The RESTORE4Cs Spatial Decision-Support Toolbox that will help prioritise coastal wetlands restoration in Europe

RESTORE4Cs Policy Brief 10

The collection of multi-language Policy Briefs from the RESTORE4Cs Project (https://www.restore4cs.eu/resources/policy-briefs), provides best practices and science-based knowledge on European coastal wetlands restoration, gathered across 6 case studies and over three years of project.

Policy Brief #10 supports the prioritisation of coastal wetland restoration in Europe, by providing a Spatial Decision-Support Toolbox that can inform decisions and help develop well-defined restoration measures.

In fact, what is essential in order to prioritise wetlands as restoration objectives, is spatially explicit information about their status, as requested under the Nature Restoration Regulation (NRR). The Toolbox offers a harmonised, science-based, user-friendly solution, that integrates ecological, climatic, and socio-economic data.

Through the use of this Toolbox, consisting of a geo-analytical platform accessible online, it will be easier to identify areas where restoration is most needed, and to develop replicable and spatially explicit methods for resource allocation.

To read more details about this tools, and the recommendations for Policy Makers, download the full document at this link: https://www.restore4cs.eu/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/EN_Policy-Brief-10-v4_Final.pdf

International Day of Women and Girls in Science 2026

Women and girls in science 2026

On 11 February, LifeWatch ERIC joins the global celebrations to raise awareness on the important initiative of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science.

Every year, we have the privilege of working with excellent women scientists, and sometimes we get a chance to feature them in our videos, where they share their knowledge and experience first-hand. To honour this day, we have curated a special Women in Science selection on LifeWatching TV, bringing together and republishing a series of interviews with women researchers.

This collection offers but a glimpse into the impact of women’s contribution on biodiversity and ecosystem research, fields where they often remain underrepresented. We invite you to explore these contents covering topics such as Digital Twins, FAIR data, coastal wetlands restoration, biological invasions, and much more!

The full selection is available here: https://www.lifewatching.tv/women-in-science.

We have also dedicated a special section within our podcast series. You can access it by clicking on the tag “Women in Science”: https://www.lifewatch.eu/podcasts. Enjoy the conversations!

About the International Day of Women and Girls in Science:

This initiative started in 2015, during the inaugural High-Level World Women’s Health and Development Forum, organised by the Royal Academy of Science International Trust (RASIT), and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA): https://www.womeninscienceday.org/our-history.html.

The Outcome Declaration of the Forum focused on women’s health and development, reaffirming the importance of physical and mental health of girls and women as a planetary approach to sustainable development, the crucial role of country leadership, and the importance to tackle aspects such as global maternal mortality, uneven progress, gender differences in media representation, among many others.

Every year since 2015 (last year marked the 10th anniversary), this day is internationally celebrated and continues growing global awareness and visibility on the achievements of women in science, and on the need for full and equal access to STEM roles for women and girls.

Assessing coastal wetlands and their role in climate mitigation: Policy Briefs #8 and #9 from RESTORE4Cs

RESTORE4Cs Policy Briefs 8-9

The collection of multi-language Policy Briefs from the RESTORE4Cs Project (https://www.restore4cs.eu/resources/policy-briefs), provides best practices and science-based knowledge on European coastal wetlands restoration, gathered through the three years of project, and across 6 case studies.

In this article we talk about Policy Brief #8 and #9.

Policy Brief #8 “Advancing a coherent framework for assessing European coastal wetland condition”, addresses the lack of a clear definition of coastal wetlands, a shortcoming that results in these areas often being overlooked within policy frameworks. The document advances a harmonised definition of coastal wetlands, aligned with the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (1971), that captures the full land-sea continuum where salt, brackish, and fresh waters interact.

Moreover, building on that definition, it provides a harmonised spatial mapping approach, to delineate coastal wetlands across Europe, establishing a consistent EU-wide baseline for monitoring their extent and condition.

