Poster Session 2

This study investigates how end-users across nine EU countries perceive the relevance of citizen-generated soil data (CGD) for soil health decision-making. Using an adapted Analytic Hierarchy Process, we evaluated six soil health indicators against six data quality criteria (accuracy, accessibility, coherence, interpretability, compatibility, and biogeographical adaptability). A three-phase participatory design engaged approximately 225 stakeholders: online surveys in which 65 respondents identified key quality criteria, face-to-face workshops with 100 participants that generated pairwise comparisons of indicators, and finally, validation webinars with 60 participants that confirmed and discussed the findings. Results demonstrate that accuracy, accessibility, and coherence were perceived as the most influential criteria shaping CGD relevance. Critically, indicator prioritization varied significantly across cases, reflecting differences in stakeholder end-uses and decision-making contexts. These cases and end-users ranged from academic research and forest management to regulatory monitoring and civil society engagement across the nine countries. No universally dominant indicator emerged. Webinar validation confirmed the workshop's quantitative findings and reinforced the overarching importance of citizen science initiatives for bridging gaps in conventional soil-monitoring systems. These findings demonstrate that CGD serves as a complementary evidence base capable of enhancing spatial coverage and supporting participatory governance in soil health monitoring under the EU Soil Strategy and Mission Soil initiatives. Unlocking this potential requires policy recognition of the value of citizen science initiatives and the data derived from them.

In line with the Soil Deal for Europe, recent years have seen a steady increase in initiatives aimed at improving soil literacy, such as those emerging in the field of citizen soil science, covering a wide range of motivations, approaches and contexts. This contribution illustrates the operational strategy and rationale of the Open Soil Atlas (OSA), a citizen science project for soil counter-mapping launched in Berlin in 2021 (initiated under EU funding Horizon 2020 and coordinated by Action and King's College London). Focusing on promoting a "healthy community around the idea of healthy soil", the OSA is based on sociocratic governance and is aligned with the permaculture principles of the group that initiated the project. The initiative has developed an innovative methodology for data collection, process review and citizen involvement guided by principles of equity, diversity and inclusion. The contribution reflects on the potential of participatory governance and citizen soil science to promote soil literacy and encourage community engagement with urban soils. However, it argues that fostering citizen participation is not sufficient in itself, and that careful attention must also be paid to how participation is structured, facilitated, and sustained within the project's governance and methodological framework.

As part of the EU Mission Soil, the HuMUS project engages and activates municipalities and regions to protect and restore soil health. Among the objectives of the EU Mission, the project pursues the following: improving soil knowledge in society and facilitating the implementation of the Mission Soil at regional and local level. This involves the following operations: building capacity and knowledge bases for soil management; co-creating and scaling up place-based innovations to improve soil health in all places; engaging the community of land users and society at large.
Municipalities and regions are at the forefront of soil management, regulation, innovation and community building and are critical to the implementation of the Soil Mission.

Using a transdisciplinary approach and multi-stakeholder methodology for integrating soil health improvement into territorial management policies and programmes, HuMUS stimulates social innovation. The participatory approach involves diverse stakeholders: citizens, farmers, landowners and land managers, consumers, civil society organizations, research institutions, businesses, and public authorities at the regional and national levels. The focus of the project is holistic soil health, looking beyond only agricultural soil to all types of soil and land use.

Results embedded in EU networks and Mission Soil structures are:
creation of a catalogue of best practices and public policies to improve soil health
validation of a participatory methodology and trained 220+ Soil Stewards through 34 multilingual videos, providing a lasting competence base for municipalities.
co‑creation of 34 Territorial Management Agreements (TMAs) in 26 regions, offering concrete governance frameworks for long‑term soil health action.

A pilot project developed in the municipality of Caldas da Rainha transforms biowaste into a driver of territorial regeneration, integrating waste management, soil literacy, and social cohesion. The actual "Ecological Island" – a biorefinery on 150 m² – locally processes 9 to 15 tons/year of biowaste with the potential to produce up to 2 tons of food, with no transportation costs, returning living soil to the community.
This approach proposes soil literacy as a systemic process through intermediate technologies (nature-based, low-cost, and autonomously managed), integrating knowledge about fungi, plants, and soil biology with the active participation of residents as agents of the process. The co-creation of knowledge takes place in the local daily practice of the approximately 20 participants by focusing on valorizing biowaste, regenerating soil, and capturing carbon in persistent chemical structures.
The model adopts participatory and inclusive approaches, behavioral change, and local decision-making. The fundamental principles include treating waste at the source, reduced soil mobilization, eliminating the use of fossil fuels, increasing water retention, and contributing to urban resilience.
More than a technical solution, the Ecological Island is a social technology that generates community appropriation, combats loneliness, and reinforces local governance, participatory planning, and environmental literacy. It is a transformative innovation that shows how soil knowledge, when shared and built with citizens, can become the foundation of fairer and more resilient territorial governance.
This process promotes behavioral changes, informs municipal decisions, and integrates soil management into local governance agendas.

This poster will outline the EU's international law commitments to the conservation and sustainable use of soil biodiversity, based on work completed for a Natural England commissioned Report on England's international committments to soil biodiversity.
It will highlight the breadth of such commitments, not just under the Convention on Biological Diversity, but also under international climate change and desertification regimes, pollution and waste control treaties, species and habitat protection treaties and other international instruments, including relating to disaster prevention and responsible investment.
It will present the results of case studies addressing the Soil Biodiversity Perception Checklist v2.0* questions relating to 'global soil biodiversity'. The Checklist contributes to implementing the 'mainstreaming agenda' of the Convention on Biological Diversity, and its 2020-2030 Plan of Action for the International Initiative for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Soil Biodiversity.
It provides a tool to facilitate increased consideration of soil biodiversity - and the functions, ecosystem services, and contributions to people it provides - in decision making, and to encourage a global perspective on sustainable soil management. It consists of a set of questions, focused at different spatial scales, to identify actual and potential 'impacts on' and 'opportunities to support' soil biodiversity. It can help urban and rural land-managers, policy makers, developers, investors, and educators account for soil biodiversity implications 'on-site', 'in neighbouring areas', and 'in a global context'.
This work has been done as a pilot project, with a view to creating and seeking funding for a larger project with European and global partners.

Soils are a crucial element in the functioning of ecosystems. Much of what is known about soils comes from research on agricultural soils, yet soils also provide important and diverse functions in urban areas. Given the current EU-wide focus on soil monitoring and resilience, frameworks for understanding and assessing urban soil health are critical. This presentation highlights a soil health index (BGI) developed for urban soils, which provides structure for soil monitoring and generates context-relevant information for soil users. The index is focused on six forms of urban soil use (green event sites, urban parks, food gardens, gardens without food, neighborhood green spaces and sealed soils), and guides users through the selection of relevant soil indicators, carrying out field sampling, assessing and interpreting soil data, and deciding whether soil health is adequate for a specific use or whether measures can be taken to improve soil health. The original system (BGI-Amsterdam) was initiated by and co-created with stakeholders from the municipality of Amsterdam. Ongoing research in the Urbisoil project is carrying out further co-development with stakeholders from additional municipalities and organizations in the Netherlands. Both the existing system and ongoing innovation will be presented.

Soil literacy initiatives are often constrained by linear knowledge-transfer models that fail to foster collaborative learning, behavioural change, or locally grounded innovation. Addressing this gap is crucial to the EU Mission "A Soil Deal for Europe". 
This contribution presents a conceptual and methodological framework developed within the Horizon Europe project NEMESIS (2025–2029) to strengthen social innovation and stakeholder engagement. The framework is currently being operationalised across five Mediterranean Living Labs in coordination with emerging Multi-Actor Platforms (MAPs) and is aligned with European sustainability competence approaches (e.g. GreenComp). 
The framework consists of three interrelated components: (1) a social innovation pathway linking awareness raising, social learning, behavioural change, and the adoption of soil-friendly practices and solutions; (2) a set of intervention formats, including socio-ecological experiments, life-coaching cycles, and school-based engagements; and (3) a Living Lab and MAP-based implementation environment in which these formats are co-designed with stakeholders, tested in practice, and iteratively refined to fit local socio-ecological contexts. 
The framework embeds co‑creation, experimentation, and reflexive learning as drivers for behavioural and institutional change across diverse stakeholder groups. It advances soil literacy and citizen engagement by translating conceptual insights into structured activity formats, differentiated engagement strategies, and clearly defined pathways towards adoption.
This contribution offers transferable design principles for embedding soil literacy, citizen engagement, and social innovation in soil-related initiatives, contributing to Mission Soil objectives.

The EU-funded SOILSCAPE project, coordinated by AFES, explores how culture and creativity can contribute to soil preservation and soil literacy across Europe. By bringing together soil scientists, artists, humanities scholars, civil society organizations, policymakers,... the project aims to transform how society understands, values, and engages with soils. Through artistic practices, education, and participatory approaches, SOILSCAPE seeks to foster stronger societal connections with soil and promote collective action for soil health.
A central output of the project is the development of a "Soils & Arts" portal, an extension of the SOILSCAPE website dedicated to initiatives at the intersection of soil, arts, and culture. This interactive, multilingual portal will provide resources, inspiration, and practical tools to support soil literacy initiatives. It will initially serve the project's first eight Soils & Arts Orchestras, facilitating knowledge sharing and dissemination of practices emerging from these pilot activities.
Beyond SOILSCAPE, the project contributes to the broader ambition of the EU Mission "A Soil Deal for Europe" and the UNESCO Soil initiative to strengthen soil literacy. In collaboration with Mission Soil projects and clusters, SOILSCAPE aims to formulate recommendations for a future European soil literacy portal, potentially integrated into the Mission Soil Platform.
To inform these recommendations, a survey targeting Mission Soil projects and related initiatives across Europe will be conducted to better understand current practices, needs, and expectations regarding soil literacy promotion and knowledge-sharing tools. The results will help identify priorities and guide the development of shared resources to support soil literacy efforts at the European scale.

This research investigates the role of spontaneous vegetation as both an ecological and cultural agent in the regeneration of degraded soils in urban contexts. Urban soils are increasingly degraded, sealed, or contaminated, while remaining largely invisible within planning practices and public perception. Often overlooked or considered marginal, spontaneous plant communities demonstrate a strong capacity to colonise disturbed environments, contributing to soil stabilisation, biodiversity enhancement, and the recovery of soil functions.
Within this framework, the contribution explores how informal and collective practices support soil literacy as a participatory process. Rather than being treated as a technical or scientific domain, soil is approached as a shared field of knowledge that can be collectively observed, interpreted, and experienced. Through the involvement of the collective erbacce, conceived as an experimental platform, spontaneous vegetation is observed, activated, and narrated through situated practices that connect ecological processes with social dynamics.
Adopting a research-by-design approach, the study examines the relationship between vegetal agency and human practices, showing how spontaneous vegetation can act as an interface that makes soil processes perceptible. These practices foster awareness, encourage behavioural change, and support inclusive forms of engagement with soil-related issues.
The contribution aligns with Mission Soil objectives by addressing soil biodiversity, restoration processes, and the reduction of soil sealing impacts, while advancing soil literacy and citizen engagement. By integrating ecological performance with collective practices, the research proposes a framework in which spontaneous vegetation operates as a tangible mediator between soil processes and society, enabling new forms of soil-centered landscape design.

Achieving healthy soils across Europe requires more than scientific and technical innovation; it depends on the active involvement of stakeholders in shaping and implementing soil-related decisions. Improving soil literacy and fostering meaningful engagement is therefore not only a societal need, but also a clear requirement of the EU Mission "A Soil Deal for Europe". In this context, traditional top-down approaches to knowledge generation are over, and participatory models grounded in co-creation are needed.
The MultiSoil project (Horizon Europe, GA 101218951) addresses this challenge through a quadruple helix approach, bringing together farmers, advisors, local communities, researchers and policy actors to jointly develop and test sustainable soil management practices. This study explores how digital tools can enhance stakeholder engagement within Living Lab environments.
In Mediterranean case studies led by IRNAS-CSIC, a hybrid engagement model combines in-person activities-such as workshops, field demonstrations and multi-actor discussions-with targeted digital marketing strategies, including social media campaigns, visual content and interactive surveys. These tools have enabled the creation of a broad and diverse stakeholder community, extending participation beyond conventional approaches. Co-creation workshops have directly informed the soil management practices currently being implemented in experimental plots. Preliminary results show increased participation, improved understanding of soil management, and greater willingness to adopt sustainable practices.
Overall, digital tools act not only as communication channels but as enablers of interaction, feedback and communities of practice, providing a scalable model for improving soil literacy and citizen engagement across European Living Labs.

The Soils & Arts Orchestras, developed within the Horizon Europe project SOILSCAPE, is a transdisciplinary framework designed to enhance soil literacy and support community‑based soil stewardship. Each national and regional orchestra operates as a network of diverse stakeholders collaborating to co‑design and implement interventions that integrate scientific, artistic and educational approaches tailored to local soil challenges.
A central structural component is the conductor, who ensures coordination, facilitates communication and maintains methodological consistency across the network. The conductor's leadership is essential for enabling iterative Living‑Lab‑based processes, aligning stakeholder expectations and ensuring coherence between scientific, artistic and community‑driven activities.
This presentation outlines the operational model of the Soils & Arts Orchestra, focusing on methodological principles, governance mechanisms and good practices in stakeholder engagement. It highlights procedures for actor mapping, collaborative goal‑setting and the development of soil‑focused interventions adapted to specific environmental and socio‑cultural contexts.
Early insights from SOILSCAPE indicate that Soils & Arts Orchestras function as effective platforms for cross‑sector collaboration, generating locally relevant knowledge, strengthening community participation and contributing to long‑term soil awareness. The model shows strong potential for replication across diverse territories, supporting broader efforts toward sustainable soil management.

Mission Soil project NBSOIL (Nature Based Solutions for Soil Management) is a four-year initiative which aims to co-create and test an innovative learning pathway for existing and aspiring soil advisors. The core product of NBSOIL is the Soil Academy which is a blended training programme prototype targeting advisors connected to soils in agricultural, urban, forest and industrial regions. Participants are engaging with soil health and nature-based solutions experts, demonstration sites, advisory services, and other Soil Mission projects across the EU and associated countries to strengthen the knowledge and skills to provide nature-based advice on soils across all land use sectors. The learning programme is focused on nature based solutions dedicated to a wide range of soil challenges and land use types. The content of the Academy is produced based on existing knowledge, analysis of test sites and in a co-creation process with the soil experts. The test areas representative for the NBS categories provide data and demonstration of the benefits coming from the tested practice – the examples are application of biowaste, in situ soil remediation or green area management in cities. The NBSOIL Academy is structured into four modules: (1) Soil health and NBS, (2) Living Lab facilitation, (3) Digital tools in soil advisory, (4) Decision making in business and policy. The Soil Academy platform, the modules, the co-creation process and the pathway from test areas to the Academy will be shown during the presentation.

Healthy soils are the quiet heartbeat of life – supporting food, climate resilience, biodiversity, water, and our future. Yet most people still don't know how vital they are, creating a gap between science, daily choices, and policy action. Save Soil sees citizens as the powerful co-creators of the change we need.


Over the past four years, our Earth Buddies volunteer network has turned awareness into action across the globe, starting with Europe. We've mobilised more than 18,000 citizens to send pledges and letters to MEPs, helping secure the adoption of the EU Soil Monitoring & Resilience Directive in 2025. We've hosted events, run school programmes, organised participatory soil workshops, and built a vibrant global community that shares stories, learns together, and speaks up for soil health.


This presentation shares what we've learned: when citizens understand soil's role in their health, food, and planet, they become unstoppable advocates. We showcase real examples – from grassroots campaigns that influenced EU policy to community-led activities that inspire better land practices – and propose a simple, scalable framework for embedding citizen engagement into soil strategies:
Multi-layered awareness journeys that connect science, policy, and everyday life
Participatory monitoring and community science that feed real data upward
Feedback loops where citizen voices directly shape and strengthen soil policy
By treating citizens as partners we can close the gap between ambition and action – making soil health a shared, living reality that unites us all.

Monte Silveira Farm (Portugal) operates as a Mediterranean lighthouse farm within the framework of the EU Mission "A Soil Deal for Europe", advancing regenerative soil management and soil literacy through farmer-centred co-creation, citizen science and multi-actor collaboration. As the core of the Monte Regen Hub, the farm brings together farmers, researchers, students, advisors, industry and policy to jointly design, test and scale context-adapted solutions for soil health in agroecosystems.
The Hub integrates a diverse portfolio of European projects, including Biomonitor4CAP, Benchmarks, GOOD, Climate Farm Demo, Grazing4AgroEcology, LILAS4SOILS, SUS-SOIL, GroundWork and EchoSoil, creating synergies between research, demonstration and practice. These initiatives support on-farm experimentation and long-term monitoring of key soil health indicators such as soil organic matter, biodiversity, structure and water dynamics, while enabling harmonised assessment frameworks across European pedoclimatic regions.
A central feature of the Monte Regen Hub is its strong stakeholder engagement approach, fostering participatory processes, peer-to-peer learning and capacity building to enhance soil literacy among land managers and local communities. Through field days, training programmes and collaborative research activities, the Hub facilitates knowledge exchange and strengthens the science–practice interface.
By combining applied research with real-world implementation, Monte Silveira demonstrates how lighthouse farms can accelerate the transition towards resilient and soil-positive agroecosystems. Its farmer-driven, participatory and replicable model contributes to scaling regenerative practices across Mediterranean landscapes and supports the broader European ambition of achieving healthy soils by 2030.

