The European soil health project ECHO is organising a workshop in Dublin on 16 November, as part of Mission Soil Week, on how citizen-generated data can contribute to evidence-based policy and decision-making. On 25 November, an online webinar will present the project’s results.
In addition, the ECHO Soil Challenge – Soil Stories contest for schools has extended its submission deadline to 31 December.
A workshop in Dublin on citizen science data and soil policy
The question behind the meeting is what role data collected by citizens can play in decision-making on soil health. Under the title “Citizen science generated data for better policy- and decision-making”, the workshop will present ECHO’s results and open a discussion on how to bring these observations into public policy. ECHO is co-organising the session with the PSOILICY and LOESS projects, and it is open to other Mission Soil projects, research teams, citizen scientists, farmers and anyone interested in the results.
It will take place on 16 November 2026, from 14:00 to 17:00 (UTC), at the Teagasc Ashtown Food Research Centre (room 1) in Dublin. Registration is through the workshop page on the ECHO website.
A webinar to interpret ECHO’s results
On 25 November at 14:00 (CET), a webinar on Teams will explain ECHO’s results and how to interpret them on the platform, with a focus on the nutrients and metals analysed in the samples. The speakers are Céline Laurent, from the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Michel Chalot, from Edaphos, and Felipe Yunta, from the European Commission. The session will be in English and is open to everyone interested, including those taking part in activities with schools. Registration is through the webinar page.
The Soil Stories contest extends its deadline to 31 December
The ECHO Soil Challenge – Soil Stories contest, which we announced in September, aims to raise awareness among students, teachers, educators and the public of the value of soil as an essential resource for ecosystems, food security and the climate. It promotes creativity, scientific experimentation and science communication, and introduces SoiLab for Teens as an educational tool for hands-on classroom activities.
Entries can be drawings, collages, photographs, infographics, experiments, educational projects, videos, reels, music or podcasts focused on soil. They must start from the ECHO sampling kit or SoiLab for Teens, although they can be freely reinterpreted.
The jury will be made up of members of the ECHO consortium with experience in education, science communication, soil science and creative communication. Each category will have three winners, who will receive an official certificate, the chance to present their project at the final webinar, an informal online chat with an ECHO expert and project gifts.
The submission deadline is 31 December 2026, the winners will be announced on 25 January 2027 and the final webinar with the winners will be held on 12 February 2027. Entries are submitted through the online form on the contest page.