Layers of Values: Exploring Impact in Culture, Art and Education

On 25 September 2025, in the framework of MONDIACULT 2025, Layers of values: Exploring Impact in Culture, Art and Education will take place as an international meeting dedicated to advancing inclusive impact assessment in the arts, culture, and education sectors. In a time when social inclusion, civic participation, emotional well-being, and ecological transition are urgent priorities, the convergence of arts, culture, and education has proven to be a driver for building more diverse, resilient, and imaginative societies. Yet, despite the richness of this field, many initiatives still operate in isolation, and valuable learning remains fragmented. The event will gather projects, practitioners, and researchers working at the intersection of culture, education, and research to address complex evaluation challenges: capturing intangible outcomes, defining success with vulnerable groups or informal settings, and measuring layered impacts that go beyond simple metrics. Drawing on the New European Bauhaus values — beauty, sustainability, and inclusion — it will offer a space for peer exchange, co-creation, and methodological innovation. Organised by the EU-funded PULSE-ART project, in cooperation with European Citizen Science (ECS), the meeting aims to embed diversity not as an optional goal, but as a foundational condition for equitable impact. It will also strengthen connections between cultural, educational, and citizen science initiatives, paving the way for shared tools and collaborative frameworks. If your work touches on culture, education, or citizen science — and you are committed to developing rigorous, inclusive evaluation practices — this event offers a unique opportunity to exchange knowledge and shape the future of impact assessment

Living Danube Challenge - Ignite NEB Event 2025

Changemakers ignite nature stewardship in the Danube River Basin. Are you a changemaker eager to apply citizen-led, nature-based solutions to local challenges in the Danube River Basin? And do you want to pitch for a 10k-valued development trajectory to transform your idea into a real business or initiative? Join us for DANUBE4All x EIT Community NEB’s Living Danube Challenge! The Living Danube Challenge is a free innovation launchpad for emerging changemakers ready to restore and protect the Danube River Basin through nature-based solutions and citizen-led action. Co-produced by EIT’s Ignite NEB Programme, DANUBE4all, PULSAQUA, and ZSI, the program includes: ️- A dynamic series of three online trainings (17:00-18:00 CET on Wednesdays, September 17, 24, and October 1) on nature-based solutions, citizen science, and social business strategy - A two-day in-person ideation sprint at BOKU University’s River Lab in Vienna (October 10-11 2025) with workshops & arts programming - A pitch process towards an 8-month, 10k-valued development trajectory to bring 3 winning ideas to life. Registrations are now open until September 15th.

Cluster event: Advancing Public Engagement and Citizen Science in the ERA

The event will celebrate citizen science and showcase the value of public engagement, highlighting best practices, guiding future policy, sharing knowledge and building collaboration. The 2025 EU Citizen Science Prize winners will also be announced! REA is proud to co-host a cluster event which will gather researchers and policymakers to discuss the impact of public engagement on evidence-based policymaking. In addition, - The event will provide a platform to showcase successful and innovative citizen engagement strategies, while reinforcing the value of “Bringing science closer to citizens” within the European Research Area. - EU-funded research projects will present their citizen science and public engagement experience and share best practices. - The winners of the EU Prize for Citizen Science will be announced. The Prize rewards outstanding citizen science initiatives that address social, political, cultural, and environmental challenges through the involvement of citizens. The full event will take place in Brussels. Those connected online will be able to follow the plenary session (in the morning) and the winners' announcement (in the afternoon). The event is co-organised by REA and EU-funded projects IMPETUS and ECS.

