Soil conservation methods for the future – call closed October 8, 2024
The interplay between soil health and pollinator biodiversity
The European Commission has opened a call for proposals to fund innovative research projects that contribute to the Mission “A Soil Deal for Europe” (Mission Soil), fighting the decline of ground-nesting pollinators. Accordingly, the call “Soil health, pollinators, and key ecosystem functions” addresses critical aspects of soil ecology and conservation methods, focusing on ground-nesting pollinators and their interactions with soil environments.
Many insect species (e.g., wasps and bees) nest below ground and they contribute to the soil ecosystem and improve soil quality but require protection from land managing techniques like plowing, ground sealing, and plant pest control. Hence, the current call aims to enhance our understanding of their life cycle, propose protective measures, and develop land management systems that do not harm ground-nesting species.
How can microfluidics be used for soil conservation methods?
- Screen soil composition and pollution rates (heavy metals, pesticides, fertilizers)
- Access environmental toxicology with organ-on-chip models
- Conceive insect preservation methods by modeling the soil micro-environment in droplet microfluidics
- See our project EDAPHOS to learn more about how microfluidics are already used in soil research today
What we can do as an SME partner:
For this Horizon Europe call on soil health and soil conservation methods, we can bring our expertise in microfluidic instrumentation and flow management to help you develop a screening system or a perfusion platform to study insect biodiversity and soil conservation methods. So far, we have participated in over 50 EU-funded projects and are happy to support your application with our experience in proposal writing, communication, and dissemination, in addition to our technical developments.
The scope of the call in a nutshell
Soil-dependent insects, including many solitary wasps and wild bees, are essential for pollination and ecosystem health but are threatened by non-adaptive soil management practices such as tillage, contamination, and soil compaction. Therefore, this call seeks proposals that promote soil conservation methods:
- Research pollinator diversity and distribution: Expand taxonomic and functional knowledge of pollinator communities and their interactions with soil environments.
- Monitor and address threats: Develop and implement monitoring methods for threats to soil-dependent pollinators, supporting the EU Pollinators Initiative.
- Evaluate soil management practices: Analyze the impact of different soil management techniques on pollinator health across various farming systems, including organic and conventional agriculture.
- Promote soil remediation: Innovate and demonstrate soil remediation techniques and soil conservation methods to improve habitat conditions for pollinators.
- Provide best practice recommendations: Develop guidelines for integrating pollinator conservation into soil management practices across different landscapes.
The MIC and European joint projects
We have extensive experience with European joint research proposals and have been an SME partner in over 50 granted projects to date. We will be glad to participate in your project! Besides “Mission Soil: Soil health, pollinators, and key ecosystem functions”, we are particularly interested in the following calls but remain open to any collaboration:
- Mission Cancer: Accessible and affordable tests to advance early detection of heritable cancers in European regions
- Mission Soil: Soil biodiversity for healthy cropping systems
- EIC Pathfinder: Solar-to-X devices for the decentralized prosumption of renewable fuels, chemicals, and materials as a climate change mitigation pathway
Want to see what other calls are currently open? Download the MIC European calls calendar:
The MIC already brings its expertise in microfluidics to Horizon Europe:
HORIZON-MISS-2022-SOIL-01
Development of soil remediation techniques and soil analysis using microfluidics
H2020-LC-GD-2020-3
Toxicology assessment of pharmaceutical products on a placenta-on-chip model
