With our third and final Ocean Seminar of this semester this Wednesday, June 10, we are looking at the topic of Plastic Pollution and the possibilities for citizen science to address and to mitigate this environmental emergency.
Tim Kiessling is an expert and engaged marine biologist who investigates the plastic pollution crisis with the help of schoolchildren and teachers as citizen scientists. Tim also investigates how citizen science can work in the school context, for example in terms of data quality, communication approaches and inclusiveness.
Abstract
Plastic pollution has developed into an large-scale international crisis, fuelled by the lack of adequate legislation and lobbying efforts by the plastic industry. People from the public have advocated since decades for a plastic free environment and were involved in clean-up efforts and even scientific investigations into the plastic pollution problem, in so-called citizen science studies. The “Plastic Pirates” are one example of a citizen science project investigating plastic pollution. The involved schoolchildren are active in various European countries and have contributed to our understanding of the scale and sources of plastic pollution in aquatic environments. In this presentation, I will elaborate on next steps, for example: How to involve schoolchildren in the research cycle beyond data collection? And how to put schoolchildren in a position as agents of change, in order to establish local collaborations with decision makers?
When? June 10, 2026 | 5:00-7:00 PM (CET)
Join Us!
📌 Register here: https://mailchi.mp/ed2568d2b8dd/ocean-seminar-lecture-series
📌 More information: https://twinpolitics.eu/
Most of the sessions will be recorded. The recordings will be made available to the public after receiving consent from the speakers.
Project Leader: Prof. Dr. Alice Vadrot – TwinPolitics Principal investigator, University of Vienna – alice.vadrot@univie.ac.at
Seminar Organiser – The TwinPolitics Team, Universtiy of Vienna – twinpolitics.erc.powi@univie.ac.at
This project has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme (grant agreement No 101124903 – TwinPolitics – ERC-2024-STG). Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Research Council. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
