The evolving landscape of science communication highlights a shift from traditional dissemination to participatory engagement. This study explores Dutch citizens’ perspectives on science communication, focusing on science capital, public engagement, and communication goals. Using a mixed-methods approach, it combines survey data (n = 376) with focus group (n = 66) insights. Findings show increasing public interest in participating in science, though barriers like knowledge gaps persist. Trust-building, engaging adolescents, and integrating science into society were identified as key goals. These insights support the development of the Netherlands’ National Centre of Expertise on Science and Society and provide guidance for inclusive, effective science communication practices.
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For many EU citizens, working across the border is the only way to make a living in the EU. The battle for cheap labour has now become a well-oiled machine, in which almost all Western European countries participate. Nevertheless, the employment situation of EU Mobile Citizens, workers of low-skilled and -paid jobs, is often substandard. Challenges are housing, health care and working conditions. In addition, due to the lack of registration in municipalities, it is impossible to have an overview of the numbers and to offer effective help. This is a problem in small to medium-sized cities, where many workers live to work in agriculture, transport, construction, meat industry and logistics. For this study, 32 interviews were conducted in eleven small to medium-sized towns (SMSTs) in Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands, Ireland, Poland, and Spain. The study uses three different perspectives: EU representatives of participating regions, municipalities, and employers. The outcomes show that most SMSTs deal with a shortage of housing, and a lack of grip on the registration process of EU citizens. Although there are some success stories, most SMSTs are not in touch with each other to share these. The paper concludes with proposals for further action-research and collaborations to impact local policies.
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In a study commissioned by the Association of Dutch Municipalities (VNG), the applied research group European Impact has compiled the results from interviews executed by approximately 240 European Studies students at The Hague University of Applied Sciences. The purpose of this report is to compare and contrast the situation of intra-EU labor migrants (hereafter referred to as EU mobile citizens) in regard to registration, housing, and information flows in 12 different municipalities across the EU. Based on semi-structured interviews with municipal workers and individuals from employment agencies/companies from the selected municipalities, the picture that emerges is one of divergence. There are significant variations regarding the registration procedure and information flows for EU mobile citizens across the selected municipalities. For registration, differences include where the registration takes place, the amount of collaboration between municipalities and employment agencies/companies on registering EU mobile citizens, and the importance of addresses in the registration process. Regarding information flows across the selected municipalities, there are significant variations in the amount and type of information available to EU mobile citizens, the number of languages information is available in,as well as how the information is organized (i.e. in a centralized or decentralized way). Furthermore, while all the member states in which the selected municipalities are located provide information regarding registration on the Single Digital Gateway, not all provide information about renting housing. As for housing, the results revealed that most of the selected municipalities face issues with housing and that EU mobile citizens typically find housing either via their employers or personal network. Based on the results, a list of potential best practices and policy areas that could be improved was compiled. Furthermore, in order to have a stronger overview of policy developments in the field of EU mobile citizens among different municipalities, the VNG could consider hosting a Community of Practice with different municipalities across the EU as well as monitoring Interreg Europe projects focused on improving the situation of EU mobile citizens.
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Het strategisch project Citizen Science for a Healthy Lifestyle is gestart op 1 november 2019. Het project had als doel: kennis, ervaring, scholing en internationalisering op het thema Citizen Science for Healthy Lifestyle bevorderen. Deze strategische fonds heeft op concrete wijze vorm en inhoud gegeven aan de visie en doelen van het CoE HA. Deze aanvraag heeft mede geleid tot het benoemen van Citizen Science als belangrijke enabler/versneller binnen de visie van het CoE HA. In jaar 1 lag het accent op scholing (expert conference/workshop etc.) en de opzet van een 3-tal pilots. In jaar 2 werd de opgedane kennis en ervaring verwerkt in ontwikkelde onderwijs modules Citizen Science. De Hanzehogeschool stelt zich tot doel waarde en impact te cre ren in Noord-Nederland, met de inzet van onderwijs, onderzoek en innovatie. De strategie van het Centre of Expertise Healthy Ageing (CoE HA) belicht drie thema’s: 1) gelijkheid en participatie in gezondheidszorg, 2) gezonde leefstijl en omgeving, en 3) kwetsbaarheid en passende zorg. Zowel als onderzoek/innovatiestrategie en als middel om burgers en