Policy Briefs

The brief presents two main policy recommendations: 1) Enable collaborative and transparent monitoring and feedback mechanisms to support better-informed Air Quality Plans and progress towards zero pollution by 2050. 2) Facilitate the use of citizen-generated data as complementary measures within the Directive (EU) 2024/2881 framework, through sustained funding, harmonised quality assurance, innovative calibration approaches and improved technical standards. The recommendations are intended for policymakers, regulatory authorities and other stakeholders working to strengthen participatory air quality governance and integrate citizen science into environmental monitoring and decision-making across Europe.

This policy brief presents a framework for enabling cooperation between government authorities and Citizen Observatories (COs) in urban environmental monitoring and policymaking. It outlines approaches for overcoming key social and technological barriers — including data quality assurance, interoperability, and inclusion — using CitiObs tools such as the FILTER methodology and the Leave-No-One-Behind Toolkit. The brief emphasizes the importance of shared data infrastructures, open standards, and participatory governance, and proposes dedicated institutional structures and co-creation spaces to support sustained, inclusive citizen science at scale.

This policy brief presents a framework for integrating Citizen Generated Data into the European Green Deal Data Space, with a focus on air quality monitoring. It outlines a method for transforming data from low-cost sensors into Trusted Decision Ready Information (TDRI) using CitiObs tools like VirtualAir and MapAir. The brief emphasizes the importance of validation, provenance, and data sovereignty, and proposes the use of immutable catalogs and certification to support trusted data exchange at scale.