Mobile technologies and services for environmental monitoring: The Citi-Sense-MOB approach

•Innovative approach to environmental monitoring.•Mobile technologies to facilitate public participation.•Increased citizens’ engagement in environmental governance.•Creation of a city laboratory in Oslo for environmental observation.

The impact of mobile technologies on the Citizens’ Observatory in the areas of air quality, environmental health and climate change, has the potential to significantly improve data coverage by the provision of near-real-time high-resolution data over urban areas. The Citi-Sense-MOB Citizens’ Observatory will be part of an environmental health monitoring system and environmental health knowledge base, created from information provided by GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite Systems) signals such as GPS (Global Positioning System) and Citizens’ Observatory data. The main objective of Citi-Sense-MOB is to support green growth and sustainable development in Oslo, Norway, by providing citizens and authorities with information on transport, CO2 emissions and air quality. This paper presents the approach used to develop the information value chain necessary to the success of Citi-Sense-MOB, from the sensor platform and architecture to the products and services supporting participatory governance through the Citizens’ Observatory concept.