Soil health data are often difficult to interpret for farmers, land managers, and other end users because values for pH, salinity, organic carbon, nutrients, and trace elements do not automatically translate into management-relevant conclusions. Within iCOSHELLs, we developed a traffic-light-based soil health assessment framework to improve the accessibility and usability of soil monitoring data. Using baseline soil measurements across our six Living Labs, we compared key soil health indicators with reference thresholds from scientific literature and environmental guidelines. This allowed us to classify soil conditions into simple categories such as unhealthy (above or below thresholds), vigilance (approaching critical thresholds), and healthy, allowing rapid identification of soils within optimal ranges or showing signs of degradation or contamination. This approach proved especially useful for identifying the main soil constraints in each experimental area. It identified sites with elevated heavy metal concentrations, and captured signals of excessive nutrient inputs in areas such as Southeastern Spain, where increased electrical conductivity reflected salinity-related pressures linked to intensive fertilisation practices. Beyond simplifying interpretation, the approach provides a structured way to compare heterogeneous soil datasets across Living Labs and to identify where further site-specific investigation or intervention may be needed. These results suggest that threshold-based visual classification can support both scientific screening and communication with practitioners, while also underscoring the need for careful treatment of indicators for which robust reference values remain limited.

The EARTHONE project develops and demonstrates practical solutions to improve soil health and ecosystem resilience across diverse European landscapes. Six pilot sites in Spain, Greece, Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, and North Macedonia test improved land use measures (ILUMs) under varied pedo-climatic conditions and management systems. These sites represent a range of environments, including Mediterranean agroforestry, orchards, intensive cropland, wet grasslands, karst pastures, and afforestation areas. Their aim is to evaluate how targeted practices can enhance soil quality, carbon sequestration, biodiversity, and ecosystem functioning while sustaining productivity.


The pilot network acts as a real-world experimental platform where management interventions are implemented and monitored across regions. ILUMs include afforestation, agroforestry, organic soil management, improved forest biomass use, efficient fertiliser application, and enhanced pasture and crop management. Experimental activities involve conservation and regenerative practices such as cover cropping, agroforestry systems, extensive grazing, and precision fertilisation.


To ensure comparability, EARTHONE applies a harmonised monitoring framework based on four domains: soil, vegetation, greenhouse gas fluxes, and economic indicators. Soil monitoring includes physical, chemical, and biological properties such as soil organic carbon, nutrient status, and microbial activity. Vegetation assessments focus on plant diversity and productivity, while flux measurements quantify CO₂ and CH₄ emissions to estimate climate mitigation potential.


By integrating field experimentation with coordinated monitoring protocols, EARTHONE generates comparable datasets, strengthening the scientific basis for sustainable land management and climate-resilient agricultural systems in Europe.
Acknowledgments 
This work is funded under Horizon Europe project entitled "Environmental Analysis and Resilience for Transformative Human-Optimized natural Environments" (EarthOne) (#101181825)

Forest soils play a key role in global carbon (C) storage. Important for long-term C storage in soil is the formation of stable mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM). Recent research demonstrated variations in forest C cycles depending on tree diversity and mycorrhiza, but we still lack mechanistic knowledge about the role of the mycorrhizal symbiosis in soil C stabilization. 
This study aims to quantify particulate organic matter (POM) and MAOM in relation to tree diversity and mycorrhizal type, i.e., ectomycorrhiza (EcM) and arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM). It was conducted in the MyDiv-experiment (Bad Lauchstädt, Germany), where 10 deciduous tree species were planted across a gradient of species richness. POM and MAOM fractions were separated by density. Their mass, C and N contents and 13C and 15N isotopic composition (as well as those of fungal and plant sources) were determined.
We found that the higher C/N ratio of POM compared to MAOM aligned with the expected greater contribution of plant residues to POM and microbial residues to MAOM. Likewise, 13C-enrichment of MAOM was higher compared to POM, especially in diverse systems. Fungal:bacterial C ratios in MAOM showed clear fungal dominance and were higher in EcM compared to AM systems. We further found more POM and POM-C of diverse composition in diverse, especially EcM, systems.
All in all, the analysis of natural stable isotope abundances is a powerful tool to elucidate processes of POM and MAOM formation in temperate forests, which may help to increase and protect soil organic C stocks.

Plant symbioses with mycorrhizal fungi facilitate substantial carbon (C) fluxes from plants to soils and thus contribute to terrestrial C stocks. The visualization and quantification of C fluxes in plants and fungal mycelium with radioactive 14C tracer have greatly enhanced our understanding of assimilate allocation patterns related to mycorrhizal symbiosis. Now, 11C tracer combined with Positron Emission Tomography (PET) adds another dimension: 3D imagery with a high temporal resolution.
To investigate short-term C fluxes in the plant-soil system as a function of mycorrhizal colonization intensity, we studied the rate of assimilate transport from above- to belowground plant compartments of ectomycorrhizal Fagus sylvatica trees grown in forest topsoil. To investigate the trees' C investment into phosphorus supply by mycorrhizae, each pot contained an ingrowth core with apatite-enriched forest topsoil. The ingrowth core is covered with a 30 µm mesh only allowing hyphal ingrowth, thus increasing the need of C investment by the tree into the fungal mycelium. We successfully used Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to generate belowground 3D images of tree root architecture and additionally combined ¹¹CO₂ pulse labelling with PET to visualize, in 3D and in vivo, the flow of C assimilates from tree leaves to the soil. Combined, MRI and PET is a non-invasive approach that provides real-time visualization of C allocation in the plant-soil system and allows to quantify assimilates translocation speed in the plant phloem as a function of the C sink strength of the mycorrhizal fungi under changing growth conditions.

Conventional cotton production relies on high water use and intensive chemical inputs, often causing soil degradation, biodiversity loss, and reduced ecosystem resilience. In response to growing environmental concerns and sustainability policies, regenerative farming (RF) has emerged as an alternative that restores soil health, improves ecosystem functions, and enhances carbon sequestration, contributing to climate adaptation. This study evaluates RF practices in cotton-based systems in the Aegean Region, Türkiye.It began in 2022 as a joint initiative of public, private, and civil society organizations as a demonstration on a 0.4 ha field, where two cotton cultivars, Bomba and Milet 84, were grown under RF management. Key practices included no-till, cover cropping, mulching, crop rotation, and drip irrigation to improve soil health and carbon sequestration. .In 2023, cotton cultivation was repeated under the same conditions to assess system continuity. In the third year, diversification was introduced with wheat followed by soybean. After positive agronomic and soil monitoring results, the system was expanded to a 2.5 ha dissemination field using c.v Maya. Two models were applied with an agroforestry component (trees and shrubs as hedgerows): i) a cotton system and ii) a cotton–soybean intercropping system. The results of this multi-year field implementation demonstrate the potential of RF practices to support sustainable and climate-resilient cotton production systems. The integration of crop diversification, intercropping, and agroforestry within RF management framework provides insights for the development of environmentally sustainable cotton production systems in the Mediterranean agroecosystems. Keywords: Regenerative farming, cotton intercropping, agroforestry, soil health.

Soils host an extraordinary diversity of microorganisms that regulate carbon cycling and, ultimately, soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks and greenhouse gas emissions. Edaphoclimatic conditions and land use strongly shape this biological diversity. We hypothesized that land use alters fungal and bacterial diversity and that these shifts are correlated with soil carbon stocks and emissions. Our aim was to identify, among native forest, agriculture, pasture, and eucalyptus in three biomes of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil (Cerrado, Atlantic Forest, and Pantanal), which land uses harbor the highest microbiological diversity and how this diversity relates to soil carbon emissions and stocks. SOC were quantified from total soil carbon in the 0–10, and 10–30 cm layers at 100 sampling points for each land use and biome. Soil carbon emissions were measured at the same points. For microbiological analyses, soil samples were pooled into a composite sample for each land use and biome. Bacteria and fungi were identified using 16S rRNA sequencing and ITS1/ITS2 PCR, respectively. Our findings show that the abundance and diversity of bacteria and fungi are markedly influenced by land use and biome, with clear consequences for soil carbon retention and release. The Cerrado exhibited lower carbon emissions and higher SOC, together with a high incidence of beneficial microorganisms of the genera Metarhizium and Bacillus and pathogenic genera Penicillium and Fusarium. Together, these patterns indicate that specific microbial assemblages associated with each land use–biome combination can either promote SOC preservation or intensify carbon losses from soil.

