The Italian Citizen Science Observatory: a growing association open to collaboration to foster public participation and education in water research Europe-wide

The Italian Citizen Science Observatory, established in 2016, seeks to encourage public involvement in science by turning citizens into active contributors to scientific research. Its objective is to implement Citizen Science to strengthen collaboration between researchers and civil society, building an increasingly close relationship between science and the wider community. The Observatory focuses on monitoring and safeguarding the health of freshwater ecosystems—such as rivers, lakes, streams and wetlands—on which everyone relies, as well as the surrounding riparian areas. One of the pillars of the Observatory's mission is education, with a strong focus on schools as key environments for the development of scientific literacy, environmental awareness, and active citizenship. Schools are recognized not only as places of learning, but also as catalysts for cultural change, capable of amplifying Citizen Science practices within families and local communities. Through practical monitoring and inquiry-based learning activities, students become active observers of their local freshwater ecosystems and ambassadors for sustainable behavior.The Observatory actively promotes peer education approaches, encouraging the exchange of knowledge between students, teachers, citizens, and researchers. This horizontal learning model improves engagement, empowers young people as science communicators, and strengthens intergenerational dialogue on environmental protection.A recent accomplishment of the Observatory is the development of the RiVE (Riparian Vegetation) methodology as a Citizen Science tool for monitoring riparian zones. RiVE assesses riparian zone ecological health by the engagement of local communities in tracking plant diversity and ecosystem functions. This approach highlights the importance of these biodiversity-rich corridors for river health and management, often contrasting with fixed-width buffer approaches. The Observatory serves as the first Italian hub of the Earthwatch FreshWater Watch program, defining and sharing best practices for data collection and creating new tools whenever required. It also runs pilot initiatives in protected areas and works more broadly with local environmental bodies and associations.We here present the activities undertaken at the Observatory, from building Citizen Science initiatives and communities to training both citizens, schoolteachers, school children and students, policy makers and researchers, encouraging the active engagement of all society actors in scientific endeavours and aquatic ecosystems management and protection.At EGU we hope to spark new collaboration opportunities and expand the Observatory network to foster the co-creation and management of Citizen Science projects across Europe and beyond.https://www.osservatoriocitizenscience.org/home/