Co-ordinators: Susanne Blumesberger (Vienna University Library), Sarah Kwiatkowski (Treffpunkt Bibliothek Service Centre)
Motivation
The Libraries Working Group was established in spring 2026 and is jointly coordinated by the Association of Austrian Librarians (VÖB) and the Austrian Association for Public Libraries (BVÖ).
The working group is aimed at all interested library staff who are already involved in citizen science or are planning related activities, who wish to network, jointly develop concepts to better support researchers and citizen scientists, initiate their own projects, and collaboratively produce useful materials and resources.
In addition, we also wish to engage with project leaders and highlight libraries as potential project partners.
Citizen science in public and academic libraries
Citizen science takes place in both academic and public libraries, opening up new opportunities for collaboration between the research community and society. Whilst public libraries serve as venues for interaction and shared learning thanks to their low-threshold access, suitable premises and educational programmes, academic libraries make important contributions to research support.
However, the implementation of citizen science projects places new demands on libraries. Researchers and citizen scientists require support in areas such as ethical and legal issues, research data management, open science and publication services. Smaller libraries in particular often lack sufficient staff and specialist resources to comprehensively meet these diverse requirements. Greater networking and cooperation between public and academic libraries can help to pool expertise and promote citizen science in the long term.
Objectives for research and society
- Unlocking hidden sources and collections
- Optimising metadata and descriptions
- Working with previously untapped data
- Networking and community building
- Increasing the visibility of research findings
- Contributing to global goals and the Sustainable Development Goals
Strategic objectives for the library
- Sharpening its profile as a “third place”: The library positions itself as an open meeting place where knowledge is not merely consumed but actively produced.
- Democratisation of knowledge: Barriers to scholarship are being broken down. The library enables people from all educational backgrounds, with diverse experiences and from different age groups, with or without disabilities, to participate in research processes.
- Increasing relevance: Through local research projects (e.g. local history or on-site environmental monitoring), the library demonstrates its direct benefit to the local community.
- Increasing user numbers by lowering barriers
- Closer collaboration with researchers
Getting started
Firstly, we would like to bring together staff from public and academic libraries who are involved in citizen science or who would like to work in this field in the future.
We then aim to exchange experiences and observations in order to gain a better understanding of the diversity of citizen science projects and their requirements. On this basis, we intend to develop joint recommendations and guidelines to support practical work.
In the long term, we also plan to create a freely accessible repository of resources that all participants can use and further develop. In addition, training and professional development opportunities will be provided to build and strengthen shared expertise.
Services we would like to develop
- Guides for librarians: Ways to support participation in citizen science projects
- Guides for project leaders: How can libraries be involved in project planning or act as partners; what opportunities do libraries offer as partners for citizen science projects
- Citizen Science Radar: Which platforms and projects are particularly suitable for libraries
- Overview of existing literature and training materials
Organisation of the working group
The working group meets several times a year online and in person at library conferences.
Further information about the working group and upcoming events can be found at https://voeb-b.at/voeb-kommissionen/ag-citizen-science/.
If you are interested in joining the working group or have any further questions, please contact:
Susanne Blumesberger
Vienna University Library
Sarah Kwiatkowski
Treffpunkt Bibliothek