The team led by Assoc. Prof. Ladislav Miko is part of the prestigious European project SOB4ES, aimed at strengthening the monitoring system of biodiversity and ecosystem services in Central Europe. The project partners met for a working meeting to evaluate the progress of activities so far, discuss the challenges associated with the field and analytical parts of the project, and coordinate upcoming steps towards fulfilling the project's goals.
A working meeting of the partners of the international project SOB4ES (Strengthening the Observing system for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services), funded by the HORIZON Europe program, took place on 24-25 July 2025. The project aims to strengthen the monitoring of the state of biodiversity and ecosystem services through cooperation between professional institutions, research organizations and public administration in the Central European region, especially in light of the currently proposed European directive on soil monitoring and resilience.
A working meeting of the partners of the international project SOB4ES (Strengthening the Observing system for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services), funded by the HORIZON Europe program, took place on 24-25 July 2025. The project aims to strengthen the monitoring of the state of biodiversity and ecosystem services through cooperation between professional institutions, research organizations and public administration in the Central European region, especially in light of the currently proposed European directive on soil monitoring and resilience (Soil Monitoring Law).
The partners agreed on key priorities for the coming period, including completing the harmonisation of methodologies for data collection and evaluation, intensifying outreach campaigns and preparing thematic workshops for target groups of users of the project's outputs. Procedures for standardized data sharing and procedures for preparing results for project dissemination activities were also discussed.
The next SOB4ES project partners’ working meeting in 2026 is planned in Prague, where Charles University will be the host organization, and this will mainly focus on presenting the first integrated results and preparing for the evaluation of key indicators of the state of biodiversity and ecosystem services. It is also planned to organize a “Mini Public Meeting” in the fall of 2025.
If you are interested in some of the specific results of the project, in which you can also participate, we recommend, for example, the interactive application PREPSOIL, which supports monitoring the condition of the soil and its sustainable use in relation to biodiversity and ecosystem services.
You can follow the activities of the SOB4ES project here:
SOB4ES – Integrating Soil Biodiversity to Ecosystem Services | SOB4ES