Agriculture has caused substantial soil organic carbon (SOC) losses, resulting in atmospheric CO2 and warming. With rising population and food demand, sustainable management is increasingly needed to reduce these impacts. Among these, cover cropping is a key component of conservation agriculture. By reducing bare-soil periods, it can make impacts on soil exposure, surface energy balance, water cycling, and carbon dynamics, and are therefore increasingly considered a promising strategy for improving SOC storage. However, previous studies focused mainly on the topsoil, whereas the effects of cover cropping on deeper soil carbon remain insufficiently quantified. In addition, the influence of climate change on SOC responses to cover cropping, as well as the spatial sensitivity of these responses across regions, has not been fully evaluated at the global scale. Therefore, a consistent global understanding of the SOC benefits of cover cropping is needed. To address these gaps, we developed a global depth-dependent database of cover cropping experiments, including information on soil layers, crop types, and management characteristics. Based on this database, we first applied meta-analysis to quantify SOC responses and their relationships with climate and environmental factors. We then combined these observations with a machine-learning approach to simulate future and hypothetical scenarios, allowing us to assess the global sensitivity and potential of SOC responses under changing climate conditions. This study provides a hybrid framework for quantitatively evaluating agricultural interventions under climate change and offers scientific support for sustainable agricultural management, soil carbon sequestration, and broader climate mitigation goals.

Reliable, field-based evidence on soil organic carbon dynamics under regenerative agriculture remains limited in European commercial farming systems. This study presents a multi-year soil monitoring dataset from regenerative farms in the Czech Republic and Slovakia collected between 2021 and 2025. The dataset comprises approximately 120 farms covering around 20,000 hectares managed under practices including reduced tillage, cover cropping, diversified crop rotations, and adaptive grazing. It provides a regionally relevant basis for assessing soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks in commercial farming systems under regenerative management.

Soil sampling was conducted using a stratified design to capture spatial variability within fields and management zones. SOC concentrations were determined through standardized laboratory procedures, and SOC stocks were calculated using bulk density and depth-specific sampling. Quantification follows the Ecometric Soil Organic Carbon Estimation Methodology, with emphasis on conservative uncertainty treatment, traceability, and transparent reporting.

The dataset is being used to quantify SOC stocks and assess changes across monitoring rounds and farms. The analytical framework is designed to examine whether regenerative management is associated with the maintenance of existing SOC stocks and, where detectable, with increases over time under operational farm conditions.

This work contributes to the development of monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) systems for soil carbon in European agriculture. It also offers an applied foundation for scientifically robust and operationally relevant soil carbon accounting within emerging carbon farming frameworks.

Soil organic carbon (SOC) is a key component of climate change mitigation and sustainable agriculture, supporting the objectives of the EU Soil Strategy 2030 and the Soil Mission. This study, conducted within the Soilife1st project (PRR-C05-i03-I-000006), evaluated the effects of winter-sown cover crops on carbon sequestration over three agricultural years (2023–2025) in Ribatejo, Portugal. A field experiment at São João de Brito compared two monoculture systems: plots left under natural vegetation without sowing (Control, T) and plots sown with a diversified consortium of locally adapted grasses and legumes (Consociation, CC). Carbon stocks, and biomass, were quantified following GSOC MRV (FAO, 2020) and IPCC (2008) protocols. Cover crops consistently increased carbon inputs. Aboveground biomass carbon ranged from 1.46 to 5.54 t C ha⁻¹ under CC, representing increases of 39% and 184% compared to T. Root carbon was markedly higher under CC (2.96 t C ha⁻¹) than T (0.77 t C ha⁻¹), indicating 2 to 10 times greater belowground inputs. SOC stocks reached 30.65 t C ha⁻¹ under CC versus 17.26 t C ha⁻¹ in T by 2025, with progressive gains over time (+6.7 to +13.4 t C ha⁻¹). These results suggest that winter cover crops can enhance SOC through increased biomass inputs, particularly roots, supporting soil carbon accumulation under the studied conditions.

Soil is one of the main natural resources for Brazilian agriculture and plays a fundamental role in terrestrial ecosystems. The objective was to evaluate the effect of nitrogen fertilization doses on carbono (C) and nitrogen (N) stocks, root mass and distribution in soil Urochloa brizantha pastures under rotational grazing by beef cattle. The experimental design was a randomized block design with three replications. The treatments were four N doses (45, 90, 135, and 180 kg ha-1 of N). The experimental period was from November 2024 to May 2025. Evaluations of root density (0-10, 10-20, 20-30, and 30-40 cm depth), C and N, up to 100 cm depth, were performed at the end of the grazing period, in May 2025. No effect of nitrogen doses applied to the pasture on dry weight, mass, and root distribution was observed. Depth and position (under and between clumps) effects were observed for dry weight, mass, and root distribution. No effects of applied nitrogen doses were observed for soil C and N percentages and stocks. Soil depth effects were observed for soil C and N percentages and stocks. The physical and chemical attributes of the soil were not altered by N doses in marandu grass pastures grazed by beef cattle in the Cerrado Biome. Therefore, the choice of dose becomes dependent on the desired level of intensification for the system.

As part of the OrCasa Coordination and Support Action (GA 101059863) to build an international research consortium on soil organic carbon (SOC), now known as Soil Carbon Futures, a global Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) has been developed. Using a structured multi-step process, the SRIA identifies, structures and justifies global and region-specific research and innovation priorities on SOC for the coming years. 
The SRIA describes a consolidated global framework of universal SOC research priorities common to all world regions e.g. examining the impact of C- smart and conventional practices according to soil and climate context or understanding biotic and abiotic controls of SOC dynamics. It then goes on to provide a detailed set of region-specific priorities for Africa & Near East, Asia, Europe, Latin America, North America and Oceania. These priorities vary depending on climate risks, land pressures governance capacities and data availability and include e.g. paddy systems in Asia, deforestation in Latin America and SOC in the context of soil health policies in Europe. Finally, the SRIA provides a structured decision-support architecture for future research funding and collaborations. 
The Soil Carbon Futures SRIA provides a global roadmap for future research on SOC and identifies policy-relevant research needs to promote SOC-friendly practices world-wide, thus contributing to addressing challenges related to climate change, soil health, biodiversity and food security. 

Climate change and the intensification of anthropogenic activities are altering soil carbon dynamics, leading to losses in soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks and increased carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions to the atmosphere. We hypothesized that soil CO₂ emissions and SOC stocks can be accurately predicted using hyperspectral sensing combined with machine learning (ML) algorithms. The objectives were: to predict CO₂ emission and SOC stock using hyperspectral sensors and ML algorithms; and to identify the algorithms and input datasets that provide the highest prediction accuracy for CO₂ emission and SOC stock. Soil samples were collected in three major tropical biomes in the State of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil: Cerrado, Atlantic Forest, and Pantanal. Within each biome, four land‑use classes were assessed: agriculture, pasture, eucalyptus plantations, and native vegetation. Data were collected from 100 sampling points in each area within each biome. At every sampling point, SOC was measured at two depths (0–10, and 10–30 cm), and in situ measurements of soil CO₂ flux (FCO₂). Hyperspectral data were collected at each sampling point. The ML models evaluated were Artificial Neural Network, decision‑tree models REPTree and M5P, Random Forest (RF), Support Vector Machine (SVM), and a simple baseline model. Our findings demonstrate that combining hyperspectral sensing with ML algorithms enables accurate prediction of FCO2 and SOC stocks. Model performance depended on the set of input variables, with SVM providing the highest accuracy when all hyperspectral bands were used, whereas RF performed best when using only the MODIS bands. 

Soil organic carbon (SOC) is a critical indicator of soil health, agricultural productivity, and climate mitigation potential, yet measuring how SOC stocks have changed over time remains a challenge in data-sparse regions. This study developed a digital soil mapping workflow that organized, harmonized, and analyzed legacy soil profile data to estimate SOC stocks prior to land use change.
A case study from Angola is presented, where mid-20th century soil profile data was harmonized and modeled alongside soil formation covariates to estimate historical SOC stocks across the upper 30 cm of soil. Using a combination of machine learning and geostatistical approaches, a national baseline of approximately 525 million Mg C was established, providing a reference point against which current and future land use change and carbon stock degradation or recovery can be measured.
This work demonstrates that legacy soil data, when properly prepared, can provide the historical context needed to evaluate whether current land management practices are building or depleting soil carbon. The transparent, reproducible framework developed here offers a practical model for other data-sparse regions seeking to establish SOC baselines in support of carbon farming initiatives, national soil monitoring programs, and evidence-based land management policy.

