ECHO is back: seeking new Soil Ambassadors across Europe

The second open call for the ECHO project aims to expand the network of citizens, teachers, farmers and organisations involved in soil monitoring and conservation activities using a citizen science approach

by Matteo Cavallito

Finding new people willing to support soil protection efforts across Europe and contribute directly to scientific research is the goal of the second open call launched by the ECHO project – Engaging Citizens in Soil Science: the Road to Healthier Soils, designed to expand its network of Soil Ambassadors across the participating countries. The new call is open to citizens, teachers, farmers, representatives of associations and, more broadly, anyone interested in promoting soil health awareness and engaging local communities.

The initiative builds on the project’s broader activities. Funded by the Horizon Europe programme and coordinated by the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, ECHO was launched in 2023 to increase knowledge and awareness of the importance of healthy soils. Through the citizen science approach, the project directly involves citizens in data collection and the generation of knowledge aimed at protecting a resource that is essential for agriculture, biodiversity and climate resilience.

Soil Ambassadors: a bridge between science and communities

The second call follows a similar initiative launched in 2024 with the aim of engaging at least 16,500 citizens through 28 initiatives designed to reflect the diversity of soil types, land uses and biogeographical regions across the participating countries. The Ambassadors’ main tasks are to promote project activities, engage individuals and organised groups in data collection initiatives, and support soil sampling campaigns.

No specialist background is required: teachers, farmers, foresters, NGO members, students and anyone with an interest in soil health are encouraged to apply.

Selected participants will have access to dedicated training programmes to deepen their knowledge of soils and will be able to contribute to the design of scientific activities. They will also help distribute soil sampling kits and support data collection and analysis activities. ECHO is also looking for people capable of amplifying its message through digital channels, including influencers, artists, athletes and content creators interested in raising awareness of soil conservation among wider audiences.

Citizen science and outreach: the contribution of ECHO and Re Soil

A defining feature of ECHO’s activities, carried out in collaboration with universities, research centres, foundations and businesses, is the citizen science approach mentioned above, a research method based on collaboration between the public and experts. It gives citizens an active role in the research process, enabling them to learn through direct participation. In this way, the project aims to generate new data on the condition of European soils while complementing and strengthening existing monitoring systems.

Moreover, ECHO aims to collect information from thousands of sites across the continent’s various regions and make the results available to researchers, policymakers, farmers and the wider public.

In this effort, Re Soil Foundation, a partner since the project’s inception, is also making an important contribution. Re Soil, in particular, contributes to communication, training, outreach and educational activities, helping foster an ongoing dialogue between researchers and citizens, with the goal of creating a European network of informed and engaged people capable of translating scientific knowledge into concrete action to protect and restore soils.