4042. Deputy Donna McGettigan asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science whether Ireland has proposed the inclusion of citizen science or citizen-generated data in the Council Conclusions being advanced during its Presidency (details supplied); the date and Council body each such proposal was made in; the policy outcome sought; the current status of each; the citizen science practitioners consulted; the Departmental steps taken to generate research, innovation and socio-economic value from data collected by members of the public using personal devices; if Ireland has proposed no such language, to confirm that position; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [60682/26]

During Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union, my Department is pursuing actions aimed at strengthening both the policy and scientific environment supporting citizen science and the active engagement of citizens in scientific knowledge production.

The OECD's 2025 report on Citizen Science highlights citizen science as an effective mechanism for engaging diverse groups across society. The Irish Presidency's proposed Council Conclusions on STEM Education and Training aim to strengthen accessible, inclusive and high-quality STEM learning across the lifecycle and throughout the European Union, thereby supporting meaningful public engagement with science. The Conclusions also aim to address barriers to participation in STEM education and training, helping to foster a more inclusive scientific ecosystem and enabling that broad-based participation in the production of scientific knowledge.

The same report highlights the digital transition as driving an expansion in the capacities and capabilities of citizens to contribute to scientific knowledge production. Robust skills and competences for AI can play a key role in supporting this, while ensuring that citizens engage with these technologies critically, responsibly and in a manner that safeguards essential human cognitive capacities. The Irish Presidency’s Council Conclusions on Skills and Competences for AI aim to strengthen education, training and learning for skills and competences in this area across the EU, thereby supporting an environment conducive to citizen science.

Concerning the inclusion of specific references to citizen science or citizen-generated data in these Council Conclusions, no such references have been proposed. The Irish Presidency's Council Conclusions on STEM Education and Training do, however, recognise that STEM, alongside the research and innovation emerging from these fields, are important to citizens' everyday lives. The text also emphasises that STEM education, training and learning fosters curiosity, inquiry, problem-solving, critical thinking and transversal skills, thereby supporting engagement with societal, technological, scientific and environmental developments.

Accordingly, these Presidency Council Conclusions contribute to strengthening the enabling conditions for citizen science, rather than constituting a standalone EU agreement on citizen science.