Long-term sugarcane cultivation with pre-harvest burning may add recalcitrant charcoal carbon (C) to soil organic carbon (OC) in ferralsols, whereas aluminium/ iron-organic matter (Al/Fe-OM) complexes may dominate the mineral-associated OC in ferralsols. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine the effect of sugarcane cultivation relative to forest on soil OC in charcoal C form and Al/Fe-OM complexes on selected ferralsols. Charcoal C, total C, and Al/Fe-OC were analysed in two sites under forest and sugarcane cultivation up to 100 cm depth using a two-way analysis of variance. In both sites, sugarcane cultivation reduced charcoal C and Al/Fe-bound OC when compared to forest. The Al/Fe-bound OC in Eston and Wartburg sugarcane soils accounted for 48.7 and 72.2% of the total OC, respectively, whereas in forest soils it accounted for 45.6 and 44.4% of the total OC in Eston and Wartburg, respectively. For charcoal C, Eston and Wartburg sugarcane soils accounted for 8.42 and 4.07% of total OC, respectively. The Al/Fe-bound OC decreased with an increase in soil depth for both forest and sugarcane. The Alp and Alp + Fep concentrations were not affected by sampling depth. These findings demonstrate that OC in Al/Fe-OC complexes and charcoal C contribute to the high OC concentrations in ferralsols, and sugarcane cultivation reduces these concentrations.

Preserving and enhancing soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks is essential for climate change mitigation and the transition towards sustainable agricultural systems. Agricultural soils represent a significant opportunity for carbon sequestration; however, their capacity to store carbon is strongly influenced by land management practices. Perennial systems such as vineyards are particularly relevant, as they can promote long-term carbon accumulation through continuous root inputs and reduced soil disturbance.
This study investigates how contrasting vineyard management practices influence SOC storage and stability, with a focus on their potential to support climate mitigation. Two adjacent vineyard plots in central Spain, managed under spontaneous vegetation cover and periodic tillage, were examined to assess differences in carbon sequestration pathways. Soil samples were collected to a depth of 90 cm to capture both surface and subsoil carbon dynamics, which are critical for long-term carbon storage.
To better understand SOC turnover and persistence, stable (δ¹³C) and radiocarbon (Δ¹⁴C) isotopic analyses were combined with measurements of carbon and nitrogen content. This multi-proxy approach enables the identification of carbon sources and provides insights into the mechanisms governing carbon stabilization under different management regimes.
The results will help identify management practices that effectively increase SOC stocks while maintaining agricultural productivity, supporting climate-smart agriculture and reinforcing the role of soils in mitigating climate change.
Keywords: soil organic carbon, carbon sequestration, vineyard management, δ¹³C, Δ¹⁴C, sustainable agriculture, climate mitigation
Acknowledgments
This work is supported by the SANCHOSTHIRST project (EJP-SOIL grant agreement No. 862695/II/4/SANCHOSTHIRST/2024).

Preserving and increasing soil organic carbon stocks is key for climate mitigation in agricultural systems. The CARBONICA EU project supports this objective by developing and implementing a carbon farming action plan across three widening countries. Through coordinated activities at regional and national scales, soil carbon dynamics and the effectiveness of soil-focused management practices are assessed.
An extended inventory of climate- positive management practices has been developed and tested in pilot sites across 15 crops in the three countries. These practices are aligned with internationally recognized frameworks, including the IPCC, the Soil Monitoring Law, the GHG Protocol, and relevant EU climate initiatives. Monitoring, reporting and verification is supported through a comprehensive system combining soil sampling and field input data, following IPCC Scope guidance, and documentation of farm management practices. These procedures enable consistent tracking of carbon stock changes and are fully compliant with ISO 14064:2. Farm-level data collection is strengthened through soil CO₂ flux monitoring to support further assessment of soil carbon dynamics.
Evidence from a greek pilot (peach orchard, 1 ha) demonstrate the potential of targeted practices to enhance soil carbon stocks. Following the implementation of no-till and crop resιdue incorporation, the system shifted from a net-zero soil carbon balance in 2024 to an active carbon sink in 2025, resulting in the net removal of 597.76 kg CO₂e from the atmosphere into the soil. These results demonstrate the potential of improved management practices to preserve and increase soil organic carbon stocks within agricultural systems.

Soil organic carbon (SOC) is a key indicator of soil health and a central component of climate change mitigation and agricultural adaptation strategies. Agricultural practices have led to substantial global SOC losses, with estimated reductions of 20-60% relative to original stocks. Identifying pathways to reverse these losses is essential for developing sustainable and climate-resilient agricultural systems. SOC comprises fractions with varying degrees of stability. Certain SOC fractions are more sensitive to changes in agricultural management practices than total SOC. 
This study investigates the relationships among SOC, particulate organic carbon (POC), and permanganate oxidizable carbon (POXC), in different farming systems in the framework of the carbon farming Living Lab IBERSOILL. POC is obtained by soil physical separation and corresponds to the fraction with particles larger than 53 µm, consisting of relatively undecomposed organic matter. POXC is obtained chemically and represents the fraction of SOC that is oxidizable by permanganate, which includes organic matter with varying degrees of lability. The aim is to assess the potential of these fractions as short-term indicators of changes in SOC driven by management practices.
We present results from an initial soil sampling campaign conducted across a subset of five Living Lab farms, including both perennials and annual cropping systems. The analysis focuses on the relationships between SOC, POC, and POXC, aiming to contribute to the development of robust frameworks for monitoring short-term SOC dynamics and inferring long-term trends under different agricultural systems.

Microbial communities in soil play a pivotal role in nutrient cycling and organic matter transformation, relying on carbon (C) and energy (E) sources for growth. The allocation of the microbial substrates to biomass formation and energy conservation is crucial for biomass and necromass formation by microbes and thus for SOC sequestration in soils. We hypothesized a close linkage between C and E fluxes in soil, with environmental conditions, e.g. water content, shaping substrate requirements and microbial activities, thereby influencing Carbon Use Efficiency (CUE) and Energy Use Efficiency (EUE). 
To explore this link at different water contents (WC), we conducted incubation experiments using a fertilized Haplic Luvisol at 11, 16 and 21% WC with fully labeled 13C-cellulose as substrate. Mineralization, biomass formation, and bacterial and fungal population sizes were measured on 5 sampling days. In parallel, heat production rate was continuously monitored.
Results revealed a clear effect of WC on microbial activities. Lower WC led to decreased CO2 and heat generation and a shift in the microbial community, with fungal growth stimulated under 21% WC.
However, no effect of WC on CUE and EUE was observed. Both declined over time in all treatments, possibly due to biomass recycling and mineralization of additional substrates. EUE was consistently larger than CUE after the initial mineralization phase, when high activities were measured.
In summary, our findings suggest that water content significantly influences cellulose degradation, yet a clear link between CUE and EUE requires further analyses and experimental improvements. 

Soils in continental mountain areas can contain high stocks of organic carbon (SOC), but their evolution depends on the balance between litter inputs and the decomposition and stabilization of organic components. This study integrated analytical information by soil horizon from the Cabanas experimental area (Serra da Nogueira, Trás-os-Montes, NE Portugal) into simulations using CO2FIX v3, a carbon accounting and simulation model developed for forest systems and associated value chains (biomass-products-soil), applying the Soil/Yasso module over 50 years to quantify SOC dynamics and characterize the behaviour of the modelled carbon pools. The initial SOC was set at 230.5 Mg C ha⁻¹, distributed into soluble compounds (3.0), cellulose (5.0), lignin (2.5), particulate organic matter (POM, 130), and mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM, 90 Mg C ha⁻¹). Under the climatic conditions of the site (∼3900 ºC·day year⁻¹; mean annual temperature ~10-12 ºC, annual precipitation ~1000-1100 mm), the simulation showed rapid decay of labile pools in the first years, with cellulose declining from 5.0 to 1.6 Mg C ha⁻¹ in year 1. After 50 years, SOC decreased to 153.5 Mg C ha⁻¹, mainly due to strong POM reduction (47.2 Mg C ha⁻¹), while MAOM was maintained or slightly increased (98.9 Mg C ha⁻¹), indicating transfer to more stable forms despite total net loss. Total ecosystem carbon (soil + biomass) reached 267.8 Mg C ha⁻¹ at year 50, suggesting that stand growth may offset SOC decline in the overall balance. 

Soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamics in mountain agricultural systems remain poorly characterized, monitoring frameworks often fail to capture long-term trends at the local scale. This study presents an assessment of current SOC stocks in Trentino vineyards, analyzing observed trends and evaluating the adequacy of existing monitoring methodologies within iCOSHELLs project, an initiative dedicated to advancing soil health in alignment with the EU Mission soil. The available literature documents a worrying decline: mean SOC content in the region dropped from 3.2% to 2.6% over the past 30 years (Mescalchin et al., 2014). 
This decline was detected despite the widespread adoption of grass cover crops in inter-rows and the diffuse practice of burying green residues. Recorded data suggest that while these practices slow the rate of SOC decrease - being valuable conservation measures - they are insufficient alone to stabilize OC stocks over time. According to literature, mineralization processes consume an average of 1–2% of existing humus stocks annually, meaning that without organic inputs, any practice that only recycles existing biomass is not enough to reverse the trend. 
We discuss the potential of green manure as a complementary practice to enhance organic matter inputs and improve SOC storage. We further examine how current monitoring limitations, including low sampling frequency and high standardization - constrain the ability to detect meaningful trends.
By leveraging data from iCOSHELLs' monitoring, this work provides the empirical basis necessary to develop evidence-based recommendations that support the EU Soil Strategy 2030 and the goals of Mission Soil.

