BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//pretalx//talks.osgeo.org//X9VD8J BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:CET BEGIN:STANDARD DTSTART:20001029T040000 RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;BYDAY=-1SU;BYMONTH=10 TZNAME:CET TZOFFSETFROM:+0200 TZOFFSETTO:+0100 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT DTSTART:20000326T030000 RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;BYDAY=-1SU;BYMONTH=3 TZNAME:CEST TZOFFSETFROM:+0100 TZOFFSETTO:+0200 END:DAYLIGHT END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT UID:pretalx-foss4g-2023-X9VD8J@talks.osgeo.org DTSTART;TZID=CET:20230629T113000 DTEND;TZID=CET:20230629T120000 DESCRIPTION:The christmas bird count\, started by ornithologist frank chapm an in 1900\, is one of the earliest and longest-running citizen science pr ojects in the world. Today\, it involves thousands of birdwatchers who cou nt birds over a 24-hour period in mid-december. The data collected during the christmas bird count provides scientists with valuable information abo ut bird populations\, migration patterns\, and other important ecological trends. This project set the stage for the growth of citizen science initi atives\, where people participate in scientific research.\nRecently\, ther e has been an increase in the number of citizen (cyber-)science projects\, which leverage the power of the internet and digital technology to involv e people in scientific research. These projects have had a significant imp act on society\, contributing to advancements in fields such as astronomy\ , ecology\, and health. While these projects can be a lot of fun\, sometim es the tasks for participants can be really monotonous\, and they can lose motivation to continue being a part of the project. Therefore\, project o rganizers need to keep participants engaged. This is where gamification co mes into play. Applying game elements to anything that isn't a game is kno wn as gamification. Adding elements of competition and rewards can help pe ople stay engaged in the project and continue making contributions (Haklay \, 2012). This can be especially helpful for long-term projects that requi re continual effort from participants. The openSenseMap(1) is an open-sour ce(2) citizen cyber-science platform that facilitates environmental monito ring by allowing individuals to measure and publish sensor data. The platf orm is designed to create a community-driven network of sensors to monitor various environmental factors\, such as air\, water quality\, and much mo re. A significant advantage of the platform is that it operates on open da ta principles\, whereby all sensor data\nis accessible to the public(3). T his openness encourages collaboration and facilitates innovation\, which h as led to numerous applications in environmental monitoring. Despite its s uccess\, the platform still faces challenges regarding user engagement and motivation\, necessitating the incorporation of gamification strategies t o enhance participation.\nDigital badges can be earned in a variety of set tings and are a recognized symbol of skill or accomplishment. Although bad ges are a common gamification component\, they are typically only usable i n closed environments. The possibility of awarding badges for voluntarily participating in scientific research can increase participant motivation. The ability to display\, share\, and verify badges alongside skills and cr edentials from other environments has changed the game of digital credenti als. This technology is called Open Badges.\nThis paper focuses on the mot ivational impact Open Badges can have on citizen science in the context of the openSenseMap platform. Users of the openSenseMap platform were survey ed for this study. Based on the results\, a prototype was implemented\, co mbining an open badge platform with the existing openSenseMap platform. Th e prototype added an open badge component to the platform\, allowing users to earn badges for various achievements\, such as contributing a certain number of measurements or completing a specific task.\nThe badges were des igned to be displayed on the users profiles and could be shared on social media or other online platforms. This feature enabled participants to show case their contributions and achievements\, increasing their motivation to continue participating in the project. The survey results indicated that participants found the open badge component to make the citizen science pl atform more interesting\, which may suggest that open badges have the pote ntial to increase motivation and engagement in citizen science projects.\n Furthermore\, its important to note that the open badge platform (called m ybadges(4) ) used in this project is open source(5)\, aligning with the sp irit of collaboration and transparency in citizen science. By leveraging t he power of open badges and open-source technology\, this project has the potential to drive significant positive change in the field of cyber-scien ce and promote reproducibility in scientific research.\nIn addition to its potential impact on citizen cyber-science\, open badges can also be adapt ed to the open (geo)education context. Open Badges can provide learners wi th an opportunity to showcase their knowledge and skills in a tangible and transferable way (Halavais\, 2012). A genealogy of badges: inherited mean ing and monstrous moral hybrids). By earning badges for completing educati onal tasks\, learners can build a portfolio of evidence that can be used t o demonstrate their achievements and credentials. This can be particularly valuable in fields such as geospatial science\, where there is a growing demand for individuals with specific technical skills and knowledge. The u se of\nOpen Badges in open (geo)education can enhance the learning experie nce and increase learner motivation\, leading to improved educational outc omes and better-equipped professionals in the field.\nThis paper explores the use of Open Badges\, a gamification component\, to enhance engagement and motivation in citizen cyber-science projects. The proposed approach us es an open-source citizen cyber-science platform\, the openSenseMap\, to c ollect and publish sensor data\, making it accessible to the public. The i ncorporation of Open Badges can incentivize participants to contribute to the project continually. The results of our survey indicated that particip ants found the open badge component to be an engaging and motivating featu re\, which suggests that Open Badges have the potential to increase engage ment in citizen science projects. This papers contribution aligns with the foss4g academic track audiences interest in exploring innovative approach es to open-source technologys use to address environmental and social chal lenges. Therefore\, this papers findings and implementation approach could be of significant interest to the foss4g academic community.\n\n\n1 - htt ps://opensensemap.org\n2 - https://github.com/sensebox/openSenseMap-API\n3 - https://docs.opensensemap.org\n4 - https://mybadges.org/public/start\n5 - https://github.com/myBadges-org/badgr-server DTSTAMP:20260517T143105Z LOCATION:UBT E / N209 - Floor 3 SUMMARY:Motivating environmental citizen scientists and open data acquisiti on on openSenseMap with Open Badges - Frederick Bruch\, Mario Pesch URL:https://talks.osgeo.org/foss4g-2023/talk/X9VD8J/ END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR