The Citizen Science of Weight Loss

Science, by the people, for the people

IWCR INSIDERS: JUNE 2021 EDITION

What do whales, bees, celestial bodies, biofuel, and you all have in common? Citizen Science! This cutting-edge method of research has arrived, and it is all about you. Your story matters, and by contributing your story you become part of the IWCR global community working to improve the lives of millions of people.

How Can I Help Improve the Lives of Millions?

Citizen Science is a truly modern approach to data collection, through community participation in research.  People just like you are pioneering the research that is helping us all understand our world better every day.  Citizen Science research includes people like you studying everything from the smallest bees to the biggest whales, the stars in the sky, and new sources of eco-friendly energy.  However, never before has there been a Citizen Science initiative that brings together a worldwide network of people like us—those starting, struggling, or succeeding with weight loss. 

The World Is Big But We Can Still Work Together

We are all walking around with a lifetime of wisdom inside us, and now instead of millions of untold stories—millions of data points—scattered throughout the world, we can collect your insights from across the world and centralize them, analyze them, find the patterns, test ideas, identify common obstacles, and discover many more ideas we haven’t even considered yet.  It was never possible before, but thanks to your involvement we are on our way there—together!

Weight Loss Is Personal: Your Weight Loss Story Is Important Data for Science

You are making a difference, not just for yourself, but for the rest of the world. Much is yet to be discovered.  You and your fellow citizen scientists have stories to tell. You are the best resource for information on what works, what doesn’t, and how to make change stick. What makes weight loss so different from other challenges? Well, you probably already have an idea: everyone is different; we have different histories, like different foods, and have different medical needs, resources, and time constraints. On top of that, you may have kids to feed, parents to care for, careers to pursue and so on. We are unique individuals, but it is rare that our individual perspectives get included in the highly personal process of weight loss—together we will change that.

Your Story Matters

Do you have more to share? We want to invite you to engage more deeply with your fellow Citizen Scientists. In future issues, we will be profiling interesting people from the sciences and hopefully, from this study! We want to feature your stories, profile your opinions, experiences, and ideas. Whether you have a great success to celebrate, or struggles we can all learn from, we want to know you better.

Your story could be part of our next blog or newsletter! Do you have thoughts about what it was like to participate in the IWCR Questionnaires? Has something inspired you lately? What else do you want us to know?

Feel free to comment on this post, or write to editor@iwcr.study. Your Citizen Science experiences may be featured right here — and ONLY with your permission.

Join our IWCR Insiders Facebook group to stay part of the conversation, meet your fellow Citizen Scientists of the IWCR, post and see amazing pictures of your favorite foods, participate in interesting polls, and help grow this vital global community. If you’ve completed the Registry, you can join here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/iwcrinsiders/

We look forward to staying in touch with you on this important lifelong journey.

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