Text (Instruction Step Text)
From The Embassy of Good Science
Describe the actions the user should take to experience the material (including preparation and follow up if any). Write in an active way.
- ⧼SA Foundation Data Type⧽: Text
3
Discover the key to harmonious collaboration!
Dive into this infographic on best [https://ori.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/2018-09/Authorship%20Practices%20to%20Avoid%20Conflicts_Rasterized.pdf authorship practices to prevent conflicts] and foster successful partnerships. +
Click on the link below to watch a short video explaining research integrity made by the [https://h2020integrity.eu/integrity/ H2020 INTEGRITY project]. +
"Meet the open-access publishing venue set up for Horizon Europe and Horizon 2020 beneficiaries. Open Research Europe will give everyone, researchers and citizens alike, immediate open access to your latest scientific discoveries. And at no cost to you." Watch the video below +
In the previous sessions, we learnt that plastics are not treated the same way. Some can be '''recycled''' and re‑entered into the production cycle, while others can be '''replaced''' with sustainable alternatives. Understanding this distinction is a main step toward reducing waste and making smarter plastics choices in the lab and beyond.
'''Here, you will explore which plastics can be recycled and/or replaced and available alternatives when replacement is the more responsible option.''' +
Research Environment
* Research institutions should foster a culture that acknowledges and accounts for the environmental implications of research activities and outcomes and supports responsible resource use.
* Policies on good research practice should include clear expectations for environmentally responsible conduct, consistent with applicable environmental obligations.
* Institutions should ensure that environmental considerations are not undermined by unrealistic performance pressures or incentives.
* Where research involves environmental or climate data, institutions should provide appropriate infrastructure to support its proper documentation, stewardship, and traceability
'''Training, Supervision, and Mentoring'''
* Training in research design and methodology should, where relevant, include awareness of the environmental or climate implications of research choices.
* Ethics and integrity training should familiarise researchers with applicable environmental obligations and emerging requirements.
* Supervisors should model environmentally responsible research behaviour and support researchers in recognising when environmental considerations require specialist input. Research Procedures
* When developing research ideas, researchers should consider whether their work may have environmental or climate impacts and seek appropriate expertise when uncertain.
* Careful and well-considered research design should include reflection on the environmental footprint of methods such as energy use, material consumption, travel, fieldwork, or laboratory practices—and consider lower-impact equivalents where possible.
* Transparent reporting should include, where applicable, environmental assumptions, uncertainties, or contextual factors that influence the interpretation of findings. Safeguards
* Compliance with codes, guidelines, and regulations should include meeting relevant environmental requirements, such as those relating to pollution prevention, biodiversity protection, or responsible fieldwork.
* Research involving environmental or biological subjects should seek to avoid unnecessary disturbance to ecosystems, habitats, and natural resources by following established protocols for minimising harm.
* Assessing potential harms should include identifying foreseeable environmental risks associated with the research and taking proportionate steps to avoid, minimise, or mitigate them.
* In projects involving public or community participation, environmental practices should be safe and responsible and communicated clearly.
'''Data Practices and Management'''
* Stewardship of environmental or climate-related data should ensure clear documentation, secure storage, and preservation sufficient to support reproducibility and long-term value.
* Open access to environmental data should follow FAIR principles while respecting restrictions on sensitive ecological information or community-held knowledge.
* Researchers should respect applicable rights and expectations when using community-generated environmental data, including conditions on sharing, reuse, or disclosure.
'''Collaborative Working'''
* Collaboration agreements environmental responsibilities, should clarify including how potential environmental impacts will be assessed, communicated, and addressed.
* Where collaborations involve local communities or indigenous groups connected to the environments or resources affected by the research, expectations regarding community consent, indigenous data sovereignty, and the right to decline participation should be explicitly agreed upon.
* Partners should consider the fair distribution of environmental benefits and burdens, particularly where research outcomes may disproportionately affect vulnerable or marginalised groups
'''Publication, Dissemination, and Authorship'''
* Claims about environmental impacts, benefits, or sustainability should be accurate, evidence-based, and presented without exaggeration or misrepresentation.