You can download the full document in English here: https://www.restore4cs.eu/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/EN_Policy-Brief-8-v5_Final.pdf

Policy Brief #9 “How can coastal wetland restoration mitigate climate change? What we know and what is still unclear”, proposes coastal wetland restoration as a promising NbS (Nature-based Solution) for climate change mitigation. In fact, restored wetlands act as net carbon sinks, increasing carbon stocks in plant biomass and soil, without a corresponding increase in GHG emissions. At the same time, it highlights inconsistencies in the availability of data about carbon stocks and GHG emissions across countries and wetland types. Freshwater wetlands and transitional waters in Europe are still underrepresented in empirical evidence.

The document also highlights that the focus is primarily on carbon stocks, rather than GHG emissions, while the reporting of GHG flux data is not yet standardised.

Read and download the document here to get the key policy recommendations: https://www.restore4cs.eu/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/EN_Policy-Brief-9-v7_Final.pdf

RECUP-DAS: the new €10.4M project to restore the Tinto and Odiel river basins

RECUP-DAS

LifeWatch ERIC is proud to be part of the new funded project RECUP-DAS, through an agreement signed together with the Andalusian Regional Governement and the University of Huelva.

With a total budget of 10.4 million euros, RECUP-DAS is a strategic initiative funded under ERDF Andalusia 2021-2027, that promotes the environmental recovery of the Tinto and Odiel river basins, two of the systems that most suffered the acid drainage from historical mining (the name “Río Tinto” refers to the reddish colour of its waters from iron and other metals dissolved into them).

This initiative entails the collaboration of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development in terms of leadership on the sustainable management of water, in collaboration with the Andalusian knowledge system and LifeWatch ERIC as scientific infrastructure specialised in biodiversity and ecosystem.

The project follows an innovative and sustainable approach, aligned with the regional hydrological planning. The Directorate General responsible for water resources will oversee the construction of a DAS technology-based plant for the treatment of acid mine drainage and environmental restoration of the affected areas, with a gradual recovery of biodiversity and associated ecosystem services.

DAS stands for “Dispersed Alkaline Substrate“, a technology developed by the “Tharsis” Research Group of the University of Huelva, which will be improved and optimised throughout the project: this passive treatment system neutralised acidity and removes dissolved metals in contaminated water without the need for continuous energy or permanent addition of reagents.

With a total budget of 5.9 million euros assigned, LifeWatch ERIC will lead the digitisation of the system and the development of a digital twin, which will allow the simulation of different operating scenarios to optimise efficiency, and improve decision-making along the plant operation.

In addition, LifeWatch ERIC will also be responsible for the dissemination of project’s results, ensuring that knowledge generated can be transferred and replicated in future restoration initiatives, regional, national and international.

The main expected results of RECUP-DAS are a significant reduction in the pollutant load in affected waters, improvement of the ecological status of the intervened watercourses, and the generation of scientific and technical knowledge applicable to basins in similar conditions. Solid waste generated from the treatment process will be the object of further analysis on how to potentially valorise it, within the framework of circular economy.

Stay tuned to know more about RECUP-DAS!

A new understanding of nature: ITINERIS 2-day training on VREs and presentation of the final platform

ITINERIS

ITINERIS (https://itineris.cnr.it/) is an initiative started in November 2022 with the objective to support the Italian integrated system of Research Infrastructures (RIs) in the environmental domain, under the coordination of the National Research Council (CNR) of Italy.

One of its main outputs is the ITINERIS HUB, a gateway to the wide range of data, cutting-edge facilities, analytical tools, and services from these RIs, facilitating observation and study of processes in the atmosphere, marine domain, terrestrial biosphere, and geosphere. Italy is in fact actively involved in all major pan-European Environmental Research Infrastructures, and hosts other nationally relevant RIs, demanding for coordinated actions to integrate, interlink and harmonise their activities.

