about the platform

about our platform

mit:forschen! Gemeinsam Wissen schaffen (formerly Bürger schaffen Wissen) is the central platform for citizen science in Germany. The platform presents, connects and supports citizen science projects since April 2014. The platform’s main goals are to give an overview of citizen science projects, to inform about the concept of citizen science and strengthen its visibility and acceptance, to further develop the citizen science landscape in Germany and internationally and to contribute to current debates on participatory science. 

mit:forschen! is a joint project by Wissenschaft im Dialog and Museum für Naturkunde Berlin, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research since November 2013.

inform

We provide information about citizen science and current developments in research as well as about our projects and working groups through our various online channels and publications.

connect

We connect actors across different disciplines and institutions and promote active discussion in our annual conference Forum Citizen Science, regular lunch talks and workshops. By supporting the working groups in our network, we help create spaces for regional and thematic exchange on citizen science.

create

We work on the conceptual and strategic development of citizen science. To this aim, we cooperate on joint projects with our working groups and are involved in the European Citizen Science Association to foster international cooperation.

projects available in English

Here you can find a selection of projects that are available in English grouped into categories.
Explore the projects

our international collaborations

Citizen Science knows no boundaries – that is why mit:forschen! is internationally connected. Click here to see more.
Check out where we are involved

latest blog articles in English

On the Science and the Citizen - An Interview with Alan Irwin

In 1995, Alan Irwin published the book ‘Citizen Science: A Study of People, Expertise and Sustainable Development’, coining the concept of citizen science. Recently, we got to talk to Irwin about the democratic aspects of citizen science, the development of the community since the 1990s and current debates about the term.

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New Impetus for Citizen Science in Europe

The project IMPETUS, funded by Horizon Europe, has recently published its first open call, inviting citizen science initiatives and practitioners from all over Europe to apply for an ‘Accelerator Programme’ and the new ‘European Union Prize for Citizen Science’. We asked Gefion Thuermer (King’s College London) and Andrew Newman (Ars Electronica) from the IMPETUS team how they plan to support citizen science initiatives, how they view the place of citizen science in EU funding policy and what they expect from the call.

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Mass experiments and a new national platform - Citizen Science in Sweden

From its first beginnings in the 18th century to a biodiversity database and a national platform: Citizen science has continuously developed and gained relevance in Sweden. We have talked to Martin Bergman from Vetenskap och Allmänhet (Science and Public) about their annual citizen science projects, lessons learned from the launch of the Swedish web portal and untapped potential for citizen science in Sweden.

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our publications available in English

Citizen science for all – A guide for citizen science practitioners
Green Paper – Citizen Science Strategy 2020 for Germany
White Paper Citizen Science Strategy 2030 for Germany

our posters available in English

our project poster in English (October 2022)

The poster "Which Citizen Science Type Are You?" is based on an exhibit for the science ship MS Wissenschaft that was developed by Bürger schaffen Wissen and ECSA in 2022. By answering simple questions, you can find out which topics and forms of participation interest you and which concrete citizen science projects suit you. The poster illustrates the diversity of citizen science and provides background information on the approach. There are also postcards for the seven different citizen science types, recommending suitable citizen science projects from the EU-citizen.science and Bürger schaffen Wissen platforms. 

We are happy to provide the print file for the poster (A0) as well as postcards for your events. Please send a short request to: info@buergerschaffenwissen.de

GEWISS modular program (GEWISS-Bausteinprogramm)

From 2014 to 2016, a consortium of various institutions worked on building a modular program under the title BürGEr schaffen WISSen – Wissen schafft Bürger (GEWISS) (Citizens create knowledge - Knowledge creates citizens). The program discussed and further developed the implementation and strengthening of Citizen Science in Germany throughout various events and working groups. At the centre of attention was the development and publication of the Grünbuch (Green Paper) Citizen Science Strategy 2020 for Germany.

More about GEWISS (in German)