ACCTING final conference. Empowering change: Building a fair and inclusive Green Deal

The European Green Deal aspires to make Europe the first climate-neutral continent by 2050, with a commitment to ‘leave no one behind.’ However, current environmental policies often overlook the diverse social impacts on marginalised groups. Low-income populations, racial minorities, women, or rural communities frequently bear the brunt of environmental challenges, while also facing significant barriers to accessing green solutions. These groups are often excluded from decision-making processes despite possessing the necessary local knowledge and demonstrating resilience and innovation in the face of environmental challenges. ACCTING has critically examined the social and economic impacts of the European Green Deal on marginalised groups. By employing a gender+ intersectional approach, the project has demonstrated how Green Deal policies affect individual and collective behaviours, potentially exacerbating existing inequalities. Based on these extensive research insights, ACCTING has developed innovative, evidence-based solutions, including pilot actions and thematic recommendations that empower vulnerable communities and guide inclusive policymaking. The ACCTING Final Conference, “Empowering Change: Building a Fair and Inclusive Green Deal,” invites a diverse audience of civil society representatives, NGOs, policymakers, researchers, and Green Deal stakeholders to engage with actionable strategies for achieving a socially just and inclusive Green Deal.

ECS Collaboration Session - Help build the European Research Infrastructure for Excellence in Citizen Science

Do you want to help build the European Research Infrastructure for Excellence in Citizen Science? The first step is happening in the upcoming ECS Collaboration Session! The RIECS-Concept project will conceptualise the European Research Infrastructure for Excellence in Citizen Science. This RI will integrate citizens’ resources, such as mobile phones and computers, with existing scientific platforms and data collections; and it will offer transversal services, improving accessibility across research communities. The RIECS-Concept project will produce two key outcomes: a conceptual design including a feasibility study, and a five-year implementation plan for the new research infrastructure. These outcomes will provide detailed insights into the diversity and maturity of the concept considering technical, operational, societal, and environmental challenges associated with establishing the permanent and shared infrastructure. This is the very first activity of many to gather inputs and community-based evidence, in collaboration with the ECS project. You will have a chance to not only learn about this important project but also to bring your own input, needs and solutions, independently of your background or scientific domains. Who can join? This Collaboration Session is aimed at the entire Citizen Science community: practitioners, students, researchers, educators, representatives of CS projects and networks, etc.

Assessment of the ecological quality of urban streams in the context of One Health

Join our upcoming webinar which is focused on assessing the ecological quality of urban streams within the One Health framework. The event will delve into the research sites of OneAquaHealth, with representatives from Coimbra, Toulouse, Benevento, Toulouse, and Oslo showcasing their unique attributes, sampling endeavors, and local partnerships. The project will host discussions on interactions with non-project sites across the EU, USA, and Asia, highlighting potential challenges and fostering collaborations.

ECS Policy Event “Citizen Science beyond 2030: Societal Engagement for a Sustainable Future”

Join the ECS project at the online policy event "Citizen Science beyond 2030: Societal Engagement for a Sustainable Future” taking place on Wednesday, 22 January 2025, 10:00-12:00 CET. By contributing to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - be it through providing monitoring data, raising awareness or promoting behavioural change - the citizen science community has demonstrated that it can play an important role in supporting sustainability transitions. During this online event, a panel of experts and decision-makers from science and policy will take stock of the progress made so far, identify challenges and barriers, and discuss how citizen science can best advance sustainable development in Europe both within and beyond the SDG framework.

IMPETUS Open Call For Citizen Science Projects

Empowering Citizen Science: IMPETUS Launches its Final Open Call for Innovative Projects The IMPETUS project seeks innovative and impactful projects that harness the power of citizen science to address critical societal challenges. Two Exciting Opportunities in this Open Call: -European Union Prize for Citizen Science -IMPETUS Citizen Science Accelerator Programme This open call runs from January 7th to March 10th, 2025 (23:59 CET) for the European Union Prize for Citizen Science and until March 13th, 2025 (23:59 CET) for the IMPETUS Accelerator Programme. European Union Prize for Citizen Science: IMPETUS wants to put outstanding citizen science front and centre with the European Union Prize for Citizen Science. IMPETUS celebrates the success and diversity of Citizen Science across Europe and ensures that this fantastic work gets the recognition it deserves. The European Union Prize for Citizen Science consists of three main awards. A Grand Prize of 60,000€ and two additional prizes for projects that best demonstrate how citizen science can be used to promote Diversity and Collaboration, and Digital Communities, each will be awarded 20,000€. But we also know that there is so much excellent citizen science happening in Europe right now, so IMPETUS will give honorary mentions to 27 additional projects, who will have their work showcased alongside the winners of the three prizes at the 2025 Ars Electronica Science and Technology Festival, on September 3-7, 2025 Linz, Austria. IMPETUS Accelerator: do you have an idea for a citizen science project or are coordinating an initiative that focuses on: Citizen Science to Promote Circular Communities. -Resource Management. -Infrastructure and Housing. -Disaster Resilience. Citizen Science for a Fair and Just Society. -Democracy and Peace -Inclusion -Public Trust and Empowerment. If your project could benefit from funding, mentorship, and training to take your work to the next level. Then, the IMPETUS Accelerator programme could be for you. To learn more about the Open Call, head over to the IMPETUS website or join us at one of our explainer webinars on the 22nd of January (https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/impetus-open-call-2025-webinar-1-tickets-1145437537509?aff=oddtdtcreator) or the 19th of February at 10:00 CET to have all your questions answered. The IMPETUS project aims to promote citizen science at all levels and to help these projects achieve their impressive goals. Head over to the IMPETUS website to learn more- https://impetus4cs.eu/opencall/.

