Preparing the ground for healthy soils: building capacities for engagement, outreach and knowledge

Life on Earth depends on healthy soils. Soil provides food, clean water and habitats for biodiversity while contributing to climate resilience including an increased preparedness to extreme weather events (both droughts and floods). As the largest terrestrial habitat, soil is a unique ecosystem that is critical to aboveground and belowground biodiversity yet it is the least studied. Partly as a result of an increasing urban lifestyle, there is very little awareness in society on the importance of soils, their functions, the threats to soil health and what can be done to preserve this valuable resource. A lack of education and understanding often underpins land degradation and a loss of soil capacity to provide the functions on which we depend. Both land managers in rural areas and urban planners need improved access to ready-to-use knowledge and to advisory services that can support them in their efforts to manage soils in sustainable ways.

Living labs (LLs) and lighthouses (LHs) [[The mission report Caring for Soil is Caring for Life defines a) Living Labs as spaces for co-innovation through participatory, transdisciplinary and systemic research and b) Lighthouses as places for demonstration of solutions, training and communication.]] are emerging as places for engagement of communities to co-create, test and upscale solutions in various domains. However, LLs and LHs working on soil management are not yet widespread and information on existing experiences is scattered.

Proposed activities will lay the ground for rapid take-up of mission activities following its formal approval. Proposals should therefore:

• identify in close cooperation with regional authorities, stakeholders and communities existing “soil needs” (e.g. status, main problems and priority areas for improvement) in a number of contrasting regions in each Member State and Associated Country so that different land use systems are addressed. Insight on the status of soils and the main challenges to soil health should be a starting point for recommendations on priority actions and activities to be implemented in living labs and lighthouses;
• develop tools to support networking and knowledge exchange of communities working at regional/local level on soil health and create Communities of Practice (CoP) in the respective regions. This should include a mapping of current and emerging Living Labs and Lighthouses targeting various types of land uses (e.g. in agriculture, forestry, urban and natural areas). The mapping of living labs and lighthouses shall ensure that a variety of locations are represented reflecting the diversity of soils, land uses as well as socio-economic and demographic conditions. Results of the mapping should be displayed through an interactive map showing relevant information, for example on context (land use type, funding sources, etc.), activities and partners involved;
• develop “model business plans” for Living Labs and Lighthouses (e.g. specifying ownership, funding, goals and activities) taking into account different regions at NUTS 2 level and different land uses.
• improve the knowledge base required to assess progress in monitoring soils and meeting the targets proposed by the Mission Board Soil Health and Food. Activities should be undertaken in close collaboration with Member States Associated Countries and the EU Soil Observatory[[The EU Soil Observatory was launched 4 December 2020: https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/eu-soil-observatory]]. They will depend amongst others on harmonised and regular soil data collection, common definitions and possibly thresholds identified for each Member States and Associated Countries for the mission’s proposed soil health indicators;
• connect existing on-line resources on soil information to provide a single point for access to this information (a one-stop shop for soil literacy) in each Member State and Associated Country. In view of taking a systemic approach to soil health, the information should extend to sectors/activities that have an impact on soils (e.g. sources of pollution) as well as information on wider impacts of unhealthy soils (e.g. on water bodies). This one stop shop or platform should connect diverse organisations, projects and people that contribute to the sustainable management of soils by promoting soil advocates in different fields/roles/regions. It should also help identifying “agents of transition”, i.e. people supporting changes in perception, values, attitudes and behaviour towards more sustainable practices and management of soils while promoting the economic benefits from restoration opportunities;
• link this one-stop shop in each Member State and Associated Country to “best of” online material to inspire and connect citizens to the topics of soil health (e.g. films, websites, apps, games, educational tools). The material should target different groups and be displayed in local official languages. Links should also be established with good examples for online material in Europe and internationally;
• promote and reward on-going or recent examples of soil education and social innovation in the area of soil health to increase understanding of soils by the public at large.

In carrying out the tasks the project should tap into the expertise of partners from various sectors (e.g. research, land managers including farmers and foresters, education, communication, citizens and civil society, food and non-food industries, spatial planners, public authorities) and address soil health in the context of various land uses. This is in line with the approach taken by the proposed mission Caring for Soil is Caring for Life.

Proposals should demonstrate a route towards open access, longevity, sustainability and interoperability of knowledge and outputs, also through close collaboration with the JRC’s EU Soil Observatory.

They should build on existing activities and ensure cooperation with relevant projects under Horizon 2020 such as the SMS project and the European Joint Partnership EJP Soil. Activities should also take into account the implementation of living labs under a possible future partnership on agroecology which is under preparation. This should ensure compatibility and cooperation between living labs associated to the mission and the future partnership.

Activities should also support the objectives of the upcoming EU Soil Strategy, and other major initiatives in the area of soil health.

If projects use satellite based earth observation, positioning, navigation and/or related timing data and services, beneficiaries must make use of Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS. Other data and services may be used in addition.