The Environmental monitoRIng through Civic engAgement (ERICA) is an ERASMUS+ project that started in November 2023. ERICA’s main objective is to improve citizens’ environmental awareness and civic engagement through the development of a new educational methodology on citizen science for environmental monitoring.
ERICA — Environmental monitoRIng through Civic engAgement — is an Erasmus+ project launched in November 2023 to strengthen citizens’ environmental awareness and civic engagement through citizen science for environmental monitoring. The project focuses on the socio-environmental impacts of fossil fuel industries and aims to provide communities with accessible knowledge, tools and methodologies to understand, document and respond to local environmental degradation.
Through ERICA, citizens, civil society organisations, researchers and local stakeholders work together to bridge the gap between scientific knowledge and public action. The project supports bottom-up environmental monitoring by helping adult citizens acquire the skills needed to collect, interpret and use environmental data in ways that can inform advocacy, education, public debate and policy-making.
By focusing on fossil fuel extraction, processing and related industrial impacts, ERICA connects local pollution issues with wider climate and environmental justice challenges. Its approach is based on training, accessible technologies, peer-to-peer learning and the production of actionable knowledge: evidence that can be understood, shared and used by communities, NGOs, researchers and public authorities.
ERICA develops practical resources to help communities monitor and respond to the environmental impacts of fossil fuel industries. The project combines research, participatory methods and digital learning to support citizen-led monitoring across Europe.The project has produced an e-booklet of best practices on citizen science and environmental monitoring, developed a training methodology for adult learners, and launched an open-access e-learning platform. The platform includes modules on citizen engagement, technologies for monitoring air, water and soil pollution, and the production of actionable knowledge.
1. An e-booklet of best practices
The e-booklet Empowering Communities with Citizen Science – Tools to monitor the impacts of fossil fuel industries and drive changes summarizes tools and best practices to conduct citizen science initiatives on the environmental impacts of fossil fuel industries. The e-booklet builds on the extensive reviews the project partners conducted during the first project year and is designed to be accessible to interested adults irrespective of their background. The e-booklet was written in english and will soon be available in other languages – including Italian, Spanish, and Polish.
Download the e-booklet below!
2. The ERICA training methodology
The ERICA training methodology, constituted by a module on environmental monitoring practices, one on the technologies for citizen sensing, one on data advocacy and further content material for actionable knowledge. It will provide the necessary knowledge to adult citizens on how to play an active role in the fight against climate change through civic engagement.
3. The ERICA e-learning platform
The ERICA e-learning platform is an open-access training space created to make the project methodology widely available. It offers a clear and practical learning pathway for citizens, students, practitioners and civic organisations interested in applying citizen science to environmental monitoring, with a specific focus on fossil fuel impacts.
The platform is organised into three thematic modules: Citizen Science and Modes of Engagement, Technologies for Environmental Monitoring, and Actionable Knowledge in Citizen Science. Each module combines theory and practice through lessons, case studies, video lectures, FAQs and quizzes.
4. Pilots' action and evaluation
ERICA is being tested through pilot activities in three European fossil fuel and industrial regions: Basilicata in Italy, focused on oil extraction; the Tarragona Petrochemical Complex in Spain; and the Konin lignite region in Poland. These pilot sites allow the project to test citizen science methodologies in real socio-environmental contexts and assess how participatory monitoring can support communities affected by fossil fuel industries.
Terragona Petrochemical Complex (Spain)
The Tarragona pilot focuses on one of Europe’s major petrochemical areas, where citizen science can support public understanding of industrial pollution and strengthen community access to environmental information.
Konine Lignite Region Mine (Poland)
This region is shaped by a long history of lignite mining and coal-fired power production. ERICA addresses the need for monitoring practices in a region facing groundwater depletion, landscape change, ecosystem impacts and the broader transition.
Tempa Rossa, Val d'Agri (Italy)
In Basilicata, ERICA focuses on the impacts of oil extraction and processing in areas such as Val d’Agri, Tempa Rossa and Lake Pertusillo, where local communities have raised concerns about air, water and health impacts linked to fossil fuel activities.
ERICA is implemented by a European consortium including universities, civil society organisations and technical partners. Source International is one of the project partners, together with organisations and institutions including the International Institute of Social Studies, Cova Contro, Social IT, Adam Mickiewicz University, ALDA and the University of Barcelona.
