SOLILA

SOLILA proposes a strategy to restore soil health by establishing five Living Labs (LLs) in Continental regions (Serbia, North Macedonia, Czechia, Italy, Poland), covering diverse agroecosystems and socio-economic contexts, and capturing both soil challenges and farming economies that represent a substantial share of EU agricultural output. The LLs will function as open innovation ecosystems, co-creating and testing locally adapted soil health solutions (SHS) through multi-actor engagement.

Two cross-cutting priorities will guide all LLs: conserving Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) and improving soil literacy to foster behavioural change. Each LL will also target specific pressures such as land degradation, erosion, soil structure decline, pollution, ensuring both shared priorities and local relevance.

SOLILA combines social, technological, and economic innovations with a dual Open Call strategy: PUSH (integrating new test sites) and PULL (attracting novel monitoring and remediation approaches). Capacity-building, training, and demonstration activities will strengthen stakeholder skills and knowledge transfer.

The EU-wide Soil Health Innovation Forum (EU-SHIF) will connect LLs and stakeholders, fostering exchange and policy dialogue. By linking research, practice, and policy, SOLILA will deliver actionable solutions, sustainability strategies for long-term LL operation, and evidence supporting EU soil health objectives.