gemeenschappen te betrekken, speelt Citizen Science for health een belangrijke rol in het mogelijk maken en versnellen van processen binnen de drie thema’s. Citizen Science kan gedefinieerd worden als een vorm van onderzoekssamenwerking en co-creatie die burgers betrekt bij onderzoek en innovatie om concrete vraagstukken aan te pakken, en die dus vereist dat niet-professionele bijdragers onderdeel van de samenwerking zijn.Belangrijkste resultaten:• Citizen Science is mede door deze strategische fonds aanvraag en van de drie enablers geworden in de nieuwe CoE HA strategische koers 2021-2026;• Opstart pilots van Living Lab Beweegvriendelijk Vinkhuizen, Living Lab Oldambt Tijd voor Toekomst en Meer Gezonde Jaren Appingedam. Mede door blijvende investering en honorering van Living Labs Sport en Bewegen van ZonMw; Het gaat hier om een netwerksubsidie (8 maanden), lokale verankering (12 maanden) en experiment subsidie (5 maanden);• Integratie Citizen Science in Erasmus+ capacity building project Sustainable Wellbeing (SUSWELL);• Ontwikkeling SPRONG-aanvraag op het thema Citizen Science (deadline 31 mei 2022);• Diverse scholingsactiviteiten en workshops (master HAP, bachelor, docent-onderzoekers van de Healthy Ageing schools, studiedagen) hebben in 2020, 2021 en 2022 plaatsgevonden;• Studie tweedaagse over Citizen Science gehouden voor studenten en docent-onderzoekers CoE HA en KC Noorderruimte;• Samenwerking met Stanford University en Our Voice: Citizen Science for Health Equity network gerealiseerd;• Positioning statement Citizen Science geschreven in NL en EN;• Lid geworden van European Citizen Science Association (ECSA);• Scholingsmateriaal ontwikkeld voor studenten en docent-onderzoekers van de vijf schools vallend onder Healthy Ageing;• Ontwikkeling NWO-subsidie aanvraag maatschappelijk verdien vermogen over citizen-student Science voor studenten welzijn tijdens en na de Corona pandemie (deadline voorjaar 2022);• Postdoc aanstelling Citizen Science vanuit het CoE HA.• Met de Citizen Science scholingsactiviteiten zijn in totaal 270 bachelor studenten, 145 master studenten, 279 docent-onderzoekers, 109 professionals en 180 burgers bereikt verspreid over de verschillende pilots.Aanbevelingen:• Mede op basis van de impact van praktijkgericht onderzoek op praktijk, onderwijs en onderzoek (PRIME-model pagina 29), doorgaan met onderwijs en praktijk ontwikkelingen. De bijdrage aan het wetenschappelijke/onderzoeksdomein op Citizen Science verdient dekomende jaren extra aandacht;• Mede op basis van bevindingen visitatie terugkoppeling CoE HA (6-7 april 2022), verder doorontwikkelen tot herkend en erkend expertisecentrum op Citizen Science in de context van (publieke) gezondheidsdomein;• De komende jaren verder investeren in mensen en middelen in Citizen Science zodat het een van de leidende aanpakken wordt binnen onderwijs-onderzoek binnen het CoE HA zodat de Hanze zich ontwikkelt tot een expertisecentrum (o.a. m.b.v. SPRONG);• Komende jaren verder kennis en expertise ontwikkelen op Citizen Science door eigenonderzoek (promovendi/postdocs) en scholing;• Citizen Science integreren in relevante onderzoeksprojectaanvragen;• Citizen Science verder integreren in de drie inhoudelijke thema’s van het CoE HA;• Citizen Science onderwijsmodules en scholingen implementeren in het onderwijs van studenten (bachelors, masters) en bij- en nascholing van docent-onderzoekers.
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In ons dagelijkse leven hebben we veel met technologie te maken, vaak met interactieve, informatie-gerichte technologie: als consument doen we online boodschappen – zeker in deze pandemische tijd; als reiziger in het openbaar vervoer plannen en betalen we onze reis met interactieve technologie – nu weliswaar even wat minder; als weggebruiker navigeren we op basis van technologie; en ons energieverbruik in huis wordt ‘smart’ gemeten en geadministreerd. Als burger staan we steeds vaker middels technologie in contact met overheden. Denk aan alle online communicatie met de overheid, zo als de belastingdienst en gemeenten die middels apps, websites en de ‘Berichtenbox’ van ‘MijnOverheid’ met burgers communiceren. En er wordt over burgers en ons gedrag al heel wat data verzameld, door gemeenten, de politie, door bijvoorbeeld de zorgsector. En ook in de publieke ruimte wordt data verzameld – met smart city technologie, zoals camera’s en sensoren – met als doel om de stad veiliger, efficiënter en leefbaarder te maken. Al die ‘big data’ maakt het mogelijk om inzichten te genereren – al dan niet met kunstmatige intelligentie – en besluiten te nemen. We gebruiken technologie ook om als burger zelf actie te ondernemen. Bij de overheid kunnen we met apps melden wat er op straat verbeterd of onderhouden moet worden. Met onze buren zitten we in een WhatsApp groep of NextDoor, om bij te dragen aan de leefbaarheid en veiligheid van de buurt. We kunnen met smart home tools of citizen science kits de luchtkwaliteit meten, binnenshuis, maar ook buitenshuis. We tekenen petities, doen mee aan peilingen en enquêtes. En social networking sites (SNS) worden intensief gebruikt, voor sociale en professionele relaties, maar ook om maatschappelijk actief te zijn, voor het organiseren van het samenleven in een buurt. We weten inmiddels dat social media ook een effectief kanaal zijn om de democratie te beïnvloeden. Burgers komen dus in aanraking met veel verschillende technologieën, met verschillende doelstellingen, resultaten en bijeffecten, en waaraan mensen in allerlei functies en rollen deelnemen. Wat centraal staat in het vakgebied Civic Technology is dat de technologie in dienst staat van het burgerschap.
