Impacts of citizen science on trust between stakeholders and trust in science in a polarized context

Air pollution and odour annoyance caused by livestock farming often leads to tension and distrust between livestock farmers and non-farming residents in agricultural areas in the Netherlands. In this study, we conducted a citizen science project to measure air quality and odour annoyance in collaboration with farmers, non-farming residents, and the municipality. The aim was to explore whether measuring together through citizen science influenced (1) mutual trust between stakeholders, and (2) their trust in the scientific process and outcomes of this project. We conducted semi-structured interviews with participants before and after participating in the project. Results indicated that measuring together did not improve trust between farmers and their neighbours. However, non-farming residents did express more trust in the municipality and perceived their interests were more fairly taken into account. Moreover, all participants expressed trust in the scientific process and outcomes regarding their ‘own’ measurements; contrasting the distrust they expressed in the ‘official’ governmental data. Control and transparency due to their own involvement, involvement of an independent scientific institute and positive interactions with the scientists’ contributed to this trust. These results highlight the need for further research on the potential impact of citizen science projects on trust in different contexts.