eLTER PLUS-European long-term ecosystem, critical zone and research infrastructure of socio-ecological systems PLUS

Project aim: eLTER PLUS project that will address biodiversity loss, biogeochemical controls of ecosystem functions, the climate-water-food nexus, and socio-ecological systems. By engaging current and new users and developing the operations of cross- and transdisciplinary research, as well as strengthening community and service building, the project will expand on the research capacities.

 

About the project: Long-term ecosystem research is essential to improve our knowledge of the structure and functions of ecosystems and their long-term responses to environmental, societal, and economic drivers. Networking, joint research activities, and transnational, remote and virtual access are the three main pillars of the EU-funded eLTER PLUS. The European long-term ecosystem, critical zone, and socio-ecological systems in research infrastructure (eLTER RI) have been assessed by the European Strategic Forum for Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) as a great potential for closing this gap in the European landscape. The Whole System approach will extract relevant scientific and policy-relevant information through co-designed, transdisciplinary research in collaboration with a variety of stakeholders at local, regional and EU level. Coordinated actions also focus on collaborating with peer research institutions to maximize synergies, increase efficiencies and catalyze a holistic understanding of ecosystem function, as well as the development of virtual laboratories in which on-site data are linked to other data sources, e.g., Copernicus.