Apple cultivation in mountain Pelion (central Greece) is economically important but poses environmental challenges due to deforestation for orchard establishment. This study evaluates the effects of land-use change and management intensity on soil health along an elevation gradient. The design included a reference forest and two orchards at contrasting elevations: Field A (cv. Gala, 270 m) and Field B (cv. Fuji, 850 m). Soils were acidic (pH 5.0–7.0) with textures ranging from loamy sand to clay loam. Three management practices were tested: (i) conventional management, (ii) green manuring with legume- and grass-based cover crops, and (iii) mow-and-blow (surface application of shredded biomass).
Soil health was assessed using the Soil Management Assessment Framework (SMAF), integrating physical, chemical, and biological indicators into a single index. Biological indicators included microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and nitrogen (MBN), active carbon (POXC), and their quotients, reflecting carbon sequestration efficiency and organic matter quality.
Preliminary results show forest soils contain about three times more organic carbon than orchard soils, indicating significant carbon loss due to deforestation. Green manuring improved soil fertility relative to conventional management, increasing cation exchange capacity, phosphorus availability (up to 44 mg/kg), and total nitrogen.
Overall, the study provides a quantitative framework linking land-use and management to soil functionality, supporting sustainable Mediterranean mountain orchards.

This work is funded under Horizon Europe project entitled "Environmental Analysis and Resilience for Transformative Human-Optimized natural Environments" (EarthOne) (#101181825)

Understanding soil, water, and carbon dynamics during summer fallow seasons is critical for mitigating land degradation, particularly in semi-arid regions where bare-soil fallow is common. This study quantified soil water content, evapotranspiration, and CO₂ fluxes over four summer fallow seasons (2021–2024) within a rainfed barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) -pea (Pisum sativum) rotation system, and evaluated the effects of interannual climate variability and land management practices. CO₂ and H₂O fluxes were measured using an eddy covariance system, while soil moisture was monitored at 10-, 30-, and 50-cm depths (3 replicates/depth). Fallow durations ranged from 168 to 223 days, spanning post-harvest (April–June) to pre-sowing (November–December). Net ecosystem exchange (NEE) varied annually, resulting in both carbon source (+) and sink (–), with values ranging from +2.0 to –3.4 kg CO₂ m⁻² per season. The season with the lowest total precipitation (48 mm) and lowest average soil moisture (58 mm) exhibited the highest positive NEE. The field during this season was tilled three times between September and November, and total evapotranspiration was 100% of precipitation. Conversely, the season with the highest negative NEE occurred under wetter conditions (87 mm total precipitation; 81 mm average soil moisture) with most precipitation falling in September–October and only one-time tillage in November. Total evapotranspiration for this season was 84% of precipitation. These results indicate that tillage timing, precipitation, and soil moisture influence weed-growth and microbial activity during fallow seasons, potentially shifting arable fields from net carbon sources to sinks.

The intensive use of soil, removal of native vegetation, and improper management of natural resources have compromised soil and environmental quality. This study evaluated the impacts of different land use systems on the physical and chemical attributes of a clayey Oxisol in the western region of Paraná State, Brazil. Six systems were analyzed: no-tillage with crop rotation, no-tillage without rotation, fruit production, pasture, crop–livestock integration, and native forest, with four replications. Evaluations were carried out at depths of 0–10, 10–20, 20–30, and 50–60 cm, including physical and chemical analyses. Data were subjected to the Kruskal–Wallis test (5% significance level) and correlation analysis. No-tillage with crop rotation showed chemical attributes similar to those of native forest, followed by crop–livestock integration and fruit production. Pasture showed intermediate changes, whereas no-tillage without rotation indicated possible nutrient losses (K and P) and low organic matter replenishment. Soil bulk density in the surface layer was lower under no-tillage compared to perennial systems. Macroporosity at depth in fruit production and pasture systems was similar to that of native forest. The geometric ean diameter at the surface was also similar between no-tillage with rotation and native forest. Overall, chemical attributes such as pH, Ca, K, sum of bases, cation exchange capacity, and base saturation were positively correlated with macroporosity and hydraulic conductivity, and negatively correlated with soil bulk density. A direct relationship between macroporosity and water infiltration was also observed.

Mediterranean soils, particularly in Sardinia, are undergoing a progressive decline in quality, negatively affecting their physical, chemical, and biological properties, reducing their productive capacity. This phenomenon is particularly evident in cropping systems based on durum wheat (Triticum durum) in rotation with grain legumes. This study aims to calibrate and validate a soil health index based on easily measurable indicators, applicable at both farm and regional scales, to identify areas at risk of degradation and support sustainable management strategies aimed at increasing soil organic carbon and enhancing ecosystem services. The index was calibrated using data from long-term experimental trials managed by AGRIS Sardegna, characterized by different pedological conditions and soil management practices (conventional tillage, minimum tillage, and no-tillage) in rotation with durum wheat, faba bean, and pea. Soil indicators were selected using a combined approach based on expert knowledge and multivariate statistical analysis (PCA) and subsequently integrated into the Soil Management Assessment Framework (SMAF) to construct the index. Results showed statistically significant differences among soil management practices, with higher SMAF index values associated with decreasing tillage intensity. Reduced-disturbance systems exhibited improved soil fertility and functionality indicators, along with greater temporal stability. The index demonstrated a strong ability to discriminate among pedological and management conditions and showed high transferability at the farm scale. The results indicate that the SMAF index, when properly calibrated, represents an effective tool for assessing soil health in Mediterranean environments and for supporting sustainable soil management practices aimed at enhancing the resilience of agricultural systems.

Soil organic carbon (SOC) depletion represents a critical challenge for soil health and climate mitigation, particularly in marginal mountain regions where agricultural sustainability is increasingly threatened by erosion, land abandonment, and rising input costs. In this context, agroforestry systems and low-disturbance practices are gaining renewed attention as effective strategies to enhance SOC stocks while maintaining productive landscapes.
This study presents a comparative analysis of mountain agricultural systems, focusing on cases from the Ligurian Apennines and complementary experiences from Portuguese rural landscapes. In the Apennine context, small-scale potato cultivation systems managed under reduced soil disturbance and integrated landscape features (e.g. hedgerows, mixed land use) provide an example of how traditional practices can contribute to maintaining and potentially increasing SOC levels. These systems, historically developed under constraints of slope, climate, and limited external inputs, show characteristics aligned with contemporary agroecological principles.
Parallel observations from Portugal highlight similar dynamics, where diversified systems and emerging carbon farming approaches are being tested to improve soil structure, enhance carbon sequestration, and increase resilience to climatic variability. The comparison reveals converging patterns: reduced tillage intensity, increased organic matter inputs, and landscape heterogeneity play a key role in sustaining soil functions.
The findings suggest that cross-regional knowledge exchange-linking Mediterranean mountain systems such as the Apennines with Atlantic contexts like Portugal-can support the development of scalable, context-adapted strategies to enhance SOC. Strengthening this "scientific twinning" approach may contribute to European soil policies by integrating local knowledge, field-based evidence, and climate mitigation goals into coherent land management strategies.

The transition to resilient, climate-smart agriculture is a global challenge, particularly in Mediterranean regions, with recurrent droughts, soil degradation, and high climate variability. Living Labs (LLs), identified by the European Commission as a key instrument under A Soil Deal for Europe, enhance the adoption and effectiveness of carbon farming practices (CFPs) using stakeholder collaboration. 
Within the LILAS4SOILS project, five LLs are being established across six Mediterranean countries (IBERSOILL in Portugal–Spain, SHARE in Italy, SOFRALL in France, RAGILL in Israel, and GRECFL2 in Greece) to implement CFPs across 100 experimental farm sites. We provide collaborative environments where stakeholders co-create, test, and adapt CFPs to local conditions. We also address monitoring, reporting, and verification costs for certification. 
This study presents outcomes of five co-creation workshops involving over 230 stakeholders (farmers, researchers, agri-food industry, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), technical advisors, and policymakers). Farmers represented over 59% of attendees, while NGOs were less represented (≈10%). Stakeholders identified twice as many key barriers as opportunities influencing carbon farming adoption across technical, economic and market, socio-cultural, administrative, and policy aspects. Key challenges included the need to enhance technical advisory support for farmers (particularly machinery selection, integrating multiple practices into coherent systems, addressing agronomic challenges), reduce uncertainty in carbon price, stable markets with clear regulations, clear monitoring and certification procedures, recognising early adopters, and creating farmers' networks for peer learning. This analysis aims to inform carbon farming adoption, insights on farmers' needs, and support the iterative, collaborative co-creation process within LLs.

