Citizen science intervention for improving biodiversity and climate action in residential gardens and cropland

Biodiversity loss is considered the next big global crisis, overshadowing the COVID‐19 pandemic and climate change. Biodiversity loss and climate change are interlinked and mutually reinforcing. However, many people perceive both biodiversity loss and climate change as abstract and psychologically distant threats. Citizens and farmers may struggle with translating these global crises into imminent concerns they can identify and act on in their local livelihood. BIODIVERCITI engages citizens and farmers to reflect on the interrelation between biodiversity loss and climate change and the role they personally play in these crises in a familiar environment – their own garden and cropland. The project analyses how beliefs and behaviours may transfer from biodiversity to climate action in order to transform mindsets and practices. BIODIVERCITI aims to close the gap how to leverage engagement with biodiversity to simultaneously advance engagement with climate action. Therein, the project pursues four research questions: - Which improvements in biodiversity indicators can be achieved? - How do individual climate action and efficacy beliefs change? - How may citizens and farmers collaborate for combating biodiversity loss and climate change? - How may gardens and farmland provide conjunctive elements in habitats? BIODIVERCITI is a multi‐stakeholder citizen science project. The project involves and observes citizens and farmers and their respective gardens and cropland over the timeframe of two vegetation periods. Citizens and farmers receive personal advice on enhancing biodiversity, observe their garden/cropland and are evaluated how their attitudes and beliefs change. Each participating citizen is supported and trained in biodiversity‐enhancing elements and techniques suitable for their garden, which species may benefit, and how to identify and monitor these species. Farmers are grouped by their participation in the Austrian agri‐environmental programme ÖPUL and supplementary organic farming certification.