At EAAE congress 2025, SoilValues presented the poster: “𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐒𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐈𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐀𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: 𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐨𝐢𝐥 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐬”
𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡𝐲 𝐬𝐨𝐢𝐥𝐬 are essential for agriculture and society, yet many soils risk losing their crucial functions because maintaining soil health often involves upfront costs with delayed benefits. 𝐒𝐨𝐢𝐥 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐬 (𝐒𝐇𝐁𝐌𝐬) aim to address this challenge by making soil-friendly practices economically viable. Developed in 𝐜𝐨-𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 with diverse actors, SHBMs embody key aspects of social innovation — changing norms, institutions, and relationships to support sustainable futures.
The research aimed to uncover the 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬, and 𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 that shape SHBM development through a transdisciplinary case in the Flensburg region (Northern Germany), where we co-created a SHBM focused on 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐲𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐛𝐢𝐨𝐠𝐚𝐬 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 and 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠.
The findings show that barriers, incentives, and enabling conditions are 𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐱𝐭-𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭. Incentives need to be carefully combined and adapted to 𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬. Crucially, the transformation of relationships and institutions emerged as a cornerstone for creating SHBMs as genuine 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬.
Finally, the research highlights that impact does not come through a single route: 𝐦𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 — from stabilizing and speeding up to scaling out or deepening — may need to be pursued simultaneously to achieve lasting change.
Many thanks to 𝐑𝐨𝐧𝐣𝐚 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐳𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐠, 𝐆𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐝 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐳, 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐞 𝐯𝐨𝐧 𝐌𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐫-𝐇𝐨̈𝐟𝐞𝐫, and 𝐄𝐥𝐤𝐞 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐚𝐬 for their valuable contributions to this work!
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