At the end of each cropping season, the project team, led by the PhD student (Dina Nabasumba), conducts field validation visits across the target villages in Isingiro District. These visits are designed to verify the data submitted by citizen scientists, ensuring accuracy and completeness in reporting.
During these engagements:
- Farmers receive on-site feedback and guidance on how to accurately document their farming practices, including input use, planting arrangements, and output tracking.
- The team provides technical support, including guidance on emerging pest and disease identification, crop health management, and proper record keeping.
- Validation visits also offer an opportunity for the project to retrieve unsynchronized data from farmer devices and build trust and ownership by addressing practical challenges faced by farmers in real time.
These visits not only strengthen the reliability of the citizen-generated data but also foster ongoing learning and improvement, turning routine verification into a platform for localized capacity building.
