NIOO has a vigorous and long-standing commitment to societal impact. Not only is NIOO housed in a sustainable building designed to translate our ecological principles in terms of architecture and construction, we also have a number of units that are tailor-made for disseminating our ecological knowledge to specific target groups, we have a very active outreach policy, and we actively involve citizens in our research through large-scale citizen-science projects.

In order to protect, or restore biodiversity, it is crucial to consider all forms of life within their entire context. The strength of NIOO-based research is that it integrates all of the different levels and scales that make up biodiversity, from genetic diversity to species diversity, from small to large organisms, from trophic interactions to communities and ecosystems, and in a wide range of terrestrial and aquatic habitats. Therefore, NIOO is in the right position to make a substantial and scientifically important contribution to the societal goal of the SDGs.

Healthy surface water and soils are essential for life on earth. They provide a range of life-supporting functions, including carbon storage, oxygen generation, and nutrient cycling. At NIOO, we combine research on the ecosystem services provided to society with research on how these ecosystem services are impacted by society.

There’s a lot that we can learn from nature! Performing and promoting research, together with policy makers, nature managers and businesses - and sharing the new knowledge it produces. That is NIOO's strength.