THE 2025
SOIL HEALTH NOW CONFERENCE
8–10 April, Wageningen International Conference Center, Wageningen
About The Event
A 3-day international conference with keynotes, discussion forums, oral talks, workshops and demonstrations + fieldwork: science, technology and business intelligence for measuring monitoring and increasing soil health. We expect around 150 participants.
Where
Wageningen International Conference Center (WICC), Wageningen
When
Tuesday to Thursday
8–10 April
Soil Deal for Europe projects
We are inviting all key Horizon Europe and organizations connected with soil health. If your project is, by accident, not listed here, please contacts us so we can update this list.
Keynote speakers
Dr. Panos Panagos
European Commission, Joint Research Centre
Dr. Sonia Meller
Co-founder Digit Soil AG
Prof.dr. Pete Smith
University of Aberdeen, Scottish Climate Change Centre of Expertise
Bastien Sachet
CEO at Earthworm Foundation
Kat Bruce
Founder Director at NatureMetrics
Sonja Stuchtey
Founder and Managing Director at The Landbanking Group
Geert van der Veer
Founder and Managing Director at Herenboeren / Stichting Plaatsen Nederland
Fabio Volkmann
EU Partnership Manager at Soil Health Benchmark / Research Project Manager at Climate Farmers
Maarten Van Dam
Pymwymic
Anouk Schoors
Investment Director at The Nest Family Office
Madlene Nussbaum
Assistant Professor in Geosciences / Physical Geography University of UtrechtRegister for the event
Registrations are now open! We have received over 60 proposals and expect over 150 participants with up to four (4) parallel sessions. please use the Pretix.eu to register while there are still places. The deadline for the early bird registration is 14th of December (Saturday) 2024.
Event Schedule (under construction)
This is a 5–day event with three (3) days of public meetings and two (2) days of internal meetings of the AI4SoilHealth and other projects. Half day of field work visits is also planned. More detailed programme will be published in December 2024.
General programme includes various types of events from oral and keynote talks, to discussion forums, research speed dating and workshops.
Registrations
Entrance WICC
Welcome to WICC 30 mins
OpenGeoHub, Planet, Investing in Regenerative Agriculture
Keynote: Dr. Panos Panagos 30 mins
European Commission, Joint Research Centre
Keynote: Prof. Dr. Pete Smith 30 mins
“Monitoring, reporting and verification of soil health - what can we learn from the soil carbon experience”
Keynote: Kat Bruce 30 mins
Founder Director at NatureMetrics
Coffee break 30 mins
WICC Hotel
Discussion panel 90 mins
“How to sample, quantify and report soil health? How to scale-up carbon farming, regenerative agriculture and rapid soil assessment methods?”
Lunch break 60 mins
WICC Hotel
Oral talks (3 sessions in parallel) 15 min per talk
To be announced
Coffee break 30 mins
WICC Hotel
Oral talks (3 sessions in parallel) 15 min per talk
Hugo, Expert rooms 7, 11
Keynote: Maarten Van Dam 30 mins
Founder Pymwymic
Internal meetings (3 sessions in parallel)
Hugo, Expert rooms 7, 11
Happy hour Drinks and bites
WICC restaurant
Discussion panel summary 30 mins
“How to sample, quantify and report soil health? How to scale-up carbon farming, regenerative agriculture and rapid soil assessment methods?”
Keynote: Anouk Schoors 30 mins
“Soil as an asset class”
Keynote: Sonja Stuchtey 30 mins
Founder and Managing Director at The Landbanking Group
Coffee break 30 mins
WICC Hotel
Keynote: Madlene Nussbaum 30 mins
Assistant Professor in Geosciences / Physical Geography University of Utrecht
Keynote: Bastien Sachet 30 mins
CEO at Earthworm Foundation
Discussion panel 60 mins
“What can Earth Observation, soil spectroscopy and AI technology offer to enable soil health assessment for every farmer?”
Lunch break 60 mins
WICC Hotel
Oral talks (3 sessions in parallel) 15 min per talk
To be announced
Coffee break 30 mins
WICC Hotel
Oral talks (3 sessions in parallel) 15 min per talk
Hugo, Expert rooms 7, 11
Internal meetings (3 sessions in parallel)
Hugo, Expert rooms 7, 11
Conference dinner networking and announcements
WICC hotel
Discussion panel summary 30 mins
“What can Earth Observation, soil spectroscopy and AI technology offer to enable soil health assessment for every farmer?”
