Social media data for environmental sustainability: A critical review of opportunities, threats, and ethical use

Ghermandi, A. et al. (2023) Social media data for environmental sustainability: A critical review of opportunities, threats, and ethical use. One Earth, 6(3), pp. 236-250. (doi: 10.1016/j.oneear.2023.02.008)

Abstract

Social media data are transforming sustainability science. However, challenges from restrictions in data accessibility and ethical concerns regarding potential data misuse have threatened this nascent field. Here, we review the literature on the use of social media data in environmental and sustainability research. We find that they can play a novel and irreplaceable role in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals by allowing a nuanced understanding of human-nature interactions at scale, observing the dynamics of social-ecological change, and investigating the co-construction of nature values. We reveal threats to data access and highlight scientific responsibility to address trade-offs between research transparency and privacy protection, while promoting inclusivity. This contributes to a wider societal debate of social media data for sustainability science and for the common good.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Sinclair, Dr Michael
• Authors: Ghermandi, A., Langemeyer, J., Van Berkel, D., Calcagni, F., Depietri, Y., Egarter Vigl, L., Fox, N., Havinga, I., Jäger, H., Kaiser, N., Karasov, O., McPhearson, T., Podschun, S., Ruiz-Frau, A., Sinclair, M., Venohr, M., and Wood, S. A.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Urban Studies
• Journal Name: One Earth
• Publisher: Elsevier (Cell Press)
• ISSN: 2590-3322
• ISSN (Online): 2590-3330
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2023 The Authors
• First Published: First published in One Earth 6(3):236-250
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons licence