Community decision-making and empowerment: findings from six years of Citizen Science research

Community involvement and empowerment are central to the notion of environmental democracy. In contrast to decide-announce-defend modes of centralised decision making, planning and management, decisions built on inclusive participation and knowledge sharing are more likely to be supported during implementation, mobilise resources and support, and facilitate social learning. Collaborative modes of governance and inquiry were prioritised by the government agencies, research institutions and industry partners that united in 1999 to fund and establish the Cooperative Research Centre for Coastal Zone, Estuary and Waterway Management. Citizen Science, one of the CRC’s five research themes, aimed to bridge the gaps between science and the community and between science and policy, planning and decision making through integrated and participatory research. Since 1999, the CRC’s Citizen Science research team have generated insights, knowledge and practical tools that have been adopted by a range of environmental management organisations and generated international attention. Their interests have included strategies for community-based science, collaborative and partnership-based decision-making, stakeholder analysis, institutional arrangements for adaptive management, and the role of local government in coastal zone planning. The applied nature of this research, combined with the team’s strong relationships with coastal zone stakeholders and managers, has provided constant feedback to the researchers to guide and validate their research findings and highlight opportunities for adoption. With the program due to conclude mid-2006, the team are now focused on communication, and supporting the adoption of outcomes and outputs from our collaborative and transdisciplinary research journey.