Keynote: Dr. Sonia Meller 30 mins
Co-founder Digit Soil AG
Keynote: Geert van der Veer 30 mins
Founder and Managing Director at Herenboeren / Stichting Plaatsen Nederland
Keynote: Geert van der Veer 30 mins
“Farmer-Led Transformation: Regenerating Soils and Building a Resilient European Food System”
Coffee break 30 mins
WICC Hotel
Oral talks (3 sessions in parallel) 15 min per talk
Hugo, Expert rooms 7, 11
Lunch break 60 mins
WICC Hotel
Oral talks 15 min per talk
Hugo room
Field Excursion to 't Gagel in Lochem (2 busses max 60 people) 1hr:20mins drive
To be announced
Return to WICC
Organized transportation
Event Venue
Wageningen International Conference Center, Wageningen
Downtown Wageningen, Wageningen International Conference Center
Wageningen's largest conference center. We will use the HugoTECH conference room (fully refurbished in 2023) with cabaret setup + 2 Expert breakout rooms.
Accommodation
Various possibilities for accommodation are available, but we recommend staying directly at the WICC Hotel
Gallery
To catalyze the Soil Deal for Europe activities, we are now hosting a conference bringing key stakeholders to discuss Soil Health methods, technology and applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why soil health and why now?
Who is it for?
The conference aims at researchers, entrepreneurs, land owners and European stakeholders. We are bringing together multiple European and global initiatives to discuss methods and technology for Soil Health.
What to expect in the programme?
This event seeks to create a space for exchanging ideas on soil monitoring, science, technology, and business intelligence for measuring, monitoring, and increasing soil health. The workshop will feature collaborations with key stakeholders, presentations of AI4SoilHealth's and Soil Health Benchmarks project outputs, and results from pilot projects, as well as establishing a collaboration among parties.
How much are the registrations fees?
The basic registrations fees for early bird registrations will be in the range from 180 EUR for PhD students to 360 EUR for full-time in-person participants (these do not include the costs of accommodation). Virtual participation is also possible at a symbolic price of 120 EUR. This is a not-for-profit event and all fees are based on cost-recovery. The event is sponsored by the Horizon Europe projects.
Which kind of stakeholders, participants will attend the “Soil Health Now”?
The conference is designed for a diverse group of participants, including: Project Partners from the AI4SoilHealth and Soil Health Benchmarks projects; Soil Health Experts: Researchers and scientists specializing in soil health; EU Agencies and Programs: Representatives from the Joint Research Centre (JRC), the European Environment Agency (EEA), and other relevant EU bodies; Institutions: Universities and research institutions engaged in soil health studies; Farmer Associations: Groups representing farmers, including both established and young farmers; Industry Members: Companies involved in agricultural technology and business intelligence related to soil health; Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs): Organizations focused on environmental sustainability and soil health.
My project is not on the list; can it be added?
If you are one of the Horizon Europe or similar EU Commission funded projects, you are most welcome to submit a proposal for a dedicated session / workshop. Please use the submission links above.
How to get to Wageningen International Conference Center?
Take a direct train from Schiphol Airport to Ede-Wageningen station. The journey takes approximately 1 hour. From Ede-Wageningen station, take bus line 86 or 303 towards Wageningen Bus Station. The bus ride takes about 25-30 minutes.
Register
The standard registration fee after 14th of December 2024 is €550, so do not miss the Early-bird registrations! Registrations will open in early November 2024. This is a not-for-profit event: the registration fees are based on a cost-recovery.
Full time students / PhD students
€180
- Access to all events
- Coffee breaks and meals
- Conference dinner
Early bird (before 14th of December 2024)
€360
- Access to all events
- Coffee breaks and meals
- Conference dinner
Jointly hosted by
OpenGeoHub foundation
Registrations and recordings
Planet.com
Industry events lead
Wageningen University and Research
Workshops lead and cross-project collaboration
Investing in Regenerative Agriculture
Discussion forums and interviewsContact
Having problems finding materials, submitting documents or planning your travel? Please contact us below.
Address
Waldeck Pyrmontlaan 14, 6865 HK Doorwerth, NL
Email Us
events@opengeohub.org