Bridging the Gap: Inclusive Criteria in Research Funding

This webinar aims to explore the current landscape of inclusivity in research funding and identify strategies for addressing the needs of vulnerable groups to increase the likelihood of securing funding. During the webinar, our expert speakers, Dr. Sotiris Petropoulos (from the University of the Peloponnese) and Prof. Andrei Holman (from the Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Lași) will examine various aspects of inclusive criteria in research funding, discuss challenges, and share practical solutions to promote fairness and diversity in grant applications.

Citizen science and public libraries: networking session

ECS Academy, SciStarter and Public Libraries 2030 are organising an online networking session for public library staff to share their experiences, challenges, and exchange with members of the citizen science community. Join us to kickstart the building of a stronger, more connected European citizen science library community. 🗓️ September 19 ⏰15:00 (CEST) 🔗Register: https://forms.gle/1G5hBfyt7StC11vH9

Enhancing Air Quality Sensor Networks for citizen science. Clustering approaches by COMPAIR, FunSNM and SOCIOBEE

Citizen science (CS) involves public participation and collaboration in scientific research to increase scientific knowledge. Despite its potential, producing CS collected data that is perceived as trustworthy enough to be published in peer-reviewed scientific journals and influence policy-making remains a challenge, in part due to issues involving data accuracy and standardisation. For example, the use of mobile field sensors in CS provides us with the opportunity to monitor air quality at a higher spatial resolution, but requires more thorough data analysis. Join us for a webinar featuring three short talks on the lessons learnt and recommendations from leading EU Horizon projects, COMPAIR, FUNsnm and SOCIO-BEE, to improve the reliability of air quality CS sensor networks. The session will conclude with a discussion among the speakers and the audience. This webinar is open to anyone interested in air quality sensor networks and CS. Talks & Speakers: - Local source detection using mobile “low-cost” particle matter (PM) sensors. Bram Verbeek (COMPAIR & VMM) - Metrology, the science of measurement, how does it relate to citizen science? Gertjan Kok (FunSNM & VSL) - Addressing the challenges of citizen science air quality measurements in the SOCIO-BEE project. Sergi Udina (SOCIO-BEE & Bettair Cities) Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpduygrTIoHtb8lISfAYqI48jsvvDCSDqF The event is part of the SOCIO-BEE project. More info here: https://socio-bee.eu/

ECS project and ECSA at the Living Knowledge conference

The Living Knowledge Network – the formal international network of Science Shops and Community Based Research. The 10th conference of the network “Building and sustaining next generation engagement” will take place from 26-28 June, 2024 at the Universitat de Girona (Girona, Spain). ECSA and the ECS project will engage the public with a Playdecide (playdecide.eu) discussion game to explore the challenges of citizen science as an more democratic approach to research. Discussion games are participative formats designed to promote discussion between visitors, in a process of comparison of ideas and, at the same time, of learning facts, data and concepts. This Playdecide game is the first dedicated to citizen science, and it will be tested at the Living Knowledge conference.