Abstract:

Aims: Biodiversity data is a fundamental component of reaching global biodiversity conservation goals. It is therefore necessary to efficiently and systematically monitor biodiversity to support the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) implementation. To reach these objectives, citizen science is a powerful approach, enabling countries to promote diverse and systematic biodiversity monitoring. However, there are few studies on how effectively citizen science has been applied to monitoring urban biodiversity. To fill this gap in the literature, the goal of our study was to develop a better understanding of the status and strength of urban biodiversity citizen science as well as the features that affect public involvement. 

Methods: We collected 140 citizen science projects across the globe that were related to urban biodiversity monitoring. The temporal, geographical, and taxonomic coverage of these projects were analyzed to review how citizen science has been applied monitoring urban biodiversity. Additionally, Maslow’s need theory was used to summarize motivations and barriers affecting engagement in biodiversity monitoring. Finally, the profile of the “citizen scientists” was described to reveal their demographics, customs, and preferences, enabling us to generate strategies to promote these projects moving forward. 

Results: Urban biodiversity citizen science has attracted attention in developed countries such as Europe and America, and in China it has been applied in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, Yangtze River Delta, and Pearl River Delta. The success of these transregional projects demonstrates how viable citizen science was for large-scale biodiversity monitoring. In China, urban biodiversity citizen science was deployed later than other countries, its application peaked between 2019 and 2020, while its benefits have been increasingly recognized. These projects have covered a wide range of biological taxa, and they have focused on native species conservation, biosecurity, and typical urban biodiversity threats such as roadkill and bird collisions. Citizen scientists in biodiversity monitoring projects had consistent demographic characteristics, habits, and participation preferences. In turn, these characteristics and motivations were used to propose specific strategies to improve the participation experience and enhance the project sustainability in citizen science, particularly in the forms of cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and social engagement. 

Conclusion: This review revealed the promising development of urban biodiversity citizen science, especially in light of its current applications and our global needs for biodiversity conservation policy. However, in order to achieve the KMGBF goals and targets, it is necessary to promote a standardized and scaled development of these citizen science programs. Future studies should explore localized pathways to increase the inclusivity of citizen science. Additionally, projects should focus on aligning their objectives with data needs related to the KMGBF, and it is necessary to enhance data sharing to support decision-making and scientific research.

Key words: citizen engagement, engagement motivation, participant profile, sustainability in citizen science, Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF)