Ngwena dza madi

As we listen to the voice of David Manamela, a citizen scientist, we capture an experience at the grassroots that stresses ‘authentic’ voice and real experience (it has integrity and the approach is ethical – listening attentively to individual stories).  

Ngwena dza madi

In working with citizen scientists we observe but do not objectify. To observe is to attend to persons and things to learn from them. As Ingold (2015) notes, participant observation, in short, is a practice of correspondence: a way of living attentively with those among whom we work. It is not to arrive at retrospective accounts of what life is like but rather it is ethical and educational. As the project is about democratising knowledge, enhancing water literacy and empowering CS it is pertinent to show one of our water champions (ngwena dza madi) who is confident enough to train new volunteers as the project is upscaled. 

Citizen science and groundwater monitoring in the Hout Catchment

Please take a moment to look at this blog which tells you about the project in Limpopo. 

The blog is live here: https://council.science/current/blog/citizen-science/

The following quote is by Russell (2014:11) and is on the significance of Citizen Science

This is renaissance, your dentist now an authority on butterflies. 
Pygmy hunters and gatherers use smartphones to document deforestation in the Congo Basin. High school students identify fossils in soils from ancient seas. Do-it-yourself biologists make centrifuges at home. This is falling in love with the world, and this is science, and at the risk of sounding too much an idealist, I have come to believe they are the same thing.