quantifying their cost is not important.

10

Less than 2 (Just for comparison, this is the income per day of one seventh of the world population.)

10

2-8 (Just for comparison, this is the income per day of three sevenths of the world population.)

6

9-32 (Just for curiosity, this is the income per day of two sevenths of the world population.)

4

More than 32 (Just for curiosity, this is the income per day of one seventh of the world population.)

2

I don't know

5

Recommendations

Lower score

Higher score

If the project wants to improve its financial sustainability, it could consider creating an exploitation plan. To reduce recurring investments in technology and the cost per observation, the project could consider using open-source software and tools.

0

9

Well done! The project has a high score due to forward thinking in creating an exploitation plan, planning sustainability activities to prolong the project's influence and fully appraising any recurring costs and maintenance. 

33

42

You are on the right path! It is clear that the project has considered its financial sustainability into the future. However, there could be more to do. If one does not already exist, an exploitation plan could help sustain project outputs, whilst considering open-source software and tools could reduce costs.

10

32

Question number

Question text

Answers

Weights

Science 10

How many publications, indexed by Google Scholar, resulted from the project?

The project has not produced any publications

0

Less than 3

5

3-30

8

More than 30

9

I don't know

1

Science 12

How many citations have the publications produced by the project received, in total (according to Google scholar)?

Less than 3

3

3-30

5

31-300

8

More than 300

9

I don't know

1

Science 13

 What is the highest impact-factor (or impact-index) of the publications produced by the project? (Just Google: "[journal name]" impact factor

Less than 2

5

2-5

7

More than 5

9

I don't know

1

Science 15

Has the project supported students' dissertations or theses?

Yes

5

It's in progress.

4

No

0

I don't know.

2

Science 26

How are the project outcomes shared?

Scholarly outputs, e.g. peer-review publications, open data sets

4

Grey literature, e.g. reports, working papers, policy briefs

2

Popular media, e.g. social media, magazine or newspaper articles, TV or radio, newsletters, leaflets

1

Events, e.g. conferences, community talks, lectures, workshops, fairs, seminars or webinars

3

Recommendations

Lower score

Higher score

It is essential to share the outputs of a citizen-science project - through events, media and publications - otherwise learnings will not extend beyond the sphere of the project. Not every citizen-science project has an academic focus on publications. Nevertheless, by publishing the results of the project in peer-reviewed journals, the project could improve its scientific impact. Try to publish in high-impact-factor journals so the publications will be cited more. Perhaps the project could even support students' dissertations or theses in the future.

0

6

Congratulations - in a world of "publish or perish", this project has high scientific productivity. With many publications in high-impact-factor journals, the project's research has been well cited, indicating outcomes have been widely shared.

30

42

Question number

Question text

Answers

Weights

Science 1

Which disciplines are the focus of the project's research?

Citizen science (If you don't select this one, you are in trouble)

1

Agricultural and veterinary sciences (including forestry sciences, fisheries sciences, and land and farm management)

1

Art theory and criticism

1

Biological sciences (including ecology, zoology, genetics, and biodiversity)

1

Chemical sciences (including medicinal and biomolecular chemistry)

1

Earth sciences (including geology, atmospheric sciences, and oceanography)

1

Engineering (including food sciences, environmental engineering, and biomedical engineering)

1

Environmental sciences (including ecological applications, environmental management, and soil sciences)

1

Information and computing sciences (including artificial intelligence and image processing, distributed computing, and computer software)

1

Language, communication and culture (including linguistics, and literary studies)

1

Law and legal studies

1

Mathematical sciences and statistics

1

Medical and health sciences (including neurosciences, public health and health services, nutrition and dietetics, and human movement and sports science)

1

Philosophy and religious studies (including applied ethics, and history and philosophy of specific fields)

1

Physical sciences (including astronomical and space sciences, atomic, molecular, nuclear, particle and plasma physics, and quantum physics)

1

Psychology and cognitive sciences

1

Studies in human society (including human geography, history, archaeology, policy and administration, sociology, and education)

1

Technology (including communications technologies, and computer hardware)

1

I don't know

0

Science 2

Does the project explicitly promote interdisciplinary ways of working?

Yes

30

No

0

I don't know

15

Recommendations

Lower score

Higher score

It is essential to share the outputs of a citizen-science project - through events, media and publications - otherwise learnings will not extend beyond the sphere of the project. Not every citizen-science project has an academic focus on publications. Nevertheless, by publishing the results of the project in peer-reviewed journals, the project could improve its scientific impact. Try to publish in high-impact-factor journals so the publications will be cited more. Perhaps the project could even support students' dissertations or theses in the future.

0

6

Congratulations - in a world of "publish or perish", this project has high scientific productivity. With many publications in high-impact-factor journals, the project's research has been well cited, indicating outcomes have been widely shared.

30

42

Question number

Question text

Answers

Weights

Environment 1

Does the project take measures to decrease its material footprint?

Yes

11

No

0

I don't know.

2

Environment 2

Does the project take measures to reduce its polluting emissions?

Yes

11

No

0

I don't know.

2

Environment 3

Does the project have a procurement policy that is sustainable?

Yes

10

No

0

I don't know.

2

Environment 9

Do the project activities include pro-environmental actions e.g. litter picking?

Yes

10

No

0

I don't know.

2

Recommendations

Lower score

Higher score

The project could do more to decrease its material footprint (see about.mics.tools/material-footprint), take measures to reduce its polluting emissions (see about.mics.tools/polluting-emissions), or use a sustainable procurement policy (see UCL's as an example).

0

9

This indicator considers the project's material footprint, polluting emissions, procurement policy, and pro-environmental actions for participants (such as litter picking). The project's score for this indicator shows that the project has considered some of these elements but to get a higher score the project needs to take measures to improve its environmental footprint in all these areas.

10

34

The project has taken actions to improve its environmental footprint by decreasing its material footprint, reducing its polluting emissions, using a sustainable procurement policy, and including pro-environmental actions for participants (such as litter picking). Congratulations!

35

42

Question number

Question text

Answers

Weights

Environment 4

Does the project explicitly disseminate information on sustainable development or lifestyles?

Yes

7

No

0

I don't know.

2

Environment 5

Does the project educate participants on environmental challenges?

Yes

7

No

0

I don't know.

2

Environment 6

Does the project explicitly contribute to a higher awareness of, or positive attitude towards, the natural environment, on this planet or others?

Yes, and it has been measured

21

Yes, but it has not been measured

14

No

0

I don't know.

7

Environment 7

Does the project lead to an increased stewardship of the natural environment among participants?

Yes, and it has been measured

7

Yes, but it has not been measured

5

No

0

I don't know.

2

Recommendations

Lower score

Higher score

Being environmentally aware means understanding how our behaviour impacts the environment and committing to making changes to our activities. The project could do more to educate participants on environmental challenges and contribute to participants' awareness of the natural environment, by explicitly disseminating information on sustainable lifestyles.

0

6

The project clearly promotes environmental awareness, by educating participants on environmental challenges, or by contributing to participants' awareness of the natural environment through dissemination activities. Want to be able to measure participants' higher awareness, or increased stewardship? You might want to consider this paper.

7

37

Congratulations! This project goes to great lengths not only to promote environmental awareness and educate participants on environmental challenges, but also to measure improvements in participants' environmental attitudes, behaviour and knowledge.

38

42