Organizational Structure

& Governance  

Executive Board 
Responsibility for formal representation and business conduct of FACTZ lies with the Executive Board, which is elected every three years by FACTZ membership at the General Assembly. The Executive Board, which convenes every six months, is make up of the Co-Directors, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and two Communications Officers. 

Board of Directors to the Executive Board 
The scientific principles that guide FACTZ’s activities are mapped out by the Board of Directors. The Board also provides guidance to the Executive Board in overall organizational, legal and ethical issues. The Board of Directors is appointed at the General Assembly, with up to ten members each serving three-year terms. The Board convenes once annually to decide on protocol and other important organizational points of order by a simple majority. 

Membership 
General Membership in FACTZ is open to anyone interested in being part of the organization and participating in its activities. There is a nominal membership fee of EUR 35 for employed persons, which is reduced to EUR 15 for students, pensioners and un- or underemployed people.  

Thematic Working Groups  
Much of the on-the-ground operation of FACTZ is led by several thematic Working Groups. Led and overseen by FACTZ members, these serve as a forum for collaborating on citizen science related work within a particular theme. Activities carried out include joint research projects, experience and knowledge sharing events, capacity-building workshops, and co-creation of practice toolkits. Participation in the thematic Working Groups is open to all FACTZ members. 

Annual Finnish Citizen Science Conference  
Each year FACTZ organizes the Finnish Citizen Science Conference. This event brings together a multitude of people, from across FACTZ’s membership, as well as other researchers, practitioners, policymakers, NGOs, and interested citizens. Through various formats such as sessions, plenaries, roundtables, workshops, dialogue forums, young citizen-scientist mentoring events, participants share their experiences and knowledge, explore new avenues for citizen science, and help to anchor the Citizen Science community in Finland. The General Assembly, open to all FACTZ members, convenes at each Conference. This annual event is both a celebration of the dynamic and drowing Finnish Citizen Science community, and a privileged arena for networking and building partnerships. The first FACTZ Conference will be held in 2024. 

Finnish CS Project Platform 
One of the core mandates of FACTZ is to serve as a hub that brings together Citizen Science projects in Finland. Over the coming months, Finnish CS Project platform, managed by FACTZ, will become a space for showcasing CS projects to the public. This makes it particularly interesting to researchers and project coordinators, as well as to municipal and community leaders. The platform is a way to generate buzz, awareness and outreach for Citizens to participate in CS projects. It is also an important arena for interested citizens (or e.g. schools) who are looking for a project to engage with. 

Funding 
Initial funding for FACTZ has been provided by the Biodiverse Anthropocenes research programme, University of Oulu. The initiative has been spawned fro ENVIROCENT, a project funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers project which has focused on environmental practices in Citizen Science research.