Floodplains play a key role in providing essential ecosystem services, including flood retention, drought mitigation, carbon sequestration, and biodiversity enhancement, benefiting not only local areas but also downstream terrestrial, freshwater, and marine ecosystems. Their interconnectedness with broader landscapes underscores their ecological and hydrological importance. Yet many are currently in a degraded state, and restoration is often complicated by a number of challenges, such as the gap between scientific research and on-the-ground implementation, alongside limited collaboration between practitioners and researchers. Projects such as MERLIN aim to contribute to bridging these gaps, while the MERLIN Academy provides practitioners with training in restoration financing, partnership building, and stakeholder engagement. However, successful restoration depends not only on knowledge but also on the ability to apply it under real-world conditions.

Project objective and activities

FLOODTRAIN is a European project that develops a certified training programme for professionals working specifically in floodplain restoration. It brings together scientific knowledge, practical experience, and stakeholder input and translates them into a structured online training programme that supports professionals working in restoration, water management, and environmental planning in developing and implementing floodplain restoration. The programme consists of eight learning modules, covering ecological processes, restoration methods, policy frameworks, partnership and financial arrangements, decision-making tools, among others. Building on existing scientific knowledge, it places main emphasis on real-world applications and examples from across Europe. The FLOODTRAIN training programme will be integrated into the learning environment of the MERLIN Academy, building on its foundation while extending existing learning modules with new, practice-oriented training content for floodplain restoration. The training will be designed to be modular and flexible, so that participants can learn at their own pace and apply the content directly to their work. At the end of their training, participants will obtain a certification as Floodplain Restoration Manager. The certification will be developed with stakeholders and will reflect the skills needed for professional restoration practice.

Ecologic Institute in FLOODTRAIN

Ecologic contributes to all project activities and particularly to WP3, which focuses on the development of learning modules, translating the synthesised knowledge into a curriculum for the “Floodplain Restoration Partnerships and Financing” digital module. This module will integrate theory and practical application, incorporating case studies, videos, and hands-on exercises. Module content will be co-developed and reviewed with the community of practice.