Top Down or Bottom Up? ALLARM’s Experience with Two Operational Models for Community Science
Presented by: Candie Wilderman, Dickinson College/ALLARM, Environmental Studies Department

Most operational options for community science in the U.S. can be categorized along a multidimensional continuum of community involvement—from community-based participatory research or “science by the people,” to the “community workers model,” where the role of volunteers may be limited to sample collection for a scientific institution or agency. The Alliance for Aquatic Resource Monitoring (ALLARM), a project of the Environmental Studies Department at Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, partners with Pennsylvania communities and individuals who are working to protect and restore watersheds. For the first ten years of the program, ALLARM enlisted hundreds of volunteers across the state of Pennsylvania in research on the effects of acid deposition on Pennsylvania waterways. In 1996, our focus shifted to working cooperatively with volunteer stream monitoring groups to identify watershed issues specific to each community and to provide training for volunteers to address these issues. ALLARM’s experience of evolving from a single-issue, “top-down” program to a multi-issue, “bottom up” program has given us some special insights into the strengths and challenges of the different models. Attributes of the two models that we have used will be examined in terms of: differences in the nature and scope of the issues addressed, required investment by the service provider, quality control, interest and engagement in the project, community-building, ownership and understanding of data and empowerment of community members.