Making Environmental Data Meaningful: Designing an AR-Based Participatory Sensing System

Participatory sensing systems are increasingly used to support environmental awareness by enabling individuals to collect and access environmental data. However, in many projects, citizen-generated data are presented in static forms that are weakly connected to lived experience and data-collection contexts. This research introduces Augmented Reality (AR) into the context of participatory sensing to explore new ways of interacting with data and engaging with the environment. We present CEDAR, a sensor-based AR application that incorporates a character growth mechanism and three modes of data interaction: environmental data visualisation, particle-removal gameplay, and creative data making. The project progressed through four Research through Design (RtD) stages: the development of the CEDAR toolkit, a participatory sensing workshop, the design and iterative refinement of the CEDAR application, and an evaluation phase. The research results show that CEDAR supports meaningful data exchange by developing these mechanisms. Through this process, participants perceived previously invisible environmental conditions, developed deeper understandings, reinterpreted data as responsive living objects, and formed dynamic, personalized dialogues with their surrounding environment. Finally, we further discuss the role of AR in environmental engagement and offer insights for the design of future participatory environmental data sensing practices.