Keep the flow: Citizen science as agonistic learning

Abstract

This paper addresses the transformative and emancipatory potential of citizen science not only concerning its role in groundwater management, but also regarding its contribution to enhanced and sustainable well-being. Our work is in the Hout Catchment region of the Limpopo province in South Africa where living conditions vary greatly, but all share a vulnerable dependency on the dwindling availability of water. We propose that the interaction between human water systems and its contextual social dimensions with regard to diversity and historically shaped structures of power has had serious impacts on the ability to tackle challenges of sustainable water management. In our project, citizen scientists markedly expanded data collection and analysis at a fraction of the cost of traditional scientific endeavours.