Ecologic Institute is Officially Part of the "4 per 1000" Initiative: Soils for Food Security and Climate

Source: Adapted from Balesdent (1996); values from Le Quéré et al. (2014); graphic adapted by the 4 per 1000 Initiative. Extended to 4:3 using AI by Ecologic Institute (2026).

Ecologic Institute is Officially Part of the "4 per 1000" Initiative: Soils for Food Security and Climate

News
Date
Location
Berlin, Germany
More about the “4 per 1000” Initiative

Ecologic Institute is proud to announce that it has officially joined the "4 per 1000" Initiative: Soils for Food Security and Climate. Launched at UNFCCC COP21 in 2015, the initiative advocates that increasing soil carbon stocks by 0.4% per year in the top 30-40 cm of soil could help reduce atmospheric CO₂ while improving soil fertility, water retention, erosion resistance, and crop resilience. The objective is to highlight that agriculture, and in particular agricultural soils, can provide concrete solutions to both climate change and food security.

By joining this initiative, Ecologic Institute reaffirms its commitment to advancing soil health and sustainable carbon sequestration in agricultural soils. It also aligns with its ongoing work in sustainable soil management, carbon farming and climate resilient agricultural landscapes.

Furthermore, becoming a member of the “4 per 1000” Initiative offers a unique opportunity for the Institute to be part of a global network of 830 partners, including governments, researchers, NGOs, farmers, companies, donors, and international organisations committed to promoting sustainable soil management, with whom Ecologic Institute can exchange knowledge and forge new collaborations.

Learn more about the international “4 per 1000” Initiative Soils for Food Security and Climate.

Contact

Team
Date
Keywords
ProjectHorizon EuropeCarbon Farming Monitoring and Registry (CAFAMORE)
 

cafamore.eu

Carbon farming is increasingly considered in EU climate and land-use policy, but its uptake is constrained by persistent challenges related to monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV), baseline setting, and trust in certificates. Fragmented data sources,... Read more

Carbon Farming Monitoring and Registry (CAFAMORE)

Duration
-
Funding
ProjectMission Implementation Platform for the EU Mission 'Soil Deal for Europe'
 
MIP Project Soil Deal for Europe Mission Soil

© Mission Soil EU 2023

The EU Mission "A Soil Deal for Europe", or Mission Soil, is an initiative launched by the European Commission to protect and restore soils in Europe. The Mission aims to put soils at the centre of attention, promote sustainable land management practices and improve... Read more

Mission Implementation Platform for the EU Mission 'Soil Deal for Europe'

Duration
-
Funding
PublicationReportRegionalised Factors for Successful Implementation of Subsoil Management
 
A report cover with the title “Regionalised factors for successful implementation of subsoil management: Evidence from three case studies in Germany.”

© BonaRes Centre for Soil Research, 2024

Farmers and other relevant stakeholders in Germany regard subsoil amelioration as an effective tool to improve the water storage of the subsoil and thereby to better bridge temporary water deficits. In addition, they acknowledge that subsoil amelioration can mitigate... Read more

Schneider, C.; Kiresiewa, Z.; Gerdes, H.; Pazmino Murillo, J.; Ecologic Institute. Skadell, L.; Sakhaee, A.; Schneider, F.; Don, A.; Thünen Institute: Regionalised factors for successful implementation of subsoil management: Evidence from three case studies in Germany. Berlin. 2024.

PublicationFact SheetMission Soil Manifesto
 

© European Commission, 2023

Ecologic Institute and Ecorys are working hand in hand to support the Mission Soil by identifying key stakeholders who take ownership, building their commitment, and creating a network of Mission Soil Ambassadors. Our efforts are reflected in the latest fact sheet,... Read more

European Commission, Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, Mission soil manifesto – A growing community of soil friends and signatories, Publications Office of the European Union, 2023, https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2777/435854

PublicationFact SheetFunding Climate-friendly Soil Management – Land use competition
 
Cover of the fact sheet "Funding climate-friendly soil management– key issues. Land use competition"

© German Environment Agency

Siemons, Anne et al. 2022: Funding climate-friendly soil management – key issues. Land use competition. Factsheet. German Environment Agency: Dessau-Roßlau. ... Read more

Siemons, Anne et al. 2022: Funding climate-friendly soil management – key issues. Land use competition. Factsheet. German Environment Agency: Dessau-Roßlau.

