LTER-NL included on the National Road View in browser Map for Large Scale Research Infrastructure

In 2021 the Netherlands Long-Term Ecosystem Research Network (LTER-NL) was included in the list of Large Scale Research Infrastructure (LSRI) by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO).

This means that LTER-NL is now recognized as a LSRI and can apply for funding within the Dutch system. We therefore put in a large grant earlier this month where LTER-NL teams up with LifeWatch-NL and with a national scheme that monitors abiotic environmental variables (NemNet).

Making use of the synergy between these three LSRIs, we aim to develop socalled Digital Twins of the two LTSER-sites of the Netherlands: the Wadden Sea and the Veluwe. For these Digital Twins we will make the many existing long-term ecosystem datasets FAIR, as well as existing models on species interactions, and the way the environment affects species.

These data and models can then be combined in Virtual Laboratories, facilitating collaboration between ecologists and data scientists. When developed, the Digital Twins can be used for scenario studies to in silico evaluate the effect of mitigation measures on biodiversity.