* Transparency in publication should include, where relevant, assumptions about environmental conditions or impacts underlying the research, limitations, uncertainties, or contextual factors that affect interpretation or policy relevance.
* Acknowledgements should accurately reflect contributions from environmental data sources, field sites, or community-generated knowledge in line with prior agreements.
* Corrections or retractions should be issued promptly when environmental claims or assessments are found to be inaccurate or misleading.
'''Reviewing and Assessment'''
* Reviewers should ensure that environmental or climate-related claims are supported by appropriate evidence and that uncertainties are clearly acknowledged.
* Assessment of research project submissions involving environmental dimensions should consider the robustness of environmental methodologies, data, and assumptions.
* Editors should be alert to conflicts of interest where reviewers have ties to industries or activities with significant environmental stakes that may bias their assessment (e.g. fossil fuels, industrial agriculture, resource extraction), and should have appropriate policies in place to identify, disclose, and manage such conflicts, including measures such as transparency requirements, replacing reviewers where necessary, or declining to publish work where conflicts cannot be adequately addressed.
* Confidentiality obligations should extend to sensitive environmental information, such as locations of endangered species or community-held environmental knowledge, where disclosure could cause harm.
Match the Methodological/Ethical Challenge to the Proposed Citizen Science Action: +
'''Questions to consider:'''
• How are environmental and climate reflections included in team discussions, planning or documentation?
• How do our procurement, data management, or infrastructure decisions consider environmental or climate relevance, even when these are not the primary focus of the research?
• How is responsibility for raising and documenting environmental and climate considerations clearly understood within the research team?
'''Example :''' A consortium adds a short environmental reflection item to its regular meeting agenda, ensuring that environmental considerations become part of ongoing decision-making rather than a one-off consideration. +
Engaging with citizen scientists: Integrating environmental and climate considerations into research practice +
This subsection addresses environmental and climate considerations that may arise during the practical implementation of citizen science activities.
'''1. Informed consent and information'''
Provide layered information (a short overview plus a more detailed description) in plain language. Explain the project’s purpose, methods, environmental risks and benefits, and how data and metadata will flow and be shared (including open-science aspects and whether data relate to local ecosystems, climate vulnerabilities, or sensitive ecological locations). Where relevant, explicitly address the collection and use of visual data (such as photographs, videos, images, maps, or other visual records). Clarify how individual participants can withdraw and what happens to existing data, including whether data may be reused in future research, shared with third parties, or combined with other datasets, and under what conditions. Where research activities affect communities, territories, or shared environmental resources, consider whether additional forms of community-level information, consultation, or consent are appropriate. In some contexts, this may include engagement with community representatives, leaders, or governance bodies before individual participation begins, particularly where research relates to land, natural resources, environmental monitoring, or collective climate vulnerabilities.
'''2. Avoid undue inducement and ensure voluntary participation'''
Offer recognition and modest incentives where appropriate (such as reimbursement of expenses, certificates or training) but avoid financial or material benefits that may pressure individuals or communities to participate especially in contexts where environmental or climate vulnerabilities may heighten dependence on such incentives. Make it clear, in writing and verbally, that participation is voluntary and that declining or withdrawing will not affect access to services, support or future collaboration.
'''3. Training, support and safety3'''
Provide initial and, where needed, ongoing training for citizen scientists covering data collection protocols and quality standards, use of equipment and digital tools, and safety procedures and environmental rules (e.g. how to minimise ecological impact). Training should also address research integrity and ethics, including responsible conduct, respectful engagement with communities and environments, and personal data management where applicable. Establish clear channels for support and conduct a basic risk assessment for fieldwork that addresses health (including psychological support), safety (including using equipment) and potential environmental impacts for both researchers and citizen scientists.