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Even though citizen and patient engagement in health research has a long tradition, citizen science in health has only recently gained attention and recognition. However, at present, there is no clear overview of the specifics and challenges of citizen science initiatives in the health domain. Such an overview could contribute to highlighting and articulating the different needs of stakeholders engaged in any form of citizen science in the health domain. It may also encourage the input of citizens and patients alike in health research and innovation, policy, and practice. This paper reports on a survey developed by the European Citizen Science Association (ECSA)’s Working Group “Citizen Science for Health,” to highlight the perceived characteristics and enabling factors of citizen science in the health domain, and to formulate a direction for future work and research. The survey was available in six languages and was open between January and August 2022. The majority of the 254 respondents were from European countries, and the largest stakeholder respondent group was researchers. Respondents were asked about their perspectives on the particular characteristics of citizen science performed in health and biomedical research, as well as the challenges and opportunities it affords. Ethics, the complexity of the health domain, and the overlap in roles whereby the researcher is sometimes also the subject of research, were the main issues suggested as being specific to citizen science in health. The top two areas that respondents identified as in need of development were “balanced return on investment” and “ethics.” This publication discusses these and other conditions with references to current literature.
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One of the freedoms enjoyed by European Union (EU) citizens is the freedom of movement for workers within the EU (since 2011). This includes the rights of movement and residence for workers, the right to work in another Member State and be treated on an equal footing with nationals of that Member State. EU Mobile Citizens (EUMCs) are often not treated on an equal footing. In the Netherlands, the struggle to register and house EUMCs has been continuous since the start of the enlargement of the EU with the EU-11 in 2004. For this study student-led research was used to look at registration and housing policies in three countries, Sweden, Spain, and Germany to look for good practices applicable in the Dutch context. Students interviewed a municipal worker and a business representative (employer of EUMCs) in seven selected municipalities. The findings from this exploration highlight the complexity of addressing the needs of EU Mobile Citizens within local governance structures. Across the case studies, three critical themes emerged that shaped the dynamics of registration and housing for EUMCs: the capacity of local governments, the roles of employers, and the influence of national-level policies.
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The literature on responsive regulation argues that citizens should be involved in regulatory practices to avoid capture between regulator and regulatee. It also argues that including citizens can add an important perspective to regulatory practices. However, we know little about how citizens' perspectives are brought into regulatory practices. This paper draws on existing qualitative research to compare and analyze four cases of experimental participatory regulation in Dutch health care, focusing on the theoretical assumptions that citizen involvement (a) prevents capture, and (b) stimulates the inclusion of new perspectives. Our results show that involving citizens in regulation can increase transparency and trust in regulatory practices and familiarizes regulators with other perspectives. It is, however, up to the regulator to work on deriving benefits from that involvement—not only the practical work of organizing participatory regulation, but also the conceptual work of reflecting on their own assumptions and standards. We do find evidence for weak forms of capture and argue for the need to extend capture to involve multiple actors. We reflect on these results for theory development and regulatory practice.
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One neighborhood in Groningen, the Netherlands, is a neighborhood housing about 12,000 citizens with on average a low-SES background, showing a less healthy and active lifestyle. In the past, initiatives have been undertaken to promote active lifestyle by implementing outdoor facilities stimulating physical activity. However, use of facilities was poor due to lack of citizen involvement. Aim of this project was to engage citizens in the overall process of capturing, plan making and prototyping of concepts for an exercise-friendly physical and social environment.From January 2020 - May 2022 a Living Lab was run following the ‘Our Voice’ citizen science method. Participatory citizen science was applied in which a community of stakeholders (public/private parties) and citizens was built. The community addressed the problem by creating more insight in promoting/degrading features in the neighborhood concerning an active lifestyle. Citizens (n = 40) used the Stanford Neighborhood Discovery Tool, which allowed for systematic observations of the physical environment. Additionally, emergent research walks gave extra information on neighborhood barriers/facilitators next to Discovery Tool data. Collected data allowed citizens to brainstorm on possible solutions in sessions facilitated by the researchers. Solutions were presented to local government and further developed for implementation and realization.Use of the Discovery Tool created an overview of the neighborhood. Based on positive/negative features, new ideas were generated for improving exercise-friendliness. One example was a walking route along art objects in the neighborhood. Furthermore, a citizens work group was formed which discussed this route, and other ideas and prototypes, with local government. This group was also involved in realization of prototypes.Our project resulted in a citizen science approach which can be transferred to other neighborhoods. Use of Discovery Tool showed many benefits for neighborhood plan making. Early and continuous involvement of citizens will lead to more sustainable engagement and is a powerful method to create engagement around societal problems and social innovation in the field of Health Enhancing Physical Activity.A transferable method for neighborhood development based on citizen science was developed. Key feature in our method was integration of design thinking, citizen engagement, and use of digital tools.
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