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Citizen Science as a Tool to Track Plastic Waste Data in Aruba.

Frank, Michel
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Digital tool
Citizen science
Tourists
Plastic waste
Location research
Aruba
Date
2023-03-10
Language
en
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Thesis Michel Frank final report april 23 (2).pdf
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Abstract
Excessive waste and plastic pollution are globally recognized problems, as well as in Small Island Development States (SIDS). SIDS are vulnerable to pollution generated by plastic waste produced by the local population and plastic waste that tourists generate. There is a lack of data on the volume of post-consumer plastic waste, and one approach to collect the necessary data is through the involvement of citizens, so-called citizen science (CS), using digital tools. This paper is about the research on specifications for a digital waste data collection tool for tourists in Aruba through CS. With CS, citizens collect data for a research project; in this case, tourists are involved. The digital tool will be potentially developed based on the findings of this study, for which research was done through a survey and desk research on cases related to CS, plastic waste, and different existing software and applications that can and are already being used in CS projects. Research through literature and the survey shows tourists' interest and positive intention to participate in a CS project and how to optimally engage with this digital tool. In-depth research was explicitly done on CS by tourists. At the same time, available online sustainability applications and websites provided recommendations for the specifications for this new digital tool, which, e.g., needs to be free, informative, easy to use, shareable, playful, and rewarding. Results of this study also show that tourism is the main contributor to plastic waste produced globally, and of which most plastic is used out of comfort and for single usage. Of the single-use plastic (SUP), plastic water bottles contribute the most to plastic waste. The overall outcome of this research inclines positively toward the actual development of the plastic waste data collection tool to be used by tourists.
Citation
Frank, M. (2023). Citizen Science as a Tool to Track Plastic Waste Data in Aruba. Bachelor Dissertation. University of Aruba. 43 pages.
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University of Aruba
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URI
https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14473/1089
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