'''4. Recognition, feedback and decision-making involvement'''
Develop a transparent recognition plan that includes acknowledgement of data contributions, appropriate attribution of individual or collective inputs, and clear criteria for co-authorship, where relevant. Recognition may take different forms depending on the level and nature of contribution (e.g. acknowledgements, contributor lists, dataset citations, co-authorship, or public recognition), and should be communicated clearly from the outset
Provide regular feedback through dashboards, maps, short This helps reduce power imbalances, strengthen trust, and avoid instrumentalising participants solely as data collectors.
Where suitable, involve citizen scientists in decisions about project design and priorities, data governance and access rules, and communication formats, especially when data relate to land, resources, environmental monitoring, or climate vulnerabilities.
This helps reduce power imbalances, strengthen trust, and avoid instrumentalising participants solely as data collectors
'''5. Conflicts of interest and transparency'''
Identify and manage conflicts of interest for both professional researchers and citizen scientists, including financial and non-financial interests. Ask team members and citizen scientists in governance or decision-making roles to disclose relevant interests at project start and when circumstances change.
Particular attention should be paid to non-financial conflicts of interest, which may be less visible but can significantly influence research processes and outcomes. These may include strong personal, political, community, advocacy, or professional commitments related to the research topic, local environmental disputes, land or resource use, or anticipated policy outcomes. Project teams should raise awareness of such conflicts, facilitate reflection among participants, and provide clear guidance and examples to help identify them.
Decide how to handle disclosed conflicts in a proportionate manner, for example, by documenting them transparently, using balanced or diverse panels, clarifying roles, or avoiding situations where individuals with strong stakes are solely responsible for critical measurements, interpretation, or communication.
Be transparent with participants and stakeholders about funding sources, institutional partnerships, and policy links, especially where these may raise questions about conflicts of interest, independence, advocacy, or industry influence. updates, or co-interpretation sessions, highlighting where environmental or climate-related findings may have implications for local communities or ecosystems.
Citizen science raises specific ethical responsibilities with regard to research quality. Researchers should not assume that citizen scientists have prior methodological expertise. Adequate training, clear protocols, and ongoing support are essential to ensure data quality while respecting participants as collaborators rather than shifting responsibility or blame for methodological shortcomings onto them
Towards an expanded scope of research ethics committees: Integrating environmental and climate ethics +
European research ethics policy increasingly recognises environmental and climate considerations as ethically relevant. Horizon Europe ethics requirements 4 , the application of the Do No Significant Harm (DNSH) principle, and the forthcoming European Commission Guidance Note all confirm that potential environmental harms should be identified and addressed as part of ethical appraisal. In practice, however, these expectations are not yet consistently reflected in ethics review processes. This gap is partly rooted in the historical development of RECs.
REC mandates, expertise, and review tools were largely shaped in response to biomedical research and research involving direct human participation. As a result, ethics review frameworks are generally better equipped to assess immediate and individual-level risks rather than indirect, cumulative, long-term, or environmentally mediated impacts. Environmental and climate considerations may therefore be addressed unevenly or implicitly treated as falling outside the core scope of ethics review
These challenges are particularly visible in research involving complex infrastructures, advanced technologies, or data-intensive methods, such as the use of artificial intelligence, where environmental impacts may arise through energy use, resource consumption, or downstream effects. They also arise in contexts where environmental risks or burdens are unevenly distributed across or generations, intersecting with broader questions of vulnerability and justice that are not easily captured through traditional human-subject risk frameworks.
Taken together, this reflects a misalignment between expanding ethical expectations and the practical tools and support currently available to RECs, rather than a lack of ethical awareness. Addressing this gap does not require new ethical principles or additional approval layers, but rather proportionate, REC-facing guidance that helps integrate environmental and climate considerations into existing ethics review practices in a consistent and context-sensitive way.
