How PHAROS Living Labs Empower Stakeholder Engagement Through MINKA

• May 14, 2025

Empowering Stakeholder Engagement Through Citizen Science: Discover MINKA

As part of our ongoing efforts to develop the Living Labs within the PHAROS project, we are excited to introduce MINKA, a dynamic citizen science platform designed to facilitate participatory engagement, enhance data collection, and visualise community-driven environmental observations.

MINKA supports PHAROS partners and stakeholders by offering a user-friendly, open-access toolkit that transforms how we gather and share information across coastal and marine environments. Whether you’re planning a community biodiversity survey, monitoring pollution, or involving local voices in ecosystem-based planning, MINKA provides the tools to do it all. Collaboratively and effectively.

What is MINKA?

• MINKA is more than just an app, it’s a modular platform structured around three core services:
• Observe: Empower communities and stakeholders to record observations using photos, location data, and custom input fields.
• Analyse: Explore and visualise the data collected, making it easier to identify trends and generate meaningful insights.
• Deliberate: Enable dialogue by sharing results with stakeholders and fostering participatory decision-making.

Real-World Success Stories

The presentation also showcases examples of successful citizen science initiatives that have used MINKA to:

• Engage communities in coastal monitoring efforts
• Enhance data collection for marine protected areas
• Support local education and outreach programmes

By learning from these experiences, PHAROS partners can tailor their own projects to maximise impact and foster long-term collaboration with local actors.

Step-by-Step Guidance + Translation Support

Included in the downloadable materials is a comprehensive step-by-step guide on how to design and launch your own citizen science project using MINKA. The resources are also available in open format, allowing you to translate them into your local language.

We also provide a practical guide on how to use Crowdin, an online tool for collaborative translation, to adapt the MINKA platform and mobile app for your region or language group.

Learn More: Watch Our Citizen Science Webinar

To complement the platform introduction, we invite you to watch our recorded webinar on Citizen Science and Stakeholder Engagement, which covers:

• What citizen science means in the context of the PHAROS project
• How to identify, invite, and retain diverse stakeholder groups
• Field-tested strategies for public engagement and co-creation

🎥 Watch the webinar now