The LOESS High‑Level Symposium “Shaping Soil Health Education for 2030 and Beyond” took place at the BCN Hub Social in Barcelona on 7 May 2026, bringing together a full day of activities dedicated to strengthening soil health education across Europe. Held in a hybrid format, the event gathered more than 170 participants in person and online, including teachers from all educational stages and levels, students, researchers, policymakers and citizens committed to soil health. This Symposium represents an important milestone in the shared effort to lead the transition towards healthy soils by 2030, the overarching goal of the EU Mission “A Soil Deal for Europe”.

The opening remarks were delivered by Helen Garrison (Vetenskap & Allmänhet), followed by contributions from Josep M. Vilalta (Catalan Association of Public Universities); Salvador Samitier (Government of Catalonia); Maria José Amaral (European Research Executive Agency – European Commission); and Norbert Steinhaus (WILA Bonn).

The programme continued with the session “Cross‑Sector Perspectives on Soil Education and Capacity Building”, which offered scene‑setting talks and an interactive panel exploring challenges of soil health education from the viewpoints of political decision‑making, university education and research, primary and secondary schooling, and students. Moderated by Joanna Morawska (Adam Mickiewicz University), the session included inputs from David Butler‑Manning (Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Germany), Giulia Bongiorno (Wageningen University & Research, Netherlands), Johan Sparf (Lund University, Sweden) and Víctor López (Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain).

LOESS partners then delivered a series of lightning pitches presenting key project outcomes, joined by Cristina Biddlecome (REVOLVE), representing CURIOSOIL sister project. These presentations led into the Interactive Marketplace, composed of fourteen booths showcasting LOESS pedagogical resources for schools, universities and society, as well as the project’s policy recommendations. The Marketplace also hosted posters from other EU Mission Soil projects with strong educational or citizen‑engagement components, fostering exchange and cross‑fertilisation among initiatives working towards similar goals.

In the afternoon, three parallel breakout sessions were held under the title “Envisioning the Future of Soil Health Learning”. The session on Driving Policy Impact and Long‑Term Sustainability was facilitated by Andrea Vargiu (University of Sassari); the session on Empowering Future Soil Professionals: University and VET Pathways by Giovanna Grossi (University of Brescia); and the session on Inspiring Soil Awareness in Primary and Secondary Education by Irena Šujdović (Center for the Promotion of Science).

The programme also featured artistic expressions inspired by soil, including the visual art exhibition El sòl que acull by Roser Pesquer (Spain) and the musical performance SOIL ENSEMBLE by Art Collective (Austria), reminding participants of the cultural and emotional dimensions of our relationship with the ground beneath our feet.

The final session of the day was the high‑level round table “Looking ahead: The Soil Mission towards 2030”, moderated by LOESS project coordinator Norbert Steinhaus. The panel brought together Carole Esclapez (DG AGRI – European Commission), alongside coordinators and partners from several EU Mission Soil projects: Judit Horgas (European School Heads Association – CURIOSOIL), Giulia Bongiorno (Wageningen University & Research – SOILTRIBES), Tanja Mimmo (Free University of Bolzano – ECHO), Francesco Molinari (ANCI Toscana – HUMUS) and Javier Montellano (REVOLVE – NB SOIL).

The programme concluded with closing reflections from LOESS partners, members of the Advisory and Valorisation Board, and the project coordinator.