In The Netherlands “the land of water” the ecological quality of ponds, ditches, wetlands and lakes is severely degraded due to escalating and interacting anthropogenic pressures including pollutants and climate change. SEFAP unites leading Dutch freshwater experimentalists, infrastructures and data scientists to provide a step forward in collaborative science and inland water ecology. By conducting experiments in SMART-enabled replicated mini-lake ecosystems, SEFAP will enable the future of our waters to be experimentally created and tested. In combination, the technical innovation and community-building of Dutch aquatic experimentalists will strengthen the ability to predict and mitigate undesirable futures in aquatic ecosystems.

Animals that live in social colonies are known to age much slower than non-social animals. For example, naked mole rats are small rodents that hardly suffer from ageing and live in social colonies. Are these social species more likely to become long-lived, or are long-lived species more likely to become social? Analogously to how individuals cooperate to form breeding colonies in social species, at some point individual cells started cooperating to form multicellular organisms (like humans!). Did the evolution of cellular cooperation change the ageing rates of our cells when multicellularity evolved?

This eDNA Citizen Science project addresses the biodiversity crisis by combining citizen science with environmental DNA (eDNA) for more efficient and scalable biomonitoring of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. The project will start in Leiden, where local stakeholders will be involved in the evaluation of the "Tweede Groene Ring," and will then be expanded to a national bioblitz. This approach connects innovative biomonitoring methods with policy-relevant data for a nature-positive society, making it transdisciplinary in nature. By involving citizens and leveraging existing networks, the project aims to be a comprehensive, cost-effective solution to monitor and reduce biodiversity loss from human activities.

The timing of light exposure, physical activity, and food intake are important cues for synchronising the biological clock. Disruption of the biological clock is a clear threat to both public health and vulnerable ecosystems. Especially in a highly industrialised country such as The Netherlands there is a mismatch between biological clocks and social demands. However, these cues have drastically – and abruptly - changed in our modern society due to the widespread use of artificial light and the round-the-clock demand for goods and services. Fundamental research has shown that precisely these conditions cause desynchrony among clock cells.

Our recent pilot experiment to grow rice on peatlands triggered widespread interest and discussion among the general public and scientists about the potential of rice in northwestern Europe. The idea is simple: rewetting peatlands for rice crops with fish may provide a viable alternative in warming climates for the current farming system while it halts land subsidence and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. This project aims to determine best crop management and potential rice and fish yields and assess what it’s benefits are for the environment and if rice-fish can help to transform current farming systems.