Swimming in nature is healthy. A group of British researchers have started a project to spread the word.

The sold-out science festival for children 'Expeditie NEXT' took over the historic Dutch city of Franeker earlier this month.

Nearly 1000 'citizen scientists' sent in their observations this year on Soil Animal Days 2019. And a surprisingly high number of people tried to do something in return for the vital services these soil creatures provide for us.

Restoring nature, for instance on former farmland? That works a lot faster, more precise, and less disruptive via soil inoculation. Take a bit of healthy soil from a natural area close by and restore the desired type of nature within a couple of years. In the journal Nature Plants, the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW) and Natuurmonumenten (Society for Nature Conservation) also solve a long-lasting subject of discussion: it’s the soil bugs that steer such nature restoration.

What soil creatures are living right under our feet? Find out in your own backyard on 4 October - or in your local park, on your green roof or even your balcony (!) - as the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW) organises the first-ever 'Soil Animal Day', together with the Centre for Soil Ecology (CSE).

The soil expertise found at Wageningen enjoys international recognition. So it is only fitting that in 2015, the International Year of Soils, numerous activities are taking place in Wageningen. On Monday 26 January, various Wageningen-based institutions and organisations laid a plaque in the Walk of Fame on campus to kick off the IYS. The gesture symbolises their collaboration in the new Wageningen Soil Network.

Restoring nature is not for the impatient: it takes a lot of time before the right plant species establish themselves. But experiments show there's a way to speed up the process, from decades to just a few years. A new website from the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW) tells you everything you need to know. Meanwhile, one of the researchers working on this pioneering approach defended his PhD thesis this week.

This Saturday, 5 October 2019, everyone will be welcome to look around our unique building and grounds on the Open Day of NIOO-KNAW.

The 4th edition of the Dutch Soil Animal Days saw 856 'citizen scientists' comb through more than 200 gardens and parks to find some 7500 soil creatures.