SaltyBEATS is a three-year EU-funded research project exploring how salt-tolerant plants (halophytes) can restore degraded lands and support sustainable food production. Combining science and stakeholder collaboration, it develops Nature-based Solutions and tools to scale resilient saline agriculture across Europe and North Africa.
Project overview
SaltyBEATS is a three-year, €1.2 million research initiative funded under the Biodiversa+ programme. It investigates how Nature-based Solutions (NbS) based on halophytes (salt-tolerant plants) can help revitalise salt-affected lands, combine biodiversity and food production, and scale sustainable saline agriculture across Europe and North Africa.
At Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, SaltyBEATS is hosted at the Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM), with Katarzyna (Kate) Negacz as principal investigator and Ananya Tiwari as a postdoc.
Context and challenge
- Soil salinisation (especially secondary salinisation) is a growing global threat to agriculture, biodiversity, and ecosystem functioning.
- Salt-induced habitat degradation often leads to biodiversity loss across multiple taxa (plants, microbes, insects) — yet the role of halophytes in restoring functional diversity is underexplored.
- There is a need for decision support tools and management strategies to integrate saline-tolerant species with conventional agriculture in marginal lands.
Objectives
- Map and assess biodiversity above- and belowground in naturally saline and salt-affected areas.
- Develop cultivation methods for endangered halophyte species and test their introduction into marginal lands.
- Build a land capability / decision-support tool to guide where and how to apply saline NbS in landscapes.
- Assess synergies / trade-offs between halophytes and conventional crops (intercropping, rotation, field margins).
- Co-create with stakeholders (farmers, policy makers, investors) to promote upscaling of nature-positive saline agriculture.
Approach & methods
- A multidisciplinary and participatory framework combining field experiments, biodiversity monitoring (plants, microbes, insects), spatial modelling, scenario analyses, and stakeholder workshops.
- Stacking strategies: integrating halophytes with conventional crops in different designs (intercropping, rotation, refuge strips) to test ecological and agronomic outcomes.
- Spatial modelling and scenario generation to forecast long-term impacts, design trade-offs, and identify optimal interventions under climate change.
- Stakeholder engagement through co-design, regional workshops, and policy dialogues to align scientific innovation with practical needs.
Timeline & status
Duration: 1 March 2025 – 29 February 2028
Status: Active
Partners & network
- University of Florence, Italy
- Center of Biotechnology of Borj Cédria, Tunisia
- Centre of Marine Sciences, Portugal
- Nicolaus Copernicus University, Poland
- Plant Breeding Department, Spanish National Research Council
- University of Pisa, Italy
- Manouba School of Engineering, Tunisia
- IVM, VU Amsterdam, Netherlands
Expected impact & significance
- Improved understanding of how halophytes can support functional biodiversity in saline landscapes, linking ecology with agriculture.
- Decision-support tools for land managers and farmers to optimize saline agriculture interventions.
- Enhanced awareness among policy makers and impact investors of the benefits of nature-based saline solutions.
- Pathways for upscaling saline agriculture practices in Europe, North Africa, and other salt-affected regions, contributing to sustainable food systems under climate change.
Contact & further information
Project website: https://saltybeats.com/
VU Research portal: https://research.vu.nl/en/projects/saltybeats
News: https://vu.nl/en/news/2024/three-biodiversa-grants-awarded-to-ivm-researchers