Periodic Reporting for period 1 - ISEED (Inclusive Science and European Democracies)
Berichtszeitraum: 2021-02-01 bis 2022-01-31
This project uses existing experience in the field of citizen science as a tool to explore under what conditions participative and deliberative practices can be successfully implemented in democratic governance. We broadly define ‘citizen science’ as a way of producing scientific knowledge (and/or setting research agendas) that relies on the participation of citizens who are not professional scientists – individual citizens, NGOs, groups of patients, etc. – in the range of activities that enter scientific research. We therefore intend to explore the potential of scaling up from a specific area where participation is of essence to the wider picture of political participation and its consequences for democratic institutions and decision making.
By analysing a variety of types and experiments of public engagement (physical and digital) in science-related questions and activities, as well as by carrying out surveys aimed at the general public, the project will reformulate the concept of ‘public sphere’ to include active and productive citizen participation in public argument and deliberation, and to enhance both the quality and the legitimacy of political decision-making in representative democracy.
More specifically the project aims at:
- Exploring through both a conceptual perspective and an experimental methodology the role of knowledge communication and citizen engagement, and of their inter-relation in building good participatory practices
- Investigating the pros and cons of active participation in public debate in relation to the existing institutions of representative governance and in view of conceptualising an inclusive and empowered idea of ‘public sphere’.
- Developing proposals for the science and technology components of the knowledge base to serve the interests of fair and inclusive democratic societies, which includes securing the involvement and protection of vulnerable and/or marginalised social actors.
By analysing a variety of types and experiments of public engagement (physical and digital) in science-related questions and activities, as well as by carrying out surveys aimed at the general public, the project will reformulate the concept of ‘public sphere’ to include active and productive citizen participation in public argument and deliberation, and to enhance both the quality and the legitimacy of political decision-making in representative democracy.
More specifically the project aims at:
- Exploring through both a conceptual perspective and an experimental methodology the role of knowledge communication and citizen engagement, and of their inter-relation in building good participatory practices
- Investigating the pros and cons of active participation in public debate in relation to the existing institutions of representative governance and in view of conceptualising an inclusive and empowered idea of ‘public sphere’.
- Developing proposals for the science and technology components of the knowledge base to serve the interests of fair and inclusive democratic societies, which includes securing the involvement and protection of vulnerable and/or marginalised social actors.
At the kick off meeting a plan was discussed to implement the first steps of the project, with an eye to the ultimate impact of ISEED vision on democratic society, in particular European societies. Such steps – some of which were to materialise in a number of milestones and deliverables achieved by the end of the first year of the project cycle – included
On the conceptual side:
1 Reviewing the field of citizen science literature, with a particular focus on the views of participation and deliberation used within citizen science programmes (WP2) – Milestone 5, Aug. 2021
2 Analysing 3 concepts that we take to be central to grasping the scope these programmes, and more specifically to grasping the nature and role of active participation (WP2) – achieved for one concept (one discussion paper on public understanding of science) as Deliverable 2.1 Jan. 2022
3 Building a selected bibliography of concepts of ‘public sphere’ to identify what traits and conditions are conducive of an idea of public sphere that best endorses the type of participation supported by our project (WP2) – Milestone 7, Jan. 2022.
4 Mapping a field of best public engagement practices in the domain of citizen participation in science-informed public discussion in view of building a typology enhancing relevant traits of those practices, and assessing the impact of participatory and deliberative processes. (WP3) – Milestone 9, Jun. 2021; Typology under construction
On the empirical side:
1 Surveying and empirically analysing data to predict active civic engagement in a deliberative public sphere (WP2) – under construction
2 Interviewing scientists on present and future scenarios of tools and practices to involve citizens in informed discussion about science (WP3) – Deliverable 3.1 Jan. 2022.
3 Setting up data collection frameworks and procedures (surveys of cross-national social networks and of open-data practices, in-depth interview questions, cooperating municipalities, etc.) in a chosen range of 5 science-related citizen participation practices (grassroots knowledge, environmental science, citizen observatories and health data cooperatives, science clubs/youth participation and engagement) in view of identifying potentially scalable methodological tools to improve lay participation and deliberation. (WP4) – work ongoing.
4 Building and preliminarily testing of the ‘argument extractor’ tool in view of studying the dynamics of argumentation in digital communication
We also planned further actions:
1 Identifying stakeholder panels (WP6) for each WP to bring project ideas to the wider society and promote democratic participation and deliberation in public arenas. (WP6) – Milestone 19, Nov. 2021.
2 Building a good communication and dissemination plan (including a project website and video) (WP7) – Deliverable 7.1 March 2021
3 Building a data management plan – Deliverable 2.1 May 2021.
4 Building an ethics and data protection strategy – set of Deliverables fully achieved by Jun. 2021.
5 Appointing an Advisory Board in Aug. 2021.
The project consortium met twice after the kick off meeting (Jul. 2021; Feb. 2022), to monitor WP research progress, discuss emerging issues and be informed of each other’s work. Individual WPs run several internal meetings to coordinate tasks and outputs among the partnership.
At the end of this reporting period we have fulfilled all obligations as part of the Grant Agreement and progressed on a number of outputs due over the next 12 months.
