Webinars

– the how and why to study microbial biodiversity of soil and other ecosystems

Biodiversity is critical to the health and sustainability of our planet’s ecosystems, including agricultural systems. Therefore is it crucial that we address the large gaps in our knowledge on the microbial diversity in soil. Climate change has put further emphasis on the issue of soil biodiversity and its link to resilient soil that can continue to sustain ecosystem services.

This webinar focuses on how you can monitor and measure biodiversity of microbes and how it can help us understand the status and development of ecosystems.

In the webinar we focus on the usefulness and implementation of microbial biodiversity analysis in agriculture. However, the methodology and many of the theoretical considerations presented can easily be transferred to other ecosystems such as aquaculture and forestry, and we welcome listeners from such fields to join.

Part 1 – DNA based methods for studying microbial biodiversity

By Louise Thingholm, CEO Biomcare ApS.

DNA sequencing can be used to study the microbial diversity of diverse sample types and has a range of advantages over traditional methods. In this part of the webinar, we will talk about

• DNA sequencing, what is it and why is it a good method for studying microbial diversity
• What are the different types of sequencing and which method to use in different situations
• Relating biodiversity measures to other types of information, both the additional microbial insight you get when using sequencing, and the metadata collected about the samples such as agricultural practices, crop yield, nutrient levels etc.

Part 2 – How soil biodiversity connects to soil health, sustainability and agricultural practices

By Helle Hestbjerg and Valdemar Jørgensen, Danish Technological Institute.

The SOILGUARD project aims at filling the gaps in our knowledge on the effect of soil management practices on soil biodiversity and its response to climate change. Further a network is created to share experiences and an app is developed to assist in decision-making to maintain and improve soil biodiversity.

The project will be presented as an example of the current efforts to develop the field of soil biodiversity and a vision for future research and the application of the results in management of agricultural and other ecosystems will be outlined.

Time: 30. March 3pm CET

Location: Online

Duration: 1 hour

Price: Free

Seats: 100

Level: All levels

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