The ITINERIS HUB includes digital tools such as datasets, research products, and training resources among others, as well as Virtual Research Environments (VREs), that is, web-based, community-oriented working environments that enable researchers to work remotely and interactively.

Now in its final phases, ITINERIS has recently launched a VREs training event in two sessions, on 27 and on 30 January. The event will be an opportunity to train the platform super-admins and admins on two newly launched VREs developed in collaboration with LifeWatch ERIC by EquiUP SRL. The first one, Biomass VRE, helps study aquatic and terrestrial biomass dynamics in relation to climatic, ecological, and anthropogenic factors, while the second one, Phyto VRE, allows phytoplankton data computation and analysis.

After the training events, the final version of the platform will be presented to its end-users in another session on Friday 30 January at 15:00, together with some practical case studies to help in the adoption of its tools.

Researchers are just beginning to understand the series of intricate relations governing our planet: this is one of modern science’s biggest challenges in the face of today’s critical issues. Platforms like ITINERIS HUB can help elaborate and interpret the huge quantity of data available from different sources and offer a new understanding of nature.

Italy joins GBIF through the establishment of a National Node

LifeWatch Italy & GBIF

As of October 2025, Italy has officially joined the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), strengthening its engagement in the international landscape of open biodiversity data.

Already a member of LifeWatch ERIC through LifeWatch Italy, with the National Research Council (CNR) as the leading entity, Italy has now established its national GBIF node, coordinated by DSSTTA (Department of Earth System Sciences and Environmental Technologies). Ilaria Rosati, already actively involved in LifeWatch Italy, has been appointed Node Manager of the Italian GBIF node.

DSSTTA is committed to advancing the understanding of how Earth’s systems, including climate, cryosphere, biodiversity, and related components, are deeply interconnected and influenced by human activities.

The Italian GBIF node builds on national expertise in biodiversity research and data management, contributing to free and open access to biodiversity data at the global scale. GBIF represents the leading international platform for the management and sharing of species occurrence data, supporting research, policy, and decision-making worldwide.

The governance of the Italian GBIF node includes the following representatives:

  • Head of Delegation: Diego Fontaneto (CNR-IRSA)
  • Node Manager: Ilaria Rosati (CNR-IRET)
  • Alternate Head of Delegation: Stefano Martellos (University of Trieste)
  • Additional Delegate: Gabriele Bucci (CNR-IBBR)

This development is significant because membership in GBIF enables Italy to contribute its biodiversity data directly to the world’s largest open-access repository of species occurrence information, supporting international research through science-based knowledge.

Map data image from: OpenStreetMap

Biodiversity and planetary health: presenting the Crete Declaration at the University of Lisbon

Doctoral Programme on Planetary Health

On 5th January 2026, LifeWatch ERIC’s CEO Christos Arvanitidis delivered an online presentation for the 4th Course of the Doctoral Programme in Planetary Health, organised by the University of Lisbon.
The 40-minute presentation titled “From Biodiversity to Planetary Health: Enabling Science for Societal Transformation” focused on the link between the course’s holistic approach and the “Crete Declaration” approach.

The Crete Declaration is a Declaration of Intent signed between LifeWatch ERIC and a group of Research Infrastructures and European projects and organisations. It takes its name from Heraklion, Crete, where the signing took place in the summer of 2025, during the BEeS 2025 Conference.

With this Declaration, the signatories committed to advance the One Health approach, promoting cross-domain research and integrated solutions. The core premise supporting this ecological-social continuum, which also underlies the common thread of the University of Lisbon Course, is that to address Planetary Health through the current poly-crisis, we need a concerted action.

The Doctoral Programme, in fact, aims at preparing students to tackle complex issues that cross ecological and societal boundaries. The three modules of the course (Adaptation; Transformation; Into Action) address critical global challenges at the intersection of health, environmental, social and political science, with the aim of fostering discussion and critical thinking through a wide variety of topics.