On the conceptual side:
1 Reviewing the field of citizen science literature, with a particular focus on the views of participation and deliberation used within citizen science programmes (WP2) – Milestone 5, Aug. 2021
2 Analysing 3 concepts that we take to be central to grasping the scope these programmes, and more specifically to grasping the nature and role of active participation (WP2) – achieved for one concept (one discussion paper on public understanding of science) as Deliverable 2.1 Jan. 2022
3 Building a selected bibliography of concepts of ‘public sphere’ to identify what traits and conditions are conducive of an idea of public sphere that best endorses the type of participation supported by our project (WP2) – Milestone 7, Jan. 2022.
4 Mapping a field of best public engagement practices in the domain of citizen participation in science-informed public discussion in view of building a typology enhancing relevant traits of those practices, and assessing the impact of participatory and deliberative processes. (WP3) – Milestone 9, Jun. 2021; Typology under construction
On the empirical side:
1 Surveying and empirically analysing data to predict active civic engagement in a deliberative public sphere (WP2) – under construction
2 Interviewing scientists on present and future scenarios of tools and practices to involve citizens in informed discussion about science (WP3) – Deliverable 3.1 Jan. 2022.
3 Setting up data collection frameworks and procedures (surveys of cross-national social networks and of open-data practices, in-depth interview questions, cooperating municipalities, etc.) in a chosen range of 5 science-related citizen participation practices (grassroots knowledge, environmental science, citizen observatories and health data cooperatives, science clubs/youth participation and engagement) in view of identifying potentially scalable methodological tools to improve lay participation and deliberation. (WP4) – work ongoing.
4 Building and preliminarily testing of the ‘argument extractor’ tool in view of studying the dynamics of argumentation in digital communication
We also planned further actions:
1 Identifying stakeholder panels (WP6) for each WP to bring project ideas to the wider society and promote democratic participation and deliberation in public arenas. (WP6) – Milestone 19, Nov. 2021.
2 Building a good communication and dissemination plan (including a project website and video) (WP7) – Deliverable 7.1 March 2021
3 Building a data management plan – Deliverable 2.1 May 2021.
4 Building an ethics and data protection strategy – set of Deliverables fully achieved by Jun. 2021.
5 Appointing an Advisory Board in Aug. 2021.
The project consortium met twice after the kick off meeting (Jul. 2021; Feb. 2022), to monitor WP research progress, discuss emerging issues and be informed of each other’s work. Individual WPs run several internal meetings to coordinate tasks and outputs among the partnership.
At the end of this reporting period we have fulfilled all obligations as part of the Grant Agreement and progressed on a number of outputs due over the next 12 months.
The project rationale was built on an original premise, which was intended to take the ongoing conversation on participatory practices beyond its present stage of discussion. The rationale consisted in exploring whether citizen science – and the way it is practised – could provide a suitable toolbox of traits and conditions for thinking over and possibly improving participatory and deliberative processes in the wider society.
In this first year we have been gathering material (conceptual and empirical) to build some of the tools as described above. In year 2 we will consolidate our conceptual and empirical understanding on how to make use of those tools to improve citizen participation in public debate, and in year 3 we will direct our research effort to scaling up from one specific field of participation (science-informed debates) to the wider context of political participation and assess/evaluate its potential in combination with traditional forms of representative democracy.
By the end of the project we expect to:
- Identify some best practices of public engagement with a substantial participatory and deliberative component, and offer some guidelines for their exploitation
- Identify the propensity/es of citizens towards participation and build a profile of active citizenship
- Open a dialogue with a range of institutions, local authorities, policy making activities, where forms of deliberative participation could be tried out and tested
- Widen the discussion on science and technology issues and practices to include citizen science literacy
- Make a digital tool (the argument extractor) available and user friendly to understand and monitor ongoing debates in the public sphere.
Achieving these targets will make public and open discussion on the role of a deliberative public sphere advance in a concrete direction, and it will contribute to creating forms of public engagement able to enhance and strengthen the legitimization of current democratic representative institutions.
In this first year we have been gathering material (conceptual and empirical) to build some of the tools as described above. In year 2 we will consolidate our conceptual and empirical understanding on how to make use of those tools to improve citizen participation in public debate, and in year 3 we will direct our research effort to scaling up from one specific field of participation (science-informed debates) to the wider context of political participation and assess/evaluate its potential in combination with traditional forms of representative democracy.
By the end of the project we expect to:
- Identify some best practices of public engagement with a substantial participatory and deliberative component, and offer some guidelines for their exploitation
- Identify the propensity/es of citizens towards participation and build a profile of active citizenship
- Open a dialogue with a range of institutions, local authorities, policy making activities, where forms of deliberative participation could be tried out and tested
- Widen the discussion on science and technology issues and practices to include citizen science literacy
- Make a digital tool (the argument extractor) available and user friendly to understand and monitor ongoing debates in the public sphere.
Achieving these targets will make public and open discussion on the role of a deliberative public sphere advance in a concrete direction, and it will contribute to creating forms of public engagement able to enhance and strengthen the legitimization of current democratic representative institutions.