eLTER and BioDT: Developing the Digital Infrastructure for Environmental Science in Europe

SémIdeev
 21/11/2025
 12:00:00
 Allan T. Souza, University of Helsinki, Finland
 IDEEV - Salle Rachel Carlson

Understanding how ecosystems respond to environmental and societal changes requires high-quality, long-term, and interoperable data. The European Long-Term Ecosystem, critical zone and socio-ecological Research Infrastructure (eLTER RI) is addressing this challenge by building a pan-European network of more than 250 well-instrumented sites across over 20 countries. Its Whole System Approach (WAILS) integrates the biophysical and social dimensions of environmental systems, providing the foundation for holistic, cross-scale ecological research.

This presentation will introduce the eLTER Research Infrastructure, focusing on its standard observations, cyberinfrastructure, and the ongoing data mobilisation initiative that supports researchers in making their datasets compliant with the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable). Furthermore, the talk will explore how eLTER data and services contribute to the Biodiversity Digital Twin (BioDT) initiative, which aims to create dynamic, data-driven models of biodiversity processes. The integration between eLTER and BioDT represents a crucial step toward predictive ecological modelling and decision support systems for sustainable environmental management.

This talk demonstrates, using examples from aquatic ecosystem research and open data evaluation, how these European initiatives jointly drive more reproducible, collaborative, and influential environmental research.