The LILAS4SOILS project aims to contribute to healthier and more resilient European soils through the implementation of carbon farming practices (CFPs) using a co-creation approach developed through Living Labs (LLs). IBERSOILL, the Iberian LL, covers the Beira Baixa and Castilla y León regions (Portugal and Spain), with 10 demo-sites in each. The main production types include permanent pastures and spontaneous grasslands for sheep and cattle grazing, dryland meadows with mixed legumes and grasses, and rotational systems combining legumes, cereals, and cover crops. Several farms also integrate perennial crops, including vineyards, olive groves, fruit trees, and traditional agroforestry systems as Montado/Dehesa. During the 2025 soil sampling campaign, between October and December, 284 samples were collected. The LUCAS method was adapted to arable lands, orchards, and Montado/Dehesa systems to measure a set of soil health indicators at two depths (0-10 and 10-30 cm) prior and three years after the CFPs implementation: particle size distribution, coarse fragments, bulk density, soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen, carbonates, pH, potential mineralizable nitrogen, SOC fractions, soil moisture at field water capacity and at permanent wilting point, and 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. In parallel, stakeholder engagement activities (two co-creation workshops, two webinars) fostered collaboration with 8 international, 22 national, and 31 local/regional entities creating a strong multi-actor foundation for knowledge exchange and innovation. Collectively, these actions lay out the groundwork to monitor CFPs' environmental, economic, and social impacts, supporting the transition towards climate-resilient and sustainable soil management in Europe.

In orchard systems, management practices traditionally prioritise fruit production, while marginal zones, such as inter‑rows and field edge, remain largely overlooked despite their capacity to deliver essential ecosystem services. Owing to their substantial spatial extent, these areas can significantly shape the functioning, stability, and long‑term resilience of the entire agroecosystem.
This research aims to determine the capacity of orchard inter-row to contribute to climate‑change mitigation by enhancing soil carbon sequestration. At the same time, it seeks to investigate the evolution of soil biological fertility as a fundamental component of soil health, in order to understand how a biologically active soil can support the long‑term stability and improvement of the agroecosystem.
Biological fertility, evaluated through the QBS‑ar index, and soil carbon stock are measured across five multispecies cover‑crop mixtures and spontaneous vegetation. This research aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of how marginal orchard areas can be managed to enhance ecosystem services, contribute to climate‑change mitigation, and promote more sustainable and resilient fruit‑growing systems.

Biochar amendment has been proposed as a multifunctional soil management strategy for enhancing multiple soil functions with a single application. Reported biochar effects range from positive through neutral to negative, depending on soil and biochar properties, concentration, and site-specific abiotic and biotic conditions. This suggests that field-scale benefits can be maximised and trade-offs minimised by pre-field matching of biochar characteristics and application rates to local soil properties and biota requirements. Here, we applied the concept of biochar loading capacity developed in our previous work as a prerequisite for sustainable deployment.
A pinewood chip biochar (620°C; 20min) was applied at 0, 1.5, 3, 6 and 10% (w/w) to three biodiverse pasture soils collected along a climatic gradient. Following incubation to accelerate ageing, pots were sown with on-farm representative plant species. A targeted set of soil physico-chemical and biological indicators linked to key pastoral soil functions (biomass production, habitat provision, sponge function) was assessed using standardised and/or well-established methods.
Biochar at 6% maximised benefits to soil sponge function, while germination, early plant growth, enzymatic activity and macronutrient availability peaked at 1.5–3%, depending on soil type. Integrating individual dose–response curves allowed identifying the optimal field application rate of 4% (w/w), balancing gains in target functions with minimal trade-offs on other soil quality parameters.
Acknowledgments: This work was funded by Foundation for Science and Technology-FCT under projects CESAM UID/50017/2025+LA/P/0094/2020 through national funds, and HABITAT (COMPETE2030-FEDER-00901600; nº15341) and SOILSPONGE (COMPETE2030-FEDER-00799200; nº16808) through COMPETE 2030-FEDER.

The application of plant growth-promoting bacteria in forage grasses is a strategy to increase the efficiency of nutrients. The objective was to evaluate the impact of the inoculation with Azospirillum brasilense on root production and C and N stocks in Brachiaria decumbens cv. Basilisk pasture. The experiment was conducted in an area of 18 ha at Embrapa Beef Cattle, Campo Grande, MS, in a Latossolo Vermelho Distrófico (Dystrophic Ferralsol). The treatments consisted of: 1) 50 kg ha⁻¹ of N (50N); 2) seed inoculation + 50N; 3) seed inoculation + foliar application + 50N; and 4) annual foliar application only (AZfol). The 50N+AZsem+AZfol treatment presented the highest mean values for all analyzed variables: root dry mass (4.29 Mg ha⁻¹), C stock (82.87 Mg ha⁻¹), and N stock (5.54 Mg ha⁻¹), being statistically superior to the AZfol treatment. The results evidence the importance of combining mineral nitrogen fertilization with the inoculation of A. brasilense. This association enhances root growth more significantly than the isolated use of nitrogen. The greater root volume produced by the biostimulant effect of the N + inoculation set functions as the main pathway for carbon and nitrogen input into the soil. Thus, the greater root exploration induced by this synergy reflects directly on the increase of C and N stocks, proving the benefits of this practice in field scale. Foliar application stands out as a strategic tool for the enhancement of established pastures. 

Climate change driven extreme heat events affect soil processes and plant stress. Agri-waste can moderate soil heating during extreme heat, conserve moisture, and supply nutrients to the rootzone, enhancing carbon (C) sequestration and soil fertility. We evaluated five Agri-waste materials (cows/horse manures, pine/general gardening/eucalyptus cuttings) as soil mulches on an alluvial soil from the Hula Valley (Israel). 
Mulching consistently moderated soil temperature, with effectiveness increasing as air temperature rose, especially at the onset of extreme heat events, revealing material‑specific thermal buffering capacity. Eucalyptus cuttings and horse manure were the most efficient, reducing soil temperature by ~25 °C compared with bare soil during August heatwave, when air and exposed soil temperatures reached 46 and 66 °C, respectively.
Mulches contained 8–10 times more C than bare soil and high soluble C concentrations (≈15,000–3,077 mg C kg⁻¹), whereas animal manures were strong nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) contributors, indicating high potential for both short‑ and long‑term C and nutrients inputs, already evident after the first rain. 
Stable‑isotope C and N signatures can trace mulch‑to‑soil transfer and cycling. Most mulches had enriched d15N relative to control soil, while several showed more depleted d13C values, supporting tracking of mulch-soil exchange. After the first rain, all mulched soils display enriched d13C and d15N compared with both control soil and their respective mulches, suggesting mulching-driven biological cycling of soil C and N. End-of-rainy season results will assess dry and wet season contributions to C, N and P mulch-to-soil transfer.

Cover cropping is a vital strategy for mitigating nutrient leaching and erosion in the hemiboreal zone, yet the immediate agrochemical responses of contrasting soil types remain under-quantified. This study evaluated the 6-month impact of a four-species cover crop mixture (Helianthus annuus, Raphanus sativus, Fagopyrum esculentum, Vicia sativa) on soil properties in Northern Lithuania. The research compared mineral soils (Cambisols) and an organic soil inclusion (Histosol) over a single overwintering period.
Results indicated significant spatial heterogeneity in cover crop biomass accumulation, ranging from 366 to 792 g m⁻². Mineral soils exhibited high agrochemical stability (chemical inertia), with no significant changes in total N, P, or pH. However, a notable increase in mobile potassium was observed, likely due to biomass leaching. In contrast, an observational case study on the Histosol inclusion revealed a rapid response, characterized by a substantial increase in water-extractable organic carbon (WEOC), humus (+6.7%), and organic matter (+10%), suggesting a preliminary "priming effect" where fresh residue inputs accelerate the turnover of native organic matter. Root morphological assessment revealed that species like R. sativus successfully created deep biopores (up to 30 cm), improving soil physical structure despite the lack of immediate chemical shifts in mineral layers.
These findings suggest that the short-term efficacy of cover crops is highly soil-dependent: serving primarily as physical conditioners in mineral soils, while acting as chemical catalysts in organic soils. Subsequent spring cereal establishment was robust across all monitored zones, confirming the feasibility of this sustainable management practice.

