Abstract
Arctic research is shifting from a culture of scientist-driven inquiry and extractive relationships with Indigenous communities to a culture more conscious of local priorities and reciprocal research relationships. Today, Arctic research has dual goals of examining circumpolar issues through large-scale studies and collaborating with local individuals and communities through approaches such as community and citizen science (CCS). Scientists’ use of CCS is already established and growing in the Arctic and sub-Arctic (“the North”), but there is limited information about why they choose CCS as a research method. Understanding how scientists perceive CCS in the Northern context can help gauge the culture shift toward collaborating with local individuals and communities. We held semi-structured interviews with 23 scientists to examine their perceived benefits and challenges to using CCS methods in their work, and their motivations for doing so. Scientists described their benefits, challenges, and motivations across five themes: actionable science, cross-cultural co-production of knowledge, data, the interdisciplinary nature of CCS research, and scientist-participant relationships. We found that scientists see the potential to make a difference in peoples’ lives as both a benefit and a motivator. They focused on the benefits of CCS data over the challenges. Building and sustaining relationships with non-scientist partners, particularly Indigenous communities, is a benefit and challenge for many scientists. Our results help characterize scientists’ perceptions of CCS in the North and suggest a potential shift in the culture and priorities of Arctic research.