Funders
Main funder
ECHO is a Research and Innovation Action co-funded by the European Union under the Horizon Europe programme, and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
Leaders
Contact persons
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Virpi Virjamo
Senior ResearcherSchool of Forest Sciences, Faculty of Science, Forestry and Technology -
Hannes Pasanen
Project ResearcherSchool of Forest Sciences, Faculty of Science, Forestry and Technology
The project aims to engage citizens in protecting and restoring soils by building their skills and enhancing their knowledge on soils. Citizens will actively contribute to the project’s data collection, promote soil stewardship, and foster behavioural change across the EU. With 16 partners from Europe and Scotland, including 10 leading universities and research organisations, 4 SMEs and 2 Foundations, under the coordination of the Free University of Bolzano-Bozen, ECHO aims to collect data from up to 16,500 sites across Europe and Scotland in different climate and biogeographic regions.
ECHO Objectives
- to engage citizens through increased knowledge, stimulate their interest in soil health related issues and motivate them to protect and restore soils
- to empower citizens by inviting them to take an active role in data collection and soil science to generate knowledge on soil health for the benefit of all
- to enable citizens to take an active role and directly participate in decision-making on soil issues based on acquired knowledge