The ECHO Soil Challenge aims to raise awareness about the value of soil

Launched by the ECHO project and coordinated by the Re Soil Foundation, this initiative invites schools and citizens to promote the importance of soil as a resource through creative, scientific, and educational projects. Applications are open until November 9 this year

by Matteo Cavallito

Raising awareness among students, teachers, educators, and citizens about the importance of soil as a vital resource for ecosystems, food security, and climate mitigation. As well as inspiring creativity, scientific experiments, and sharing knowledge. These are the goals of the international ECHO Soil Challenge – Soil Stories competition, open to schools and participants in citizen science activities under the ECHO project—an initiative launched in 2023 as part of the Horizon Europe programme and coordinated by the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano in collaboration with various partners, including the Re Soil Foundation.

Officially launched on March 10, the contest is divided into four categories: children aged 6 to 10 (elementary school), students aged 11 to 13 (middle school), high school students aged 14 to 19, and the ECHO Soil Ambassadors. Three winners will be selected for each category. Entries must be submitted via the online form by November 9, 2026.

Photographs, projects, podcasts, and much more

Open to residents of Italy, Poland, Spain, Scotland, Greece, Romania, Germany, Portugal, and Finland, the contest welcomes creative, scientific, or educational works developed by ECHO Soil Ambassadors as well as by classes or groups under the guidance of teachers or educators. Entries may include drawings, collages, photographs, infographics, experiments, and educational projects, as well as videos, reels, podcasts, and musical content dedicated to the theme of soil.

Submissions, in particular, may be inspired by the ECHO sampling kit or the SoiLab for Teens educational tool, designed for hands-on activities in schools.

Participants, the organizers specify, are free to reinterpret these tools using different creative languages and approaches. All details on how to submit entries are outlined on the contest’s official page. To further support participants, an introductory webinar in English is scheduled for March 27, 2026, at 9:30 a.m. which will explain the contest’s objectives and procedures. The session can be attended live online or watched later.

Winners to be announced in December

Entries will be evaluated by a jury composed of members of the ECHO consortium with expertise in education, science communication, soil science, and creative disciplines. Projects will be assessed using a common evaluation grid that considers three main criteria: creativity and originality in telling the story of soil, scientific accuracy of the content, and communicative and educational effectiveness in conveying the value of this resource and promoting sustainable practices. The winners will be announced in December 2026.

In addition to the official ECHO Soil Challenge – Soil Stories certificate, winners will have the opportunity to present their project during the final webinar scheduled for January 15, 2027, as well as participate in a virtual meeting with a project expert and receive special gifts. The selected projects will also be published on the official ECHO website and shared through social media channels.

ECHO: a project to engage citizens in soil protection

Launched to promote knowledge and awareness of the importance of land health among EU citizens, the “ECHO – Engaging Citizens in Soil Science: The Road to Healthier Soils” project involves several partners, including leading universities, foundations, research centers, and businesses. The initiative specifically aims to promote land protection by collecting and generating new data on the health of European soils through public engagement, using the so-called “citizen science” approach.

That is, a research method based on interaction between citizens and experts, which assigns citizens the role of active participants capable of learning from experience.

Re Soil Foundation collaborates on all activities planned by the project, with a particular focus on communication, training, dissemination, educational activities, and local events. There are three main objectives: to engage citizens, to equip them with knowledge and an active role in data collection, and to promote their participation in decision-making regarding soil management.