Finding Common Ground and Advancing Engagement in Citizen Science

Citizen science, a diverse enterprise involving multiple processes, participants, and projects, challenges conventional approaches to thinking about science and the issues it raises. This commentary explores three key themes identified in the accompanying narratives. (1) Motivated volunteers may serve as novel resources for science, allowing projects to proceed in ways that are cheaper and more accessible than previously considered. (2) Traditional scientific approaches may be insufficient to even identify research questions, much less attempt to address issues. Citizen science may fill that gap. (3) Ethical concepts may have unique applications in this burgeoning field, both due to the emergence of novel ethical issues and to new categories of people, places, and things inherent in the conduct of citizen science. The commentary closes with suggestions for moving forward as citizen science becomes the norm rather than the exception.