Abstract:

This paper explores the intersection of participants’ needs and the process of inclusion in citizen (social) science, focusing on the underrepresented Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing (DHH) communities in Greece and Hungary. Over the last two decades, citizen science has emerged as a democratizing force in scientific research. However, its predominance in Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic (WEIRD) settings has raised concerns about inclusivity. This study investigates the efforts to engage people with special needs in socio-environmental challenges, addressing issues such as social inequality and the potential for citizen (social) science to challenge neoliberal trajectories in science.

The paper introduces inclusive citizen (social) science, thus emphasizing participatory methodologies rooted in social sciences. The paper draws from experiences and insights generated by two citizen science projects in Hungary and Greece that serve as case studies to illustrate the deployment of citizen (social) science with DHH individuals. The comparative analysis delves into the intervention designs, tools, challenges, and strategies deployed by DHH trainers and researchers in each case study.

Acknowledging the limitations of existing DHH citizen science projects, the study addresses recommendations for constant co-learning and mutual exchanges between researchers and participants to counterbalance social hierarchies. We propose inclusive citizen science as a means to empower marginalized social groups by addressing their special and context-dependent needs. We do so to underscore the scarcity of resources in citizen science literature related to DHH communities, calling for further research and collaboration to ensure full and equal accessibility in scientific endeavours.

Keywords:

Citizen science, inclusivity, research, ethics, civic engagement, accessibility.