VÚMOP research partner offer — Soil and landscape evidence for HORIZON-NATURE-2027-01-03

VÚMOP, a Czech public research institute specialising in soil monitoring and protection, is interested in joining a consortium preparing a proposal under HORIZON-NATURE-2027-01-03: Systemic approaches to accelerate transformative change for biodiversity.

Our interest is in connecting changes in land management, landscape planning and decision-making with measurable ecological outcomes in agricultural landscapes. We are represented by the Remote Sensing and Pedometrics Laboratory and the Department of Soil Survey.

Potential scientific contributions

• Baseline soil and landscape assessment: characterisation of soil conditions, degradation pressures, erosion risks and relationships between land use, management and ecosystem functions.

• GIS and Earth observation: spatial analysis, assessment of land cover changes, identification of priority areas and preparation of scenarios supporting participatory landscape planning.

• Soil information and decision support: experience from the SOWAC-GIS geoportal, thematic maps, spatial data services and applications translating scientific information into practical guidance for land managers and public authorities.

• Erosion monitoring and evaluation: experience in recording and assessing erosion events, analysing contributing conditions and evaluating soil conservation measures.

• Sampling and field validation: design of spatially representative observations, integration of field and spatial data, and assessment of uncertainty.

• Evaluation and transfer: contributions to the assessment of interventions and preparation of methods that can be adapted to other territories.

Potential joint case study

We would welcome a project investigating how farmers, municipalities, advisers and other actors jointly select and implement landscape measures, such as vegetated buffer strips, field margins or riparian vegetation. Social science partners could investigate adoption barriers and test changes in incentives, governance or decision-making. VÚMOP could provide soil and spatial evidence, compare management scenarios and assess their soil and landscape consequences. Ecology partners would provide the biological observations needed to demonstrate biodiversity outcomes.

Partners sought

We seek an experienced coordinator and complementary partners in biodiversity and ecology, social and behavioural sciences, environmental governance and agricultural economics, together with organisations working directly with farmers and public authorities.

Preferred participation

VÚMOP would participate as a research beneficiary responsible for clearly defined scientific tasks. We are not seeking consortium coordination or overall pilot management. Staffing, budget, access to data and tools, and possible Czech study sites would be agreed during proposal development.

We welcome discussions with teams seeking to integrate soil and landscape evidence into the design, testing and evaluation of transformative approaches for biodiversity.