GroundTruth: : Citizen Science for Soil health
Year Awarded
2024
Amount
€60,000
- Organisation:Teagasc
- Co-funded with Dept of Education:Yes
Project Summary
Healthy soils are the foundation of sustainable food systems, and central to addressing global challenges around climate change, food security, biodiversity loss and environmental health. In response to growing concerns regarding soil degradation, GroundTruth aims to improve soil literacy and increase public awareness of citizen science among secondary level students, farmers, and community members. By adopting a citizen science approach, GroundTruth will leverage public collaboration to establish a baseline for Irish soil health, and empower participants to assess and safeguard their own soil health.
The project will deliver a user-friendly and engaging resource pack, equipping participants with the capacity and knowledge to capture soil health data, and associated measures of aboveground biodiversity. During a dedicated soil health week there will be a series of webinars, a media campaign, and on-farm workshops across the country providing hands-on learning to participants, demonstrating best soil health management practice, and enabling participants to feedback their perspectives. The data collected through GroundTruth will be analysed by Teagasc biodiversity researchers, and shared with participants in an interactive event at the project’s conclusion. Relevant data will also be submitted to the National Biodiversity Data Centre repository. By leveraging collaborations with educational institutions, and existing advisory and educational networks, the project outcomes will be used to inform education programmes and advice for sustainable management of soils, ensuring wide-reaching impact and making a significant contribution to Ireland’s environmental health. An evaluation of project outcomes will assess the delivery of goals and the scalability of the project.