This was central to Christos’ intervention, proposing suggestions on how to turn biodiversity science into action: an ambition that requires a shift from fragmentation to integration of disciplines, data silos, and policy gaps.
An insightful round of discussions with the students followed the presentation, providing a mutual exchange that may inspire both the students and the future work of the Crete Declaration.

If you would like to contribute your perspective to the Crete Declaration, you can add your name here: https://www.lifewatch.eu/crete-declaration. We will inform you about future developments. Are you interested in applying for the Doctoral Programme in Planetary Health? The first round of applications runs from 12 January to 20 February 2026. All details are available here: https://www.ulisboa.pt/planetary-health-studies.

RESTORE4Cs Policy Briefs #6 and #7: Coastal Wetlands Indicators and Social Acceptability

RESTORE4Cs Policy Brief 6 (1)

The RESTORE4Cs project has published two more Policy Briefs that add to the 5 previously published by the consortium: https://www.restore4cs.eu/resources/policy-briefs/.

Policy Brief #6 “European Coastal Wetland Indicators: A proposal for monitoring policy processes across space and time”, offers a practical approach to track the status, trends, and policy performance of Europe’s coastal wetlands.

In fact, despite covering less than 0.6% of the European landscape, coastal wetlands provide important benefits to the environment, such as carbon storage, protection from storm, regulation of water flows. They also filter pollutants, and support a diversity of threatened species.

In order to protect and preserve wetlands, countries need to be able to monitor them through robust and harmonised indicators that track their extent, health, biodiversity, the progress of restorations, GHG emissions and removals, among others. The RESTORE4Cs approach integrates remote sensing, GIS, modelling, machine learning and in-situ monitoring to enable timely and high-quality assessment. You can read and download the full document: https://www.restore4cs.eu/restore4cs-6th-policy-brief

Policy Brief #7 “Social Acceptability: The Key Ingredient for Enhanced Coastal Wetland Restoration”, tackles the topic of social acceptability (the degree to which something reflects a community’s values, beliefs, and norms), and how this can “make or break” the success of wetland restoration across six European sites. Using a participatory, multi-criteria analysis, RESTORE4Cs researchers combined scientific assessments with local stakeholders’ perspectives.

They also analysed which key drivers play a bigger role in shaping acceptability: according to their findings, these are local economic interests, environmental benefits, and cultural values, while other aspects, such as trust, participation, and contextual knowledge, seem to be undervalued in decision-making.

Read and download the document here to get the key policy recommendations: https://www.restore4cs.eu/restore4cs-7th-policy-brief

How to turn data into impact: meet LifeWatch ERIC’s new CTO – Part two

Anne Fouilloux

In November 2025 LifeWatch ERIC welcomed its new Chief Technology Officer, Anne Fouilloux, to guide its technological strategy and ensure alignment with global advances in biodiversity and ecosystem research across Europe.

In this second part of our two-part interview, we asked her about her vision on how to turn data into impact, and how to break down silos and enable cross-discipline, cross-border collaboration.

If you missed it, you can read Part 1 here, where we focused on Anne’s experiences that shaped her work, real-life examples from her previous roles, and how these influence her approach as CTO.

Anne, you once mentioned on social media that we ‘turn data into impact for a better world’. How do you think we can achieve this?

“We strengthen the connections between research and real-world conservation through three key areas:

