Prototyping soil data from Research Infrastructures for the quantifying carbon uptake (with the ultimate goal of supporting the EU carbon farming certification)

Summary of the challenge
In the context of establishing a Union certification framework for permanent carbon removals, carbon farming, and carbon storage in products (CFCR), we aim to demonstrate the critical importance of open and long-term soil data for robust certification, validation, and verification processes.
Detailed description
While high-quality data are essential for model calibration and decision-making, availability remains insufficient. This is not always due to a lack of measurements—rather, access to existing data is often restricted for various reasons. Additionally, current monitoring approaches may be too narrow in scope:  Repeated soil carbon stock assessments should be complemented with ecosystem flux measurements, which provide faster and more detailed insights into carbon dynamics.  Scale mismatch is another issue: while most data are collected at the plot level, policymakers and certification bodies require insights at regional, national, and continental scales. Defining pedoclimatic regions for data pooling and modeling is essential to bridge this gap. To address these challenges, we must leverage open-access, long-term datasets from established Research Infrastructures, such as:  ICOS (Integrated Carbon Observation System)  eLTER (Long-Term Ecosystem Research)  AnaEE (Analysis and Experimentation on Ecosystems) To better communicate these needs to policymakers, we propose developing a prototype or pilot project that:  Demonstrates how integrated, large-scale soil carbon data improves certification accuracy.  Highlights the benefits of open data policies for transparency and trust.  Provides a scalable model for EU-wide CFCR implementation. By aligning scientific rigor with policy needs, this initiative can help build a credible, science-backed certification system for carbon removals and farming.
Which SoilTribes priority area(s) does your challenge address?
Regenerative Transitions
How does your challenge respond to the selected SoilTribes priority area(s)?
This challenge supports the regenerative transition by ensuring science-backed, transparent carbon accounting in agriculture and land use. Open, long-term soil data enables better monitoring of carbon sequestration, promotes ecosystem health, and ensures trustworthy certification—key for scaling regenerative practices like carbon farming and soil restoration.
Which EU Soil Mission goal(s) does your challenge contribute to?
Conserve soil organic carbon
Challenge typology
Roots (deep structural transformation)
Expected outputs / actions
Awareness-raising / communications
Capacity-building (training, guides, mentorship)
Policy or advocacy initiatives
Who is involved or affected by the challenge?
Directly Involved:  Farmers & Land Managers – Need reliable carbon certification to access payments; depend on accurate data to guide regenerative practices.  Policymakers & Regulators – Require robust data to design fair standards, incentives, and compliance frameworks (e.g., EU Carbon Removal Certification).  Researchers & Scientists – Provide data, models, and tools; depend on open access for collaboration and innovation.  Research Infrastructures (e.g., ICOS, eLTER) – Generate and share long-term datasets critical for scaling solutions. Indirectly Affected:  Agribusiness & Food Companies – Rely on certified carbon removals for ESG claims and supply chain sustainability.  Carbon Market Players – Buyers, verifiers, and traders need trustworthy data to ensure market integrity.  NGOs & Advocacy Groups – Advocate for equitable access, farmer rights, and ecological integrity in certification.  Consumers & Public – Benefit from transparent climate claims and healthier ecosystems tied to regenerative practices.
Where is your challenge located?
Our initiative is anchored in the Carbon Soil Service Design Lab, part of the Integrated Research Infrastructure Services for Climate Change Risks (IRISCC). While our research and framework development are coordinated at the European level, the challenge—and its solutions—span across the entire EU, addressing region-specific needs while ensuring scalable, science-backed approaches for soil carbon certification.
Which SoilTribes pillar(s) are you connected to?
Public Sector
Academia, Education & Research
Civil Society
Business: Social Economy & Cooperative Sector
What public policies or institutional frameworks does your challenge engage with or seek to change?
The Union certification framework for permanent carbon removals, carbon farming, and carbon storage in products (CFCR) is an EU-wide initiative designed to standardize and verify climate-positive practices in agriculture, forestry, and industrial processes. It establishes science-backed methodologies to measure, monitor, and certify carbon sequestration in soils (carbon farming), long-term storage in products (e.g., biochar), and permanent removals (e.g., direct air capture). By ensuring transparency, scalability, and environmental integrity, the framework aims to:  Boost trust in carbon markets,  Support farmers and businesses in accessing green incentives, and  Align with EU climate goals (Green Deal, Carbon Removal Regulation).
How do you imagine the Bootcamp will benefit your initiative — and others?
We are looking for new concepts and ideas to advance carbon certification. Artists and designers can serve as powerful communicators by translating complex soil carbon data—like that from ICOS—into visual narratives. These could take the form of interactive maps, data sculptures, or other engaging formats to make certification tangible for farmers and policymakers. Developers play an equally critical role as enablers, creating minimalist tools such as web apps for real-time carbon flux visualization. Such solutions would address persistent challenges like the "scale mismatch" between local measurements and regional needs. We envision tangible prototypes like: an immersive installation displaying soil carbon changes across EU pedoclimatic zones; storytelling dashboards where designers curate developer-built data streams into compelling policy narratives; a low-code plugin allowing farmers to upload field data via mobile and receive instant certification estimates; or even a gamified interface like a "Carbon Farm Simulator" to demonstrate regenerative practices’ impact. Our aim is to produce policy-ready takeaways, including visual prototypes like animated explainers to showcase the benefits of using research infrastructure data—though we remain open to other innovative outcomes.