PublicationConference PaperPerspectives on a Purchasing Programme for CRCF Permanent Carbon Removal Credits
 
Cover of the workshop pre-read "Perspectives on a Purchasing Programme for CRCF Permanent Carbon Removal" authored by Hugh McDonald1, Jonathan Gardiner, John Tarpey, Benjamin Görlach (Ecologic Institute).

© Ecologic Institute, 2025

This document serves as an informational pre-read for the workshop Perspectives on a Purchasing Programme for CRCF Permanent Carbon Removal Credits that took place on 21 May 2025 in Brussels, hosted by DG CLIMA. The information in this pre-read synthesises the... Read more

McDonald, H., Gardiner, J., Tarpey, J., Görlach, B. (2025, May 14). Workshop pre-read: Perspectives on a Purchasing Programme for CRCF Permanent Carbon Removal. Ecologic Institute.

ProjectHorizon 2020Soil Mission Support: Towards a European research and innovation roadmap on soils and land management
 

©Noorhaswan|Fotolia.com

Land and soils are essential for life on Earth. They supply humanity with food, purify water, store carbon and support a rich biodiversity. Yet one third of the global land is considered as degraded and this process is continuing due to higher food production,... Read more

Soil Mission Support: Towards a European research and innovation roadmap on soils and land management

Duration
-
Funding
ProjectCarbon Farming: Making agriculture fit for 2030
 

Pixabay - Freie kommerzielle Nutzung
Kein Bildnachweis nötig

Agriculture directly generates more than 10% of Europe's greenhouse-gas emissions. At the same time, by sequestering carbon in soils, peatlands, and agro-forestry systems, agriculture offers significant potential to mitigate climate change. Actions to reduce... Read more

Carbon Farming: Making agriculture fit for 2030

Duration
-
Funding
PublicationReportCarbon Farming
 

-

As the source of 10% of the EU's greenhouse gas emissions and a major carbon sink, agriculture offers significant potential to mitigate climate change. This on-farm agricultural climate mitigation is referred to as carbon farming. On behalf of the European Parliament,... Read more

McDonald, Hugh et. al. 2021: Carbon farming. Making agriculture fit for 2030. Brussels: European Parliament.

ProjectCarbon Farming
 

View on a permanent grassland area

|

© Rainer Sturm | pixelio.de

Carbon farming involves sequestering and storing carbon and reducing greenhouse gas emissions at farm level. It offers significant but uncertain mitigation potential in the EU, can deliver co-benefits, to farmers, society and nature. It can also carry risks that need to... Read more

Carbon Farming

Duration
-
Funding
ProjectHorizon EuropeBuilding Momentum and Trust to Achieve Credible Soil Carbon Farming in the EU (CREDIBLE)
 

Bild von Volker Glätsch auf Pixabay

Carbon farming holds great promise as a business model that rewards land managers for implementing practices that contribute to mitigating climate change. Actions that increase soil carbon sequestration and storage offer mitigation potential while posing a number of... Read more

Building Momentum and Trust to Achieve Credible Soil Carbon Farming in the EU (CREDIBLE)

Duration
-
Funding
PublicationReportOptions for Standards to Ensure Environmental Integrity and Uptake
 
Cover of the CREDIBLE deliverable 2.1 entitled "Report on Options for Standards to Ensure Environmental Integrity and Uptake" authored by Ecologic Institute's Hugh McDonald, Julia Pazmino Murillo, Aaron Scheid (Ecologic Institute)

© CREDIBLE project, 2025

Carbon farming increases the amount of organic carbon stored in soils and biomass, helping to mitigate climate change. Carbon farming practices do not only affect the climate, but can also impact other sustainability outcomes, including biodiversity, soil health, and... Read more

McDonald, Hugh; Julia Pazmino Murillo; Aaron Scheid 2025: Report on Options for Standards to Ensure Environmental Integrity and Uptake. Deliverable 2.1 of the project CREDIBLE: "Building momentum and trust to achieve credible soil carbon farming in the EU". Berlin: Ecologic Institute.

PublicationVideoTransition Towards Healthy Soils Through Living Labs and Lighthouses
 

© Ecologic Institute

The two-year "Soil Mission Support: Towards a European Research and Innovation Roadmap for Soils and Land Management" project supported the European Union's A Soil Deal for Europe mission on soil health and nutrition and the European Green Deal to facilitate the... Read more

Ecologic Institute, INRAE 2022: Transition Towards Healthy Soils Through Living Labs and Lighthouses. Video. Online: https://youtu.be/4HchOcfENVYhttps://vimeo.com/user89951999