On 17 June 2026, the AgroTechHub Cluster brought together experts from six Horizon Europe projects for the webinar “Recognize. Respect. Restore. From Soil Degradation and Desertification to Resilient Land Systems”, organised to mark the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought.
The first session, “Recognize & Respect”, focused on understanding the complexity of soil degradation and desertification while presenting practical approaches already being developed and tested across Europe, the Mediterranean and Africa. The session gathered representatives from TERRASAFE, MONALISA, LandShift, Nemesis, AfroGrow and EARTHONE, each bringing a different perspective on soil restoration, land management, climate resilience and stakeholder engagement.
Opening the session, the AgroTechHub Cluster underlined that soil degradation and desertification are not isolated environmental challenges. They are closely connected to climate change, water scarcity, biodiversity loss, agricultural productivity and the resilience of local communities. The aim of the webinar was therefore not only to showcase solutions, but also to explore how research, innovation, policy and local knowledge can work together to support healthier soils and more resilient land systems.
Community compost hubs for soil carbon restoration
The first presentation, delivered by Michael I. Loizides (Isotech) on behalf of TERRASAFE, introduced the concept of Community Compost Hubs as an open-source model for scaling soil carbon restoration in drylands.
The presentation focused on a key challenge for many dryland regions: the loss of organic carbon in soils and the need to return organic matter to the land in a way that is local, affordable and repeatable. Rather than relying only on large, centralised composting facilities, the Community Compost Hub model is based on local ownership, shared infrastructure and the use of available organic materials such as prunings, manure, garden waste, public green waste and other local organic residues.
A central message was that composting is not only a technical process, but also a community process. Local authorities, farmers and other stakeholders need to be involved from the beginning, from mapping available substrates and infrastructure to defining the operational model and sharing responsibility for the final compost. In this way, compost becomes not only a soil amendment, but also a tool for circular economy, cooperation and community-led land restoration.
MONALISA solutions across Mediterranean case studies
The session continued with Cristina Domingo-Marimon (CREAF) from MONALISA, who presented the project’s innovations and solutions applied across its Mediterranean case studies.
MONALISA focuses on preventing and reversing land degradation and desertification by testing solutions that are socially acceptable, economically viable and environmentally effective. The project works across case studies located in Mediterranean drylands, where different levels of aridity, land-use pressure and degradation risks are present.
The presentation highlighted several groups of solutions being explored within MONALISA, including innovative grazing systems, organic fertilisers and soil amendments, conservation agriculture, natural and agroecosystem restoration, water harvesting and treated wastewater reuse in agriculture.
Examples included the use of GPS collars and geofencing to support improved grazing management, microbial products such as Trichoderma to stimulate soil biological activity, green cover management in olive groves, reduced tillage and cover crops, restoration of traditional stone walls, seedling protection systems to improve restoration success, managed aquifer recharge, runoff capture and treated wastewater reuse for irrigation.
By combining field-based practices, monitoring technologies and stakeholder engagement, MONALISA aims to support land managers and local communities in identifying solutions that are adapted to specific territorial needs.
Nature-based Solutions and the LandShift NbS Library
Representing LandShift, Antoine Coudard (Metabolic) presented how the project is supporting regenerative land use through Nature-based Solutions and the development of the LandShift Nature-based Solutions Library.
LandShift works with pilot regions across Europe to support sustainable land-use transitions and help stakeholders understand how their territories may evolve under climate change and socio-economic pressures. A key part of this work is the identification and assessment of Nature-based Solutions that can help restore soil, improve water retention, reduce erosion, increase soil organic carbon and strengthen local climate resilience.
The presentation emphasised that Nature-based Solutions rarely address only one issue. Their strength lies in their ability to provide multiple benefits at the same time, including ecosystem restoration, biodiversity protection, climate adaptation, carbon storage and new opportunities for landowners, farmers and local communities.
The LandShift NbS Library was presented as a practical resource that can help users explore case studies, assess possible interventions and better understand how Nature-based Solutions can be adapted to local contexts. The library is intended not only for LandShift pilots, but also as a broader tool for practitioners, projects and stakeholders working on sustainable land-use transformation.
Living Labs for soil health across the Mediterranean
The Nemesis presentation by Ioannis Varvaris (Eratosthenes Centre of Excellence) focused on the role of Soil Health Living Labs in combating desertification across the Mediterranean.
The presentation underlined that soil is not simply a growing medium, but a living ecosystem that supports plant growth, water regulation, carbon storage and biodiversity. At the same time, soil degradation is highly place-based: what happens in one landscape, farming system or country cannot be addressed with a single universal solution.
For this reason, Nemesis is building place-based Living Labs where farmers, researchers, policymakers and local stakeholders work together to co-create and test solutions under real soil, climate and socio-economic conditions.
The project follows a workflow based on listening to local needs, measuring soil and environmental conditions, simulating scenarios, testing solutions in the field and sharing knowledge for wider uptake. This approach reflects the idea that reversing land degradation requires more than technical innovation alone; it also requires trust, participation, governance and local ownership.
Data-driven agroforestry and restoration across Africa
The next presenter Zampela Pittaki (International Center for Research in Agroforestry) introduced AfroGrow, a project focused on data-driven agroforestry and land restoration across Africa.
The presentation highlighted agroforestry as a powerful approach because it integrates trees, crops and livestock into the same system, creating multiple benefits for climate regulation, carbon sequestration, biodiversity, soil and water protection, food security and rural livelihoods.
AfroGrow works through six Living Labs across African countries, combining field data, digital tools, stakeholder engagement and gender-responsive strategies. The project aims to generate reliable data on how agroforestry contributes to climate resilience, biodiversity and food security, while also supporting adoption by farmers, SMEs and local communities.
A strong message from the presentation was that restoration cannot depend only on good intentions. It requires evidence, monitoring, business models, inclusive governance and pathways for scale. By combining local knowledge with scientific data and digital tools, AfroGrow is working to turn degraded land back into productive and resilient landscapes.
Data-driven decision-making for resilient land systems
The final presentation of the first session was delivered by Giancarlo Renella (University of Padova) on behalf of EARTHONE, focusing on resilient land systems through data-driven decision-making.
EARTHONE explores the interactions between land-use change and climate change, with the aim of supporting adaptation measures for European agricultural systems and landscapes. The project combines data from European repositories with information collected from pilot sites equipped with environmental sensors, soil sensors and vegetation monitoring systems.
The presentation showed how data-driven approaches can help assess how land-use choices influence climate processes, greenhouse gas sinks, vegetation dynamics and carbon storage. Agroforestry was presented as one example of a land-use approach that can help build resilience and contribute to climate mitigation, although its benefits develop over time and require appropriate policy support.
From recognition to action
The first session concluded with questions from participants, including topics such as treated wastewater reuse in agriculture, balancing ecological goals with social equity, opportunities through open calls and the potential for sharing case studies through the LandShift NbS Library.
Together, the presentations showed that soil degradation and desertification require diverse but connected responses. Composting, grazing management, Nature-based Solutions, Living Labs, agroforestry, monitoring systems and decision-support tools all contribute to the same broader goal: helping territories move from degradation towards resilience.
The session also reinforced the importance of collaboration between projects. By bringing together complementary expertise from different regions and disciplines, the AgroTechHub Cluster created a space for shared learning and practical exchange, showing that the path from recognizing soil degradation to restoring resilient land systems depends on both innovation and cooperation.