Soil organic carbon (SOC) is a key indicator of soil fertility and a major component of terrestrial carbon storage, making it central to climate change mitigation and sustainable land management. This study quantified actual SOC stocks, SOC storage potential, and SOC deficits across major land‑use types in Romania using 78 soil samples collected from 0–30 cm depth in arable land, pasture, and orchard systems. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics, ANOVA with Tukey post‑hoc tests, Pearson correlation, and regression modeling. Actual SOC stocks differed significantly among land‑use categories (p < 0.001), with pasture soils exhibiting the highest actual SOC levels (160.9 t ha⁻¹), followed by orchards (86.6 t ha⁻¹) and arable land (68.4 t ha⁻¹). Actual SOC stocks were strongly correlated with humus content (r = 0.97), while soil texture, particularly clay and silt fractions, was a major determinant of SOC storage potential. Pasture systems demonstrated the greatest capacity for carbon accumulation, whereas arable soils showed the largest SOC deficit, indicating substantial opportunities for additional SOC sequestration through improved management practices. These findings highlight the strong influence of land use category on soil carbon dynamics and provide evidence‑based guidance for climate‑smart agricultural strategies aimed at enhancing SOC storage in Romanian agro-ecosystems.

Manure-derived fertilisers represent a valuable nutrient source with the potential to partially replace mineral fertilisers, contributing to circular economy strategies, enhancing soil health, and reducing reliance on imported inputs. This study presents two field experiments conducted under irrigated Mediterranean conditions in silage maize and processing tomato systems to evaluate the agronomic potential of these fertilisers.
In maize, 30% of mineral nitrogen was substituted with pig slurry or composted cattle manure enriched with biochar. In tomato, the same proportion of mineral N was replaced with pig slurry, applied either before planting or 15 days prior to planting, and with composted cattle manure, amended with or without biochar. All treatments were compared to a fully mineral-fertilised control in a completely randomised design with three replicates.
Soil fertility, namely, soil organic matter (SOM), plant nutrient dynamics, and crop yield and quality were assessed. Additionally, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions were monitored in tomato.
Results indicate that substituting up to 30% of mineral N with manure-derived fertilisers did not affect crop yield or plant nutrient concentrations. No significant changes in SOM were observed over the short experimental period; however, these amendments show clear potential to enhance soil fertility over the long-term. A trend towards increased GHG emissions was observed in the manure-amended treatments, although further analysis is required.
Overall, partial substitution of mineral fertilisers with manure-derived inputs represents a promising strategy to improve soil quality, enhance nutrient recycling, and support environmentally and economically sustainable farming systems aligned with European soil and climate objectives.

Rising atmospheric CO₂ demands effective carbon dioxide removal strategies. Nature-based solutions are central to this effort. Mangroves rank among the most efficient natural carbon sinks. Yet the mechanisms driving soil organic carbon stabilization remain unclear, especially in tropical systems. Microbial necromass is now recognized as a major component of persistent soil carbon. Its regulation by parent material and geochemical conditions, however, is still unresolved. This project will test whether parent material controls microbial necromass formation and carbon stabilization in tropical mangroves. We hypothesize that reactive minerals, particularly iron oxides from crystalline sources, will enhance microbial residue preservation and promote mineral-associated organic matter formation. In contrast, sedimentary environments with lower reactivity are expected to constrain these processes. We will integrate mineralogical, geochemical and microbiological approaches. These include X-ray diffraction, iron fractionation, elemental analysis, high-throughput sequencing and amino sugar biomarkers. Microbial necromass contributions to particulate and mineral-associated carbon pools will be quantified. This study will reveal how parent material regulates microbial-mediated carbon persistence. It will establish a new framework for blue carbon dynamics and improve predictions of carbon sequestration in tropical coastal ecosystems.

Intensive agricultural practices have led to soil carbon loss, compromising fertility, resilience, and overall agroecosystem stability. Within the CARBON FARMING CE project, four carbon farming practices, including cover crops, green manure, and organic amendments, were evaluated under field conditions to assess their effects on soil quality, system resilience, and crop productivity.
Results consistently highlighted improvements in soil structure, increased soil organic matter, enhanced water retention, and reduced susceptibility to compaction and waterlogging. In several cases, these practices promoted improved crop vigour, greater resilience to climatic stresses, and reduced dependence on synthetic inputs. Green manure and cover crops supported soil biological activity and nutrient cycling, with legume-based systems enhancing nitrogen availability. However, outcomes were strongly influenced by site-specific conditions, timing, and management practices, highlighting the importance of properly integrating these practices into cropping systems to achieve maximum benefits.
A survey of nine additional farms indicated that cover crops and organic amendments were the most adopted practices. Farmers reported benefits for soil fertility, resilience, and crop performance, particularly from compost application, while noting costs, labour, and logistical constraints. Cover crops were technically feasible and supportive of soil health, though their carbon sequestration potential alone was considered modest. Knowledge of carbon farming concepts varied considerably, highlighting the need for structured, targeted advisory support to foster wider adoption.
Future developments may focus on living labs to demonstrate carbon farming practices, foster knowledge exchange, and support long-term implementation, enabling monitoring, verification, and quantification of both agronomic and environmental benefits.

The increase in atmospheric CO2 concentrations has driven the development of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) strategies and negative emission technologies (NETs), with a growing emphasis on nature-based solutions (NBS). Among these, enhanced rock weathering (ERW) stands out as a promising approach, especially in agriculture, due to its potential for carbon sequestration through geochemical processes. However, studies on the role of organo-mineral interactions (OMIs) and microbial necromass in the stabilization of soil organic carbon (OC) remain limited, particularly in tropical environments. This project aims to identify the mechanisms of OC stabilization through the application of different rock powders, considering their mineralogical composition, weathering potential, and interactions with the soil microbiome. The central hypothesis is that weathering of these rock powders leads to the formation of new, highly reactive mineral phases, promoting the development of mineral-associated organic matter, with microbial necromass playing a key role alongside rock mineralogy as mediators of OMIs. The expected outcomes aim to improve scientific understanding of rock powder use in tropical agriculture, supporting their strategic application for climate change mitigation and the sustainability of agricultural systems.

Blue carbon (BC) ecosystems, such as mangroves, have a greater carbon accumulation capacity than upland forest ecosystems (i.e., boreal, temperate, and tropical forests), with most of their carbon (~85%) found in their soils. In this context, Brazil, the second-largest country in terms of mangrove distribution, has the potential to establish a profitable BC market, which could benefit companies in achieving their net-zero carbon targets and help the country meet its Nationally Determined Contributions goals. However, available data on C stocks and greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes in Brazilian mangroves are scarce, hindering the consistent mobilization of resources for conservation and restoration projects. Therefore, BlueShore project proposes to quantify C stocks and GHG emissions in Brazilian mangroves under different land use and geoclimatic scenarios, using the best international practices available. In addition, we aim to identify the drivers of land use change in mangrove forests and understand the mechanisms of C storage and stabilization in mangrove soils. The project already made significant progress in generating critical data on BC ecosystems, surveying the Brazilian coast in 10 field campaigns, publishing 3 scientific papers and 43 abstracts in conferences. By quantifying C stocks and GHG emissions across pristine, degraded, and restored mangroves, the project has laid the foundation for incorporating Brazilian mangroves into global C markets.

Mangrove soils are globally recognized as major blue carbon reservoirs, yet the mechanisms controlling soil organic carbon (SOC) preservation remain insufficiently resolved. This study investigated how contrasting geological settings regulate iron (Fe) speciation and SOC stabilization in mangrove ecosystems along the coast of Espírito Santo, southeastern Brazil. Two estuarine systems were compared: Piraquê-Açu/Piraquê-Mirim (PAM), draining crystalline terrains, and São Mateus (SM), influenced by Barreiras Formation sediments. Soil and riverine sediment samples were analyzed through physicochemical characterization, mineralogical assessment and sequential Fe extractions to evaluate Fe pools, redox conditions, and SOC distribution. Results revealed marked differences between the two systems despite similar climatic conditions. PAM soils exhibited finer texture, higher salinity, and lower redox potential, which favored the accumulation of reactive Fe phases, extensive pyritization, and significantly higher SOC contents across soil profiles. SM soils were dominated by quartz and kaolinite, showed lower reactive Fe availability, more oxidizing conditions, and lower SOC. Sequential extraction data indicated enrichment of short-range-ordered Fe phases and pyrite in PAM, whereas SM was characterized by a predominance of crystalline oxyhydroxides, which appear less effective in protecting organic carbon over the long term. In PAM, the degree of pyritization was strongly correlated with SOC, indicating that both organomineral interactions and sulfide formation act as complementary pathways of carbon stabilization. These demonstrate that geological setting is a first-order control on Fe cycling and blue carbon storage in tropical mangroves, emphasizing the need to incorporate lithological variability into predictive models of coastal carbon sequestration.