European Commission: EU Grants - How to complete your ethics self-assessment, https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding tenders/opportunities/docs/2021-2027/common/guidance/how to-complete-your-ethics-self-assessment_en.pdf
Taking part in research: A guide for citizen scientists on environmental and climate considerations +
'''1. Act with honesty and care in data collection'''
Follow the project’s instructions and protocols as closely as possible. You should not invent, alter, or selectively report observations. Inform the project team if you are unsure or may have made a mistake. These practices are an essential part of research integrity, which means producing trustworthy knowledge through honest and careful work. Key integrity issues to keep in mind include fabrication (making up data), falsification (changing or omitting data to influence results), and selective reporting (only sharing results that support a preferred outcome). Noting uncertainties, limitations, or unexpected results is part of good research practice, especially when environmental or climate-related data may inform local decisions or policies. You should also be aware that strong personal, professional, or community interests related to the research topic can unintentionally influence how data are collected or interpreted. Being open about such interests and following agreed protocols helps ensure that the research remains fair, credible, and useful to others.
'''2. Respect people’s privacy'''
You should avoid capturing identifiable images or information about people (for example faces, license plates, house numbers) and avoid sharing other participants’ personal information without consent. You should take care when posting project-related screenshots or maps on social media especially if they show sensitive environmental or location data
'''3. Respect nature and local rules (Do No Significant Harm)'''
You should follow rules for protected areas and natural sites, including “leave on trace" principles, staying on marked paths where advised, avoiding disturbing wildlife (especially during breeding seasons), and following any biosecurity instructions such as cleaning boots to avoid spreading invasive species. You should also ensure your activities do not inadvertently block access to public spaces for others or create local nuisances (noise/light) while monitoring. Non-personal environmental data (for example, animal behaviour, species presence, weather, water levels) should be gathered in the least intrusive way possible, avoiding disturbance, stress, injury or damage to animals and habitats. EU and national
rules on the ethical treatment of animals also apply when research is carried out by citizen scientists. If a protocol ever feels harmful or inappropriate for animals, you should stop and contact the project team for clarification.
You should not collect samples (such as plants, animals, soil) without explicit instructions and you should always respect local regulations and conservation rules. Take litter away and minimise your environmental footprint during field activities (e.g. choosing a sustainable mode of transport to reach sampling sites where possible).
'''4. Use technology responsibly'''
You should use only the official apps or tools provided by the project, keep your accounts and devices secure (for example, by using passwords and updates), and report technical problems such as GPS errors or app bugs to the project team. This is particularly important when your device collects location or environmental data that might be sensitive.
'''5. Support, inclusion and respect'''
You should also ensure your activities do not inadvertently block access to public spaces for others or create local nuisances (noise/light) while monitoring.. Non-personal environmental data (for example, animal behaviour, species presence, weather, water levels) should be gathered in the least intrusive way possible, avoiding disturbance, stress, injury or damage to animals and habitats. EU and national
'''6. Be open about your interests and roles'''
If you or your organisation have strong interests related to the project topic (for example employment in a company, NGO or public authority involved in the issue, or a role in a campaign or court case), you should tell the project team. This does not disqualify you from taking part; it helps avoid misunderstandings and supports fair interpretation of data especially when environmental or climate issues affect different groups differently
This course promotes the use of feminist moderation practices to support the creation of safer spacer for inclusive dialogues. To learn more about this we encourage you to explore topics like safe spaces, polarisation, sensitive issues, and accessibility via course below.
