Citizen Science and Digital Geomedia: Implementing a Biodiversity Information System in Cabo Verde

Abstract

Digital geomedia has an enormous potential for the activation of citizens and organizations in the area of ecological and spatial awareness. By means of the new spatial media, the civil society is given the opportunity to acquire information and knowledge on environmental aspects. At the same time, they can collect new georeferenced data independently, and contribute this data to the scientific community. The purpose of this paper is to contribute a practical approach to promote a sustainable biodiversity management and monitoring system in combination with an education system in Cabo Verde. The underlying theoretical framework for the design of the participatory Biodiversity Information System (BIS) is set by the critical GIS-debate. The project is based on educational approaches of environmental citizenship and spatial citizenship, which explicitly take into account aspects of participation, empowerment, and capacity building. The result of this paper aims at implementing a cooperation between citizens and scientists in the area of biodiversity in Cabo Verde.