The importance of citizen science in coastal monitoring. Learnings from experience in Villa Gesell (Argentina)

Abstract

Climate change has affected the coasts of the world due to numerous factors, including the change in the intensity and frequencies of the storms and the increase in the mean sea level, among others. Argentina has extensive coastal areas, and research and monitoring tasks are expensive and require a significant number of personnel to cover large geographical areas. Given this, citizen science has become a tool to increase scientific research's spatial and temporal extension. Therefore, the paper aims to analyze the methodology and development of the citizen science project in Villa Gesell and its lessons for applying them in future coastal environmental monitoring projects. The methodology was based on an experience of the project co-created between activists and researchers. This project included four phases for social and physical aspects: training for the citizens, theoretic and practice on coastal dynamics, and how to measure its geomorphological and oceanographic variations; data collection: the activists who received the training performed the measurements to monitor them beach; data analysis by scientists; and dissemination of results, the report data were disseminated by citizens in their community. The analysis of case studies in citizen science projects generates a fundamental learning arena to apply in future projects. Among the positive aspects were the phases established for their development and the methodology used to collect beach monitoring data.