Seeds of Connection

Sub-project objectives

Increase soil literacy through cultural programming by transforming scientific knowledge into artistic experiences that make the hidden functions of soil accessible to broad festival audiences through three highly visible exhibitions at renowned cultural platforms/festivals. 

Actively involve citizens and communities by creating participatory spaces where people can encounter, test, and reflect on soil together, fostering both awareness and shared responsibility. 

Strengthen art–science collaboration by enabling artists and soil experts to co-create, exchange knowledge, and develop new methods for communicating soil challenges and solutions. 

Ensure wide dissemination and visibility by amplifying the project’s reach through multimedia documentation, press, and digital channels, linking local actions to a European mission. 

Foster long-term impact and replicability by developing adaptable formats and networks that continue to generate soil literacy, cultural engagement, and innovation beyond the project’s lifetime. 

Challenges and how they will be addressed

Healthy soils quietly sustain much of what we depend on, yet their importance is often overlooked. In Austria, for example, soils store around 300 million tonnes of organic carbon, a hidden climate resource now at risk from intensive land use and urban growth around Linz that also threatens the microbial life essential for soil fertility. In Wallonia, the loamy soils around Namur have long supported productive agriculture, but their fertility is increasingly undermined by erosion, stripping away topsoil and reducing the diversity of organisms that keep fields productive. In Wrocław, urban soils are under pressure from heavy metal contamination near major roads and from compaction and sealing that reduce biodiversity and weaken the soil’s ability to absorb water, leaving the city more vulnerable to flooding and drought. These local examples show how soil degradation erodes biodiversity, food security, and resilience. Raising awareness of these hidden processes is therefore not a luxury but a necessity, if citizens are to value and protect the ground that sustains them.

Expected outcomes

Three international exhibitions, three participatory Open Soil Labs, three soil walks, collaborating with soil scientists, engaging more than a dozen artists in artistic research. A final documentation video will be created, press releases, a social media campaign as well as three primary reports as deliverables are expected for the project.