On 27th August 2024, LifeWatch ERIC has taken part to the 14th European Conference on Ecological Restoration (SERE 2024) in Tartu, Estonia, as communication and dissemination leader in the RESTORE4Cs European Project, dedicated to coastal wetland restoration. The participation involved the organisation of a booth and a joint session on wetland restoration with three related projects. Wetland restoration is a key challenge in climate change mitigation strategies. Wetlands are crucial for greenhouse gas and carbon regulation and biodiversity support, making our planet more resilient against extreme weather events. However, 35% of wetlands in Europe have already been lost since 1970. ...

After three years of advancing a cultural shift in identifying, linking, integrating, and re-using biodiversity data throughout the research cycle, the BiCIKL project is coming to a close.  One of the key outputs of the BiCIKL project is the Biodiversity Knowledge Hub (BKH). Developed as a one-stop portal for understanding the interconnected landscape of European biodiversity research infrastructures, it acts as a knowledge broker for users who want to navigate and access open and FAIR biodiversity data, guidelines, tools, and services.  Additionally, the BiCIKL project's partners created training materials and detailed instructions to help users make the most of the...

RESTORE4Cs –  the EU-funded project on coastal wetland restoration in which LifeWatch ERIC is leading communications and dissemination – will participate in the 14th European Conference on Ecological Restoration (SERE 2024) from 26 to 30 August 2024, in Tartu, Estonia. Representatives from the project's coordinator, the University of Aveiro, will be present as speakers as the scientific focal point of the project. LifeWatch ERIC will also be present with a booth to showcase the project to the participants. About SERE 2024 SERE 2024 is a biennial international conference organised by the European Chapter of the Society for Ecological Restoration (SER) in Europe. Scientists, practitioners, and policy-makers of ecological...

On July 8, the European Marine Biological Resource Centre (EMBRC) hosted a webinar as part of the G20 Ocean Dialogues titled "Navigating the Blue Economy: Insights from Ocean Observation Data." This virtual event, moderated by EMBRC's Executive Director Nicolas Pade, brought together a diverse panel of experts to explore the crucial role of ocean observation in advancing marine conservation and sustainable economic practices. Dr Kilaparti Ramakrishna - Director of Marine Policy Center and Senior Advisor to the President on Ocean and Climate Policy of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution - set the stage by underscoring the ocean's increasing significance globally,...

Honey bees (Apis mellifera) are crucial pollinators and producers. Despite their key role in agriculture, food production and security, and ultimately in human health and ecosystem well-being, they face multiple threats: habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation, pollution, pesticides, pests and pathogens, changes in land use and climate change impacts are putting at risk their survival, causing their decline worldwide.  On May 25, BioDT presented its prototype Digital Twin (pDT) for Pollinators during the online event Biodiversity in Focus. By combining real-world data with advanced simulation techniques, the new prototype provides practical insights into honey bee performance and honey production by...

The EULAC Energytran project held its first Virtual Thematic Event on 26 and 27 June, titled "Strengthening Europe – Latin America Cooperation in the Energy Transition". The event brought together stakeholders from Europe, North America, Latin America and the Caribbean. The participants - around two hundred - included representatives from scientific communities, universities, policymakers, research infrastructures, project managers and private sector actors, alongside the consortium partners. Our Ana Mellado and Maite Irazábal participated to represent LifeWatch ERIC's role in the project. This project addresses common energy challenges between the European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean. focusing on improving the...

LifeWatch ERIC is happy to announce the launch of the newly redesigned LifeWatch Belgium website. This platform offers a sleek, user-friendly interface and enhanced navigation, reflecting LifeWatch Belgium's commitment to providing accessible, high-quality biodiversity and ecosystem research resources. LifeWatch Belgium specialises in offering advanced data services and tools for biodiversity and ecosystem research. The website showcases services such as the Biodiversity Data System, Habitat Mapping, Bio-Logging, and more, supporting researchers with cutting-edge technologies and extensive datasets. Indeed, LifeWatch Belgium's local observatories generate long-term marine, freshwater, and terrestrial data, which is openly accessible for research. Biodiversity data systems integrate global taxonomic...

