On 5 June 2025, on the occasion of World Environment Day, the SOILL-Startup project announces the official launch of the SOILL Hub, a new collaborative digital platform designed to accelerate the European transition to healthy soils by 2030, in support of the EU Mission “A Soil Deal for Europe” and its community of Living Labs.
As part of the EU soil strategy, the Commission has launched the Horizon Europe Mission ‘A Soil Deal for Europe’, a novel approach to research and innovation that mobilises public and private actors to work together towards a common goal: creating the first of a network of 100 living labs and lighthouses, with more than 1,000 testing sites encompassing a wide range of land-use sectors (agriculture, forestry, industry, urban and natural) across Europe. These living labs are real-world hubs serving as testing grounds for innovative solutions to soil challenges. They involve long–term partnerships between researchers, land managers and other stakeholders, fostering collaboration and knowledge co-creation. Lighthouses, on the other hand, showcase successful practices for soil health, acting as inspirational models for others.
A Hub for collaboration and innovation
The SOILL Hub (accessible at www.soill2030.app) is a purpose-built digital environment developed to bring together the growing community of Soil Health Living Labs, Lighthouses, researchers, policymakers, land managers, industry, and civil society. As soil degradation affects over 60% of Europe’s soils and carries annual costs in the tens of billions, the Hub is designed to promote collaboration, innovation, and knowledge sharing to restore soil health across the continent.
“The SOILL Hub brings together the collective intelligence of European soil health and living lab communities,” says Giulia Campodonico, head of projects at the European Network of Living Labs and SOILL-Startup project coordinator. “It creates an inclusive space for sharing knowledge, building partnerships, and designing the transformative solutions we need to reach the Mission Soil’s ambitious goal of establishing 100 Living Labs and Lighthouses leading the transition to healthy soils by 2030.”
SOILL Hub: core output of SOILL-Startup
Built using agile and user-centric design principles, the SOILL Hub offers a wide range of interactive features, such as a dynamic newsfeed for live updates and events, a rich knowledge repository with tools and resources, an interactive map of living labs, a Helpdesk centre and much more. The SOILL Hub is a core output of SOILL-Startup, the Horizon Europe project supporting the development of the network of 100 Soil Health Living Labs and Lighthouses of the Mission “A Soil Deal for Europe” through coordination, capacity building, and stakeholder engagement. The Hub will evolve continuously to meet user needs and integrate with other platforms of the Mission Soil ecosystem.