Urgent action, informed by new information and wisdom, is required to maintain soil as a sustainable resource, balanced against the necessity of maintaining / increasing crop productivity. Good soil management and land use practices are vital for economic growth, sustainable development, food security, biodiversity conservation, climate change adaptation and protecting water resources. Availability of soil moisture data is important for understanding climate and climate change impacts, and for improving weather forecasts, monitoring droughts, predicting floods, assisting crop productivity, detailing water, energy and carbon cycles.
The GROW Observatory was one of 4 projects funded by the European Commission to demonstrate the concept of Citizens’ Observatories (COs) in operational conditions. GROW's aim was to create a sustainable citizen platform and community to generate, share and utilise information on land, soil and water resource at a resolution not previously considered. The vision was to create a movement around environmental observations, to empower citizens to participate in environmental decision making, to extend and reduce costs in global earth observation activities, and to contribute to innovation in the Digital Single Market. GROW is the first continental-scale CO to monitor a key parameter for science continuously over an extended period at an unmatched spatial density. The focus was on soil moisture, a vital element for understanding climate events such as flooding, drought and wildfires.