[https://iseazy.com/dl/ae700ce67b1542f2aa0099639f776f4f#/slide/Bu66dBfQc Feminist moderation] +
'''<span lang="EN-GB">Instructions</span>'''
#<span lang="EN-GB">Read the profiles of the four stakeholders below (A, B, C, and D).</span>
#'''<span lang="EN-GB">Drag and drop</span>''' <span lang="EN-GB">each stakeholder into their correct Stakeholder Position in the table:</span>
#*'''<span lang="EN-GB">Core Actors:</span>''' <span lang="EN-GB">Those positioned at the heart of the research process.</span>
#*'''<span lang="EN-GB">Strategic Actors:</span>''' <span lang="EN-GB">Those who influence the broader structural, regulatory, or financial framework.</span>
#*'''<span lang="EN-GB">Contextual Actors:</span>''' <span lang="EN-GB">Those who represent the local environment or demographic reality.</span>
#<span lang="EN-GB">Identify whether their role is primarily '''Affecting''' (exercising power/control), '''Affected''' (vulnerable/impacted), or '''Both'''</span>
'''<span lang="EN-US">Stakeholders to Categorize:</span>'''
* <span lang="EN-US">'''A.''' Community members "living on the edge of survival".</span>
* <span lang="EN-US">'''B.''' Research funders and government agencies.</span>
* <span lang="EN-US">'''C.''' The primary Research Team and study participants.</span>
* '''<span lang="EN-GB">D.</span>''' <span lang="EN-GB">Junior colleagues, students, and international research partners</span><span lang="EN-US">.</span> +
The course in short - Describe the modules very shortly. +
Examples of AI Systems +
In this lecture, François Jost discusses the responsibilities of professional scientists towards citizen scientists. The first segment of the lecture covers the importance of recognising citizen scientists as partners, promoting inclusivity, and providing them with training. The second segment emphasises the need for open communication and transparency, open data management, and acknowledging the contributions and application of the citizen science approach.
'''Watch the lecture and then answer the questions.'''
'''Further reading:'''
Ten Principles of Citizen Science – European Citizen Science Association (ECSA). https://www.ecsa.ngo/10-principles/
Empowering citizens through science: The role of citizen science in Europe. https://data.europa.eu/en/news-events/news/empowering-citizens-through-science-role-citizen-science-europe
Herodotou, C., Scanlon, E., & Sharples, M. (2021). Methods of Promoting Learning and Data Quality in Citizen and Community Science. Frontiers in Climate, 3. https://doi.org/10.3389/fclim.2021.614567
Eleta, I., Clavell, G. G., Righi, V., & Balestrini, M. (2019). The Promise of Participation and Decision-Making Power in Citizen Science. Citizen Science: Theory and Practice, 4(1). https://doi.org/10.5334/cstp.171 +
4
Provide contact information in case of questions or if doubts arise during the practice time in between the participatory sessions.
Set a deadline and give instructions for the submission of the self-reflection forms. This should be at least one week prior to the follow up participatory session. +
The overall goal of the first session is to introduce the five exercises which represent the face-to-face/participatory part of the blended learning training and to prepare trainees to practice facilitating the exercises themselves. When planning the first session you:
a. Plan enough time per exercise (minimum 2 h).
As a trainer, you will first facilitate the exercises and let the trainees experience them. Then you will describe and explain the knowledge and competencies needed to facilitate the exercise as a trainer. Make time for pauses between the exercises for trainees to relax and reflect. Depending on the time schedule, it may also be necessary to provide food and drinks (or directions to restaurants or stores nearby).
b. Provide time to explain what trainees are expected to do in between the first and the follow up participatory sessions . You might consider providing opportunities to collectively reflect on how to plan their training practice and whether it would be necessary to adapt the exercises based on the characteristics of the group of participants they will train in their own work setting +
Get in touch with your trainer and submit your self-reflection forms. Share questions or issues you might want to address during the second face-to-face session with your trainer. For example: what facilitated your participants’ learning or what impeded it? What might be done differently in any subsequent moment of facilitation and what to keep unchanged? +
Remind participants of the overall goals of the training and ask them to reflect on the specific goals of the exercises and their contribution to the overall goals. +
Now, start a debate between both groups. Ask them to convince the other team to support their movie character (Dr. Jim Curran or Dr. Don Francis).
Stop the discussion after a couple of minutes for some reflection:
1. How did the participants feel about the conversation? What was the atmosphere like?
2. If some participants were assigned to be observers, they rst describe what they saw happening.
3. Make notes on a black- or whiteboard or flip-over about the characteristics of the discussion (e.g. competitive, interruptions, raising voices). +
