Formulation of citizen science approach for monitoring Sustainable Development Goal 6: Clean water and sanitation for an Indian city

The United Nations acknowledges that action in one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will impact outcomes in others and that development should interact the social, economic, and environmental sustainability. Many countries have prioritized goals and targets based on their current progress and the prosperity of their people. This article focused on SDG 6: Clean water and sanitation, especially the first two (6.1 and 6.2) out of eight targets. The author has considered SDG 6, a critical goal to focus on and achieve in Tirunelveli city municipal corporation. The study area is situated in the Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu, India's southernmost state. Citizen science (CS), also known as community science, has emerged as an effective method of collecting data and supporting a wide range of indicators from the SDG targets. The objective of this article is to utilize the benefit of the CS approach for monitoring the targets 6.1 and 6.2 pertained to drinking water and sanitation facilities respectively in the study area. The activities suggested for this SDG 6 CS project were framing the core question, identification of citizen scientists, data analysis, and action plan. College students, ward councilors, and community volunteers, referred to as three categories of citizen scientists, will collect household data for all 55 wards in the study area. The value of the collected data to various government agencies and monitoring organizations is also discussed.