This week, the Đetinja riverbank hosted the first meeting and training session for volunteers of the Citizen Science programme "Guardians of Đetinja" — and after a short briefing, hands went straight to work. Each volunteer team received a pen-sized digital tester that reads four key water quality parameters in seconds: pH, temperature, TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) and EC (Electrical Conductivity). Right after the introduction, the group headed to the riverbank for a first trial measurement on site — literally the first numbers that will track the river's condition for weeks to come.
The programme is part of the BioRider project, co-funded by EIT Urban Mobility, an initiative of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), carried out together with the Regional Development Agency Zlatibor and the Institute of Architecture and Urban & Spatial Planning of Serbia (IAUS). The data volunteers collect until September 10 will feed into an interactive digital map of the Đetinja and provide an expert basis for riverbank revitalisation and biodiversity protection. Thanks to all the "guardians" who joined in — check out the training gallery below!