The IX International Sandy Beaches Symposium was held in Lecce, Italy, on June 24-27 2024. The event was an opportunity to bring the world's leading experts on sandy coastal ecosystems together in the city.Past, present, and future of sandy beaches were at the center of the symposium: biodiversity loss, abundance, distribution and dynamics of species of sandy beach ecosystems, climate change impacts, anthropogenic pressures (fisheries, tourism, etc), urbanization, the key role of marine protected areas, and the challenges of creating a network between them, coastal erosion and mitigation strategies, insights from environmental DNA metabarcoding and advanced statistical models, are some...

From 19 to 23 June in Valsavarenche, Italy, scientists, researchers, and students from various disciplines are attending lectures, workshops, and fieldwork sessions at the Gran Paradiso Summer School. This year, the school's theme is "Fundamental Processes in Earth System Dynamics - The Future of Critical Zone". Hosted at the Gran Paradiso National Park, the school aims to foster a deeper understanding of Earth Sciences, with lecturers from Europe, the United States, Japan, and Taiwan. Thanks to its interdisciplinary approach, it provides a platform for geologists, ecologists, hydrologists, and scientists working in these fields to collaborate and share their expertise. Our...

LifeWatch Belgium's World Register of Marine Species and Edaphobase have recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate and share information. The aim is to promote the use of biodiversity information systems for scientific research, avoid duplication of effort, identify overlaps between initiatives, and establish an open exchange of taxonomic information. The Soil Biodiversity Data Warehouse Edaphobase is a publicly accessible data warehouse that synthesises and standardises occurrence and taxonomic data on soil invertebrates and links them to environmental site parameters in space and time. Edaphobase is hosted and operated by the Senckenberg Museum für Naturkunde Görlitz, Department of Soil...

From 27 to 30 May, the RESTORE4Cs 4th General Assembly took place at the University of Valencia in Spain. The Assembly included discussions on project expectations, policy roadmaps, data repositories and more. RESTORE4C aims to assist in implementing Climate and Biodiversity policies under the European Green Deal by collecting data on restoration and land use management, developing integrated assessment tools, creating a European Community of Practice (ECoP), and collaborating on a multi-actor approach. Prof. Joaquin Baixeras from the University of Valencia opened the meeting, followed by Case Pilot representatives discussing project expectations and interactions. As part of the project, RESTORE4Cs...

The European Congress of Conservation Biology (ECCB), organised by the Europe Section of the Society for Conservation Biology (SCB), was held in Bologna from 17 to 21 June 2024. The Congress aimed to facilitate the exchange of conservation science and nature conservation practice and policy to promote the conservation of biological diversity in Europe. The 7th ECCB focused on achieving a biodiversity-positive status by 2030. This theme presents a positive message and a call to action towards conserving biodiversity. Despite the challenges, new protected areas were established, carbon emissions were reduced, and there is a growing awareness of biodiversity’s importance for survival....

LifeWatch ERIC participated in the 2024 Annual Meeting of the Biodiversity Digital Twin (BioDT) project, which took place on 11-12 June 2024 at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) in Leipzig, Germany. The meeting had a hybrid format, allowing both in-person and remote participation. The meeting covered the operational models of pDTs (physical Digital Twins) and sustainable pathways beyond the project's lifecycle. It also discussed outreach, promotion, and training strategies for pDTs, as well as a Winter/Spring School that will take place most likely at the end of February 2025. Additionally, the BioDT Annual Meeting was an occasion to...

The conference "Research Infrastructures in a Changing Global, Environmental and Socio-economic Context," organised as part of the Belgian Presidency of the European Council, is taking place today at the Royal Library of Belgium. This conference, running on 4 and 5 June, aims to highlight the crucial role of research infrastructures in addressing societal, global, and economic challenges. The Belgian presidency programme prioritises research and innovation to foster open strategic autonomy, enhance the valorisation of research outcomes, and reinforce the role of research in overcoming industrial and societal challenges. This conference aims to address global challenges through collaborative and innovative research...

During the final stakeholder meeting of the Europa Biodiversity Observation Network on 27-28 May, LifeWatch ERIC CEO Christos Arvanitidis and the Chair of LTER-Europe and Coordinator of eLTER ESFRI process, Michael Mirtl, signed a Memorandum of Cooperation between LifeWatch ERIC and eLTER RI. This Memorandum aims to take the collaboration between the two organisations to the next level by combining the resources and expertise to advance ecosystem research and biodiversity conservation across Europe. LifeWatch ERIC and eLTER RI have collaborated on several flagship projects, such as ALTER-Net, ENVRI, ENVRIplus, and ENVRI FAIR. A common mission LifeWatch ERIC and eLTER RI...