SaltyBLITZ
On Sunday, 24 May, together with the Museo di storia naturale della Maremma and the Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l'Analisi dell'Economia Agraria (CREA) we organised a SaltyBlitz, a citizen science event dedicated to environmental monitoring, field activities and scientific research in two important areas along the Maremma coast. The initiative brought together researchers, local organisations and members of the public to explore coastal ecosystems, collect environmental observations and contribute to a better understanding of their biodiversity and ecological condition. This was done with the support of: Fondazione Grosseto Cultura, Comune di Grosseto, Parco della Maremma and Musei di Maremma.
Photo by Edoardo Lenzi for Villani Comunicazione.
SaltyBEATS First Annual meeting in Tunis
SaltyBEATS First Annual Meeting was organised alongside the 5th Training School of the COST Action SUSTAIN and the MSE 1.0 Hackathon at the Manouba School of Engineering. We had the opportunity to reflect on the progress achieved during this first year of the project — a great milestone for the consortium!These events offered a valuable platform to strengthen collaboration and exchange knowledge on key challenges such as soil salinization, ecosystem restoration, and sustainable land management.
Stakeholder workshops
During the project’s first year, from September 2025, we organised seven stakeholder workshops that brought together farmers, local communities, researchers, public administrations, associations, private-sector representatives and policymakers. The workshops addressed the pressing challenges associated with soil salinity, saline agriculture and biodiversity conservation. Through dialogue, participatory activities and interactive sessions, participants worked together to: (i) identify local needs, challenges and priorities; (ii) strengthen collaboration across sectors and stakeholder groups; and (iii) co-design solutions to support sustainable food production and enhance ecosystem resilience. The following workshops were organised:
15 September 2025 – Texel, the Netherlands, co-organised with the Institute for Agriculture in Salinizing Deltas (SALTA).
16 October 2025 – The Hague, the Netherlands, hosted during World Food Day 2025 by the Institute for Environmental Studies at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, together with Wageningen University & Research and the Netherlands Water Partnership.
7 November 2025 – Alberese, Grosseto, Italy, co-organised with Ente Terre Regionali Toscane.
10 November 2025 – Cavallino-Treporti, Italy, co-organised with The Tidal Gardens.
17 February 2026 – Murcia, Spain.
31 March 2026 – Terschelling, the Netherlands organised in collaboration with the NGO De Zilte Smaak, climate expert Prof. Pier Vellinga and Bas Bruning from the social enterprise The Salt Doctors.
22 April 2026 – Tunis, Tunisia, organised in collaboration with the COST Action SUSTAIN.
Farmers’ Café on saline soils
On March 27th, a day before our Kick-off Meeting, as part of the 3rd Training School of the COST Action SUSTAIN, we organised a Farmers’ Café in Alberese with the support of Ente Terre Regionali Toscane. The event brought together farmers, practitioners, early-career researchers, and experts from across Europe and North Africa to discuss real-world challenges and solutions for farming on salt-affected lands. The conversation focused on innovative approaches, including the use of halophytes (salt-loving plants), and explored how NBS can support more resilient and sustainable agriculture in saline environments.
