How many scientific papers have been published on citizen science? What questions do they investigate? What platforms and technologies do they mention? We know the field has grown enormously over the past decades — but no systematically categorised corpus existed to demonstrate this with a shared, transparent classification scheme.
CitSci Sort was built to create that map — collaboratively, with the help of anyone who wants to contribute.
What is CitSci Sort?
CitSci Sort is a community-driven classification tool developed by the Ibercivis Foundation in the context of the RIECS-Concept initiative — Towards a Pan-European Research Infrastructure for Excellent Citizen Science —, a 36-month Horizon Europe project bringing together 13 partners from 8 countries, with ECSA as scientific coordinator.
Its purpose is to build a systematically categorised corpus of peer-reviewed scientific abstracts on citizen science (CS) — one that did not previously exist with a shared, transparent classification scheme. The corpus is drawn from publications identified through a systematic search of the Web of Science database, accessed via the Universidad de Zaragoza’s institutional licence.
CitSci Sort has a dual goal:
- Producing a research dataset: a structured map of how CS is studied, practiced, and theorised across disciplines.
- Being a learning tool: by reading and classifying real abstracts, contributors actively develop their own understanding of the CS publication landscape — what questions the field asks, how it frames them, and where the debates are.
How does the classification work?
Classification proceeds in three sequential steps, each grounded in published academic references.
- Step 1 — First-level Dichotomy
The first question is fundamental: does this paper use citizen science as a method to produce knowledge, or does it study citizen science as an object of research? Each abstract is assigned to one of three mutually exclusive categories: Scientific Findings (CS as method), Meta-research (CS as subject of study), or Not Sure.
- Step 2 — Meta-research Aspects Classification (Only for Meta-research papers)
One or more aspects are selected to capture which specific dimension the paper analyses: methodology & design, data quality & validation, impact & outcomes, participation & engagement, ethics & legal issues, theory & framework, or technology & platforms. This scheme is grounded in Ioannidis et al. (2015) and the UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science (2021).
- Step 3 — Infrastructure Classification (For all papers)
Every abstract is also assessed for whether it mentions specific CS infrastructures — platforms, mobile apps, data-management tools, AI systems, or any other technology that enables or supports the described CS project. This step builds, directly from the published literature, a verified registry of CS infrastructures that RIECS-Concept needs to design the future pan-European research infrastructure.
Why does this matter?
Citizen science faces a structural challenge: fragmented data and a lack of shared standards. This lack of interoperability hinders the scalability of its collective scientific impact and poses a significant challenge to its long-term sustainability.
CitSci Sort responds by producing a shared, evidence-based taxonomy that makes the landscape of CS research legible. The data generated will feed directly into the design of a pan-European research infrastructure with a view to inclusion in the ESFRI roadmap and integration with the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC).
Do I need to be an expert to contribute?
No. You do not need to be a researcher or a citizen science expert. The platform is designed so that anyone can classify abstracts by following the guidance provided. What matters most is reading carefully and applying the criteria consistently.
Each abstract is reviewed by multiple contributors, so the goal is not individual perfection but collective consistency. Disagreements are valuable — they help the research team identify the most ambiguous cases. Contributors may choose to remain fully anonymous or request public recognition in project reports, strictly according to their express consent.
About the Ibercivis Foundation
Ibercivis (ibercivis.es) is a private non-profit foundation that promotes Citizen Science in Spain and Europe. Formally constituted on 14 November 2011 in Madrid, it evolved from the Zivis project launched in April 2007 — one of the earliest distributed volunteer computing initiatives in Spain. Its board of trustees includes the Universidad de Zaragoza, CSIC, CIEMAT, the Ministry of Science and Innovation, the Government of Aragon, and the Fundación Zaragoza Ciudad del Conocimiento.Over its trajectory, Ibercivis has developed more than 100 citizen science projects across domains including environmental monitoring (Vigilantes del Aire, D-Noses), biodiversity (Pájaros en la Nube), and aerospace education (Proyecto Aeroespacial Servet, with ten editions). It also hosts the Observatorio de la Ciencia Ciudadana en España.
About RIECS-Concept
RIECS-Concept (concept.riecs.eu) is a 36-month Horizon Europe project that began on 1 January 2025. Its goal is to design the conceptual model for a permanent, pan-European research infrastructure for citizen science — including a feasibility study and a five-year implementation plan — with a view to inclusion in the ESFRI roadmap and interoperability with the EOSC. CitSci Sort specifically supports the WP4 public engagement activities within RIECS-Concept.