You don't need a PhD to contribute to ocean science. Citizen science projects around the world are harnessing the power of everyday people to monitor pollution, track marine life, and generate data that shapes policy. And the contributions are genuinely valuable.
What Is Citizen Science?
Citizen science involves members of the public participating in scientific research — collecting data, making observations, or analysing information. In marine science, this can range from beach litter surveys to water quality monitoring and species identification.
Making a Real Impact
The Marine Conservation Society's Great British Beach Clean has run for over 30 years, generating the UK's longest-running dataset on beach litter. This data has directly influenced policy — it was instrumental in the campaign for England's plastic bag charge and the ban on microbeads.
Surfers Against Sewage's water quality alerts, powered by citizen reports, have pushed water companies to reduce sewage discharges. Bird survey data from volunteers has revealed the impact of plastic ingestion on seabird populations.
How to Get Involved
- **Beach cleans and litter surveys** — organised events or simply recording what you find on your local beach using apps like Marine Debris Tracker
- **Water quality testing** — affordable test kits can measure basic parameters; some projects provide more advanced equipment
- **Species monitoring** — apps like iNaturalist let you photograph and identify marine species, contributing to biodiversity databases
- **Nurdle hunts** — searching for plastic pellets on beaches helps map industrial plastic pollution
- **Reporting pollution incidents** — documenting and reporting sewage discharges, oil spills, or unusual events
The Data Matters
Citizen science data fills gaps that professional monitoring can't cover — nobody can be everywhere all the time. When standardised and quality-controlled, citizen data is published in scientific journals and used by government agencies.
Getting Schools Involved
A New Formula's educational resources include activities designed to involve students in real scientific data collection. Engaging young people in citizen science builds scientific literacy while generating valuable data — a genuine win-win.
This article is part of the CONTRAST project, funded by the European Union under Horizon Europe. Views expressed are those of the author(s) only.