The Network of the National of Library of Medicine (NNLM), a program of the National Library of Medicine (NLM), and the All of Us Research Program have expanded a partnership with SciStarter to support awareness of, and engagement in, citizen science projects that advance research on human and environmental health. A new, four-part public series of virtual events will provide accessible, bilingual resources to 1) introduce citizen science programs and hands-on projects to the public and 2) library staff and leaders from community-based organizations (CBOs) in bringing citizen science to their audiences.
The first hour of each online event is open to the public. The final half-hour will provide step-by-step instructions and links to resources to support library staff and leaders from community-based organizations (CBOs) seeking to facilitate citizen science programming for their audiences. Three Medical Library Association (MLA) continuing education credits are offered upon completion of the 90-minute program for eligible participants.
Turn your curiosity about health issues into impact with citizen science!
Live closed captioning and American Sign Language (ASL) will be available for each event.
RSVP for Events
Registration for all events is available at SciStarter.org/NLM:
- 9/30 at 2 PM ET | Citizen Science & Libraries: Advance Alzheimer’s Research Online Presentation and Q&A
- 10/21 at 2 PM ET | Citizen Science & Libraries: Fight Plastic Pollution Through Citizen Science Online Presentation and Q&A
- 11/18 at 2 PM ET | Citizen Science & Libraries: Create your own air quality sensor with CanAir.io
- 18 de noviembre a las 4 p.m., hora del este | ¡Crea tu propio sensor de calidad del aire con CanAir.io!
- 12/16 at 2 PM ET | Citizen Science & Libraries: Help Develop RNA-based Medicines Online Presentation and Q&A
Background
SciStarter has collaborated with NNLM on Citizen Science Day in 2019, Citizen Science Month in 2020 and the Summer Reading Meets Citizen Science program in 2020. In a blog post about the Summer Reading Program, Patricia Flatley Brennan, R.N., Ph.D., director of NLM said, “Libraries serve as vital community hubs, and this collaboration presents a perfect opportunity to help the public understand how health research impacts all of us. Working with our vast network of public libraries, we hope to contribute to medical breakthroughs that may lead to more tailored disease prevention and treatment solutions for generations to come.”
Libraries are quickly becoming community hubs for citizen science. These online events fit well with the mission to use libraries to strengthen communities and transform lives through education and lifelong learning.
Offering a safe and healthy environment is a top priority for public libraries as they pivot their services to address the health concerns posed by COVID-19. Many libraries are not able to open their doors to large gatherings making this fall event programming more valuable than ever.
There are many ways for anyone who is curious or concerned about local or global issues to engage.
To get started, go to SciStarter.org/NLM to:
- Sign up for a free SciStarter account
- Access the free, “Introduction to Citizen Science” online, self-guided tutorial in English and Spanish
- Review and participate in any of the featured projects
- Explore health resources from NNLM and All of Us
- Select one or more of the free virtual events to tune into and register
Then, tune in and engage!
Are you a library staff member or who is interested in co-hosting a virtual event with SciStarter and NNLM in the coming months? Opportunities are still available! Sign up for email updates and come to office hours: CitizenScienceMonth.org/MailingList
For other health programming ideas, visit the NNLM Citizen Science Website.
To learn more about the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), please visit the CDC Coronavirus site.
About the Partners
SciStarter.org is the place to find, join, and contribute to science by providing people access to more than 3,000 searchable formal and informal research projects, events, and tools. SciStarter also offers a coordinated place to earn credit for your contributions across projects and platforms. More than 100,000 global citizen scientists are registered members of the SciStarter community.
The National Library of Medicine (NLM) operates the Training and Education Center (TEC) to support the All of Us Research Program. Training and educational materials are targeted to key audiences using a Team Science framework, highlighting NLM and National Institutes of Health (NIH) resources and using the expertise of national partners. The TEC collaborates with NNLM’s Community Engagement Network (CEN). The CEN focuses on NNLM’s mission to improve the public’s access to health information and provide awareness of All of Us to communities that are underrepresented in biomedical research by partnering with libraries across the United States. The CEN is designed to leverage the mission of the NNLM to help libraries in supporting the health information needs of their users.The All of Us Research Program has a simple goal: for one million or more people to share health information for research. In the future, researchers can use this data to conduct thousands of health studies.
