Abstract
(Englisch)
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More than half of Europe's soils are degraded by pollution, erosion, and compaction, among other problems, and, in a climate change
scenario, this degradation is likely to worsen. Currently, the loss of soil quality is costing an estimated €50 billion per year. However, soil
health is still considered an abstract concept that cannot be introduced into financial activities and on which it is very difficult to legislate.
The objective of InBestSoil is to co-create a framework for investment in conservation and recovery of soil health, by developing an
economic valuation system of the ecosystem services delivered by a healthy soil and the impacts of soil interventions, and its incorporation
into business models and incentives. This will allow public and private organizations to give economic value to their actions over soil
health, codesign strategies with local stakeholders, and work collectively to deliver national and EU policy ambitions. InBestSoil will
provide data, evidence, tools and models to assess how investment in soil health can contribute to the transition to a long-term resilient
and sustainable use of soil, using 6 lighthouses and 3 living labs, which provides a total of 9 study areas across 4 biogeographic regions
from Europe (Boreal, Continental, Atlantic, Mediterranean), and different land uses (agriculture, forest, urban, mining), as models for cocreation
and co-design (multi-actor approach, responsible research and innovation and open science). This 48-month project will involve
twenty partners from ten countries, with very different profiles (universities, small and medium-sized enterprises, consultancies, farmers,
and NOGs, among others). This design will facilitate the scaling up of results and their internationalisation, facilitating investments in
soil health for companies, public administrations and investment groups around the globe.
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