The professionalisation of marine community science as a limitation to researcher-activist participation

Marine community science has gained momentum as a participatory approach to knowledge production that uses amateurs to contribute to the evidence-base that underpins marine policy. By increasing monitoring efforts and empowering members of the public to take political action to protect the oceans, community science has helped to transform marine management to address issues, such as, sea-level rise, overfishing, and ocean acidification. The growing success of marine community science has led to a greater interest and involvement of government bodies in projects, with the initiatives of many Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) now funded by government. Although government support for community science projects may appear as a transfer of power to NGOs and their volunteers, it may also act to limit the radical potential of community knowledge production. Attempts to professionalise marine community science reduces the capacity of projects to empower local knowledge and to transform marine management processes. Drawing on a survey of community volunteers and NGO interviews, we illustrate how the professionalisation of community science limits participation and tends to exclude activists seeking to challenge the neoliberal marine governance.