Soil-Bio-Divers Transform pupils’ awareness of earthworms and water infiltration as future agrarian actors

Soil-Bio-Divers raises awareness of how land management and climate change affect soil biodiversity and ecosystem services among pupils in agricultural schools. Building on established partnerships with Biosphere Reserves from the SoilBioClimPol project, we will work with three schools in the Lungau–Nockberge Reserve and in the Wienerwald Reserve. In agreement with school leadership, one class per school (~30 pupils) will participate. After an on-site introduction by the core team, each pupil will act as a citizen scientist and investigate: (i) earthworm abundance and biomass as indicators of soil health (aeration, nutrient cycling), (ii) water infiltration as a key ecosystem service reflecting the soil’s response to extreme rainfall, and (iii) DNA metabarcoding of earthworm samples to profile soil biodiversity iv) social science data through a short questionnaire survey and a diary work. Findings will be fed back into lessons and local management dialogues.