European project · Biodiversity
THRIVE
Expanding the role of citizen science in biodiversity and ecosystem services
About the project
The project is built around three main pillars —engagement, data and policy— and moves forward in three phases: mapping, consolidating and scaling.
It also uses people’s connection with nature as a cross-cutting theme to encourage broader and more sustained public participation.
The solutions developed will be tested and scaled up through use cases in different European ecosystems.
THRIVE (Towards a Harmonised landscape that expands the Role of citizen science in biodIVersity & Ecosystem services monitoring) is a Horizon Europe project that brings together 16 European organisations to strengthen and harmonise the role of citizen science in biodiversity and ecosystem observation and to ensure that data generated through citizen science can contribute systematically to official biodiversity and ecosystem monitoring systems and to European environmental policy.
Across Europe, many citizen science initiatives produce valuable biodiversity information, but the landscape remains fragmented. Initiatives use different tools, methodologies, standards and data flows; long-term participation is hard to sustain; and citizen science data are still used unevenly in official monitoring systems and public decision-making. THRIVE aims to move from this fragmented picture to a more coordinated, interoperable and scalable system that is connected to public policy.
Project objectives
1. Broaden participation in citizen science by identifying barriers and involving groups whose participation is currently limited, including vulnerable groups, through tailored engagement approaches based on connection with nature.
2. Unite and connect the European actors involved in citizen science and biodiversity monitoring (initiatives, citizens, researchers, public authorities…) in a more coordinated pan-European network.
3. Build the capacity of these actors through dedicated training and learning resources that help them set up and sustain high-quality citizen science initiatives.
4. Connect citizen science data with the needs of public policy and official monitoring systems, linking citizen observations to indicators, regulations and frameworks such as the Habitats Directive, nature restoration legislation and international biodiversity commitments.
5. Identify, organise and harmonise tools, protocols, technologies, standards and good practices for the collection, validation, storage, sharing and reuse of biodiversity data, promoting more interoperable and FAIR systems.
6. Demonstrate and scale up these approaches in seven real-world use cases across different ecosystems, to test which methodologies, tools and data flows work and how they can be transferred or expanded.
The role of Ibercivis
Ibercivis leads the identification, analysis, harmonisation and practical application of tools and methodologies focused on data acquisition and management, including AI-based tools, that help make citizen science data more interoperable, reusable and useful for biodiversity monitoring and public policy.
Ibercivis also takes part in activities on FAIR data management, capacity building for data publication and reuse, and tools designed to match the capabilities of citizen science initiatives with the needs of policymakers.
Our activities
- Draw up a roadmap of the tools, protocols, technologies and standards currently used in citizen science for biodiversity observation, particularly those related to data acquisition and management, by mapping, classifying and assessing them in the use cases.
- Explore the use of artificial intelligence through RAG to: i) analyse the knowledge gathered, compare tools and protocols and support the harmonisation of data collection and management processes; and ii) develop a “match-making” tool between citizen science and biodiversity policy that identifies which citizen science resources can address specific policy needs.
- Take part in consultations and co-design processes to identify the needs of users and practitioners.
- Contribute to capacity building in biodiversity data management in line with FAIR practices for projects, data managers and developers.
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Project details
Type of project
European
Funding
Horizon Europe, call HORIZON-CL6-2025-01-BIODIV-02 (grant agreement No. 101289005)
Area
Biodiversity