  • Making data trustworthy through provenance: At ECMWF, traceability built trust. Users could trace exactly which observations influenced forecasts. Biodiversity faces similar challenges with field observations, satellite imagery, eDNA, and citizen science. When conservation managers make decisions, they need confidence in their data’s origins and quality. A lot of very good work is done at LifeWatch ERIC on FAIR data management and we need to pursue this effort, not only for datasets but for our tools and workflows. FAIR Digital Objects is becoming increasingly mature and I believe it will help LifeWatch ERIC a lot in its operation. We are distributed by nature and we need to interoperate with others but also with ourselves.
  • Serving diverse communities effectively: Through Galaxy, Pangeo, and my current FAIR2Adapt project, I learned that accessible infrastructure matters as much as powerful infrastructure. We should strategically design systems that serve everyone, from citizen scientists to policymakers, with clear purposes and sustainable approaches. However, there is no single interface or tool that can fit everyone. We need to be able to build bespoke tools and interfaces in a streamlined manner.
  • Creating feedback loops: Real impact comes from connecting observation to understanding to action to learning. Can we trace conservation outcomes back to the research that enabled them? That continuous improvement cycle turns data into lasting impact for biodiversity and our planet. To get feedback, we need tools to measure, ask questions and collect answers in a way that is not disruptive to end-users. We cannot collect everything automatically but we should try to collect as much relevant information as possible, while preserving people’s privacy. We need to present transparently how we do and measure our progress and/or correct our mistakes.”

How does your mission evolve in the European Research Infrastructure landscape?

“European RIs work at a unique scale that opens exciting strategic opportunities.

  • From distributed to coordinated: LifeWatch ERIC’s federated nature across member states distributed geographically is a tremendous strength. It makes us more resilient, more fault tolerant and more importantly, we see the world from different angles and cultures. It can help us to increase the interoperability of our e-infrastructure. My experience with distributed governance, building frameworks that enable innovation while maintaining interoperability, helps harness this diversity. We can align technology efforts while respecting each center’s autonomy and expertise.
  • From independence to strategic partnership: My collaboration work with ELIXIR for leveraging their tooling and workflow tools, EGI for computing, and through EOSC shows how RIs complement each other. I want to help LifeWatch ERIC identify where we should lead, where we should partner, and where we should leverage others’ strengths, especially as we want to use and prepare for AI, quantum computing, and many other emerging technologies that will transform biodiversity research and increase data and compute sovereignty.
  • From operations to strategic impact: securing sustainable infrastructure funding and building capacity across member states ensures that expertise is distributed throughout our network. I’ve learned from organisations such as ECMWF, NeIC, and Sigma-2 how to plan next-generation infrastructure while maintaining current operations, and I’m excited to apply these lessons at LifeWatch ERIC. The ‘e-’ is clearly an advantage here, and we need to leverage it.
  • From capability to transformation: LifeWatch ERIC has impressive scientific foundations, strong ICT expertise and dedicated people across our member states. My goal is helping us work strategically together, maximising our collective impact for biodiversity conservation, climate adaptation, and the urgent environmental challenges ahead. The opportunity is clear: build on our strong foundation to create digitally integrated infrastructure that serves researchers, practitioners, and policymakers across Europe. I’m ready to take on this challenge and contribute to that mission.”

We thank again Anne Fouilloux for the insightful answers and we wish her the best of luck in her new role!

“Fish Don’t Know Borders”: how LifeWatch Belgium’s ETN connects research across Europe

ETN

LifeWatch Belgium connects researchers in the field of acoustic telemetry through a collaborative network called ETN (The European Tracking Network). ETN allows them to share the outputs of acoustic receivers and follow animal movements from the rivers to the seas, drawing important insights on how marine life links ecosystems in European waters.

This network, initially including just a few receivers along the Belgian coast, is now one of Europe’s largest monitoring systems, involving more than 600 European researchers who track fish and other aquatic species in order to study their migration, and their movement across borders.

Although the Permanent Belgian Acoustic Received Network receives signals from tagged freshwater, marine, and diadromous fish species in Belgian waters, it shares data through the ETN’s open platform to ensure they are available for researchers all over Europe.

In fact, during their lifespan, fish move between estuaries, coasts, and open seas, regardless of political borders set by humans! Shouldn’t science be able to cross those borders too?

Read the full article on LifeWatch Belgium: https://www.lifewatch.be/news/fish-dont-know-borders-tracking-aquatic-life-across-europe