Horizon RESTORE4Life - HORIZON-MISS-2022-OCEAN-01-02 - Restoration of wetland complexes as life supporting systems in the Danube Basin (project n. 101112736)

1-gen-2023

31-dic-2027

https://restore4life.eu/ https://restore4life.eu/about-the-project/ https://restore4life.vercel.app/ (Wetland Restoration Hub) https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101112736/it

RESTORE4Life is a Horizon Europe Innovation Action project, coordinated by the Research Centre for Systems Ecology and Sustainability, with a consortium of 31 partners from 14 European countries and a total budget of approximately €8.5 million (EU contribution: €8.3 million). Active from 2023 to 2027, the project is part of the Danube-Black Sea Lighthouse within the framework of the EU Mission "Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030". The objective is to demonstrate the socio-economic benefits of an holistic and transdisciplinary approach to the restoration of freshwater and coastal wetlands in the Danube Basin, through the development of a Decision Support System (Wetland Restoration Decision Support System), the involvement of citizens and stakeholders, and the creation of new green-blue infrastructures to support regional climate resilience.

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In the Danube Basin and its delta, over 70% of wetlands, floodplains, and coastal wetlands have been lost or disconnected from watercourses, mainly due to wastewater discharges, drainage for agricultural use, and pollution. Wetlands represent, however, one of the most productive ecosystems and most important biodiversity hotspots, offering essential ecosystem services such as flood and drought regulation, nutrient and pollutant retention, and carbon storage in soils. RESTORE4Life arises in this context as a flagship project (lighthouse) of the EU Mission "Restore our Ocean and Waters", alongside other projects of the Danube Lighthouse (including DANUBE4all, DALIA, DaWetRest), with the objective of translating scientific knowledge into replicable and socially accepted restoration solutions.

• Massive loss of lateral connectivity between rivers and floodplains in the Danube Basin, with the subsequent loss of ecological functions and ecosystem services of wetlands
• Persistent anthropogenic pressures on rivers and wetlands: wastewater discharges, drainage for agricultural use, nutrient pollution
• Lack of a shared decision support system to guide restoration interventions at a basin scale, within a multinational and multi-stakeholder context
• Low involvement of citizens and local communities in restoration processes, resulting in difficulties in creating an emotional bond and diffuse ownership towards interventions on wetlands
• Absence of sustainable business models capable of economically valuing restored wetland ecosystems, limiting replication and maintenance possibilities over time

 Develop the "Restore4Life Wetland Restoration Decision Support System", a shared digital tool to guide wetland restoration decisions at the Danube Basin scale

Actively involve stakeholders and local communities in the co-design of interventions through communities of practice, citizen science programmes, and visual and interactive communication channels

Support the development of local economic activities and business models based on restored wetland ecosystems

Implement and demonstrate holistic wetland restoration solutions in 4 implementation sites (March-Thaya Floodplains Austria/Slovakia, Rudava Slovakia, Vlasina Serbia, Enisala Channel Romania) and 6 monitoring sites in Germany, Slovakia, Serbia, and Romania

Guarantee the replicability of restoration activities through manuals, targeted roadmaps, and the involvement of "Associated Regions" (Armenia, Belgium, Portugal, Sweden, Ukraine)

Contribute to achieving the objectives of the EU Mission "Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030" and the Danube-Black Sea Lighthouse

 RESTORE4Life implements an integrated and transdisciplinary approach to wetland restoration, combining scientific knowledge, green-blue infrastructures, social involvement, and economic sustainability within a single operational framework at a transnational river basin scale .

The project developed the "Wetland Restoration Decision Support System" (Restoration Hub), a digital system that translates scientific data and methodologies for assessing the status and functionality of wetlands, before and after restoration, into an operational tool accessible to managers and decision-makers. This "science to decision" approach allows for the planning of restoration on an evidence-based footing, replicable in contexts other than the Danube Basin .

Moreover, the project's approach includes a transdisciplinary engagement strategy for citizens and stakeholders, which goes beyond simple consultation: the project created local stakeholder communities of practice and a structured citizen science programme where citizens, including schools, participate directly in data collection (identifying bird species via song, measuring trees, analysing orthophotos and satellite imagery). This model, supported by the "Living Floodplains Digital Toolbox", a dedicated educational platform, builds an emotional bond and diffuse ownership towards wetland ecosystems, an element often decisive for the long-term sustainability of restoration interventions .

Another important element is the explicit attention to the economic dimension of restoration: the project develops manuals for the entrepreneurial public and targeted restoration roadmaps, demonstrating how restored wetland ecosystems can generate concrete socio-economic benefits (tourism, sustainable fishing, water regulation with economic value) for local communities.

The combination of these three pillars -scientific decision tool, citizen science, and local business models, tested across four implementation sites and replicated through an "Associated Regions" mechanism (twinning with territories of similar characteristics) - constitutes a model of particular interest: it demonstrates how involving citizens, schools, and local communities in monitoring and co-designing restoration interventions can be structured in a replicable manner across Europe.

• Development and launch of the "Restore4Life Wetland Restoration Hub", a digital decision support platform for wetland restoration in the Danube Basin
• Implementation of restoration interventions in 4 pilot sites (March-Thaya Floodplains Austria/Slovakia, Rudava Slovakia, Vlasina Serbia, Enisala Channel Romania) and monitoring in 6 additional sites in Germany, Slovakia, Serbia, and Romania
• Launch of the "Living Floodplains Digital Toolbox", an educational platform dedicated to floodplain restoration, involving schools and citizens in citizen science activities (identifying species via song, measuring trees, analysing satellite imagery)
• Launch of a first capacity-building workshop in Romania (March 2026) for the promotion of the Living Floodplains Toolbox
• Publication of technical and scientific outputs, including a practical guide to local benefits deriving from Nature-based Solutions in wetlands (D4.2), a manual for monitoring carbon sequestration (D3.6), and the educational programme on wetlands (D2.3)
• Involvement of 5 Associated Regions (Armenia, Belgium, Portugal, Sweden, Ukraine) for the replicability of restoration solutions through twinnings with implementation sites
• Production of a dedicated podcast series (Restore4Life: The Podcast) for the dissemination of results and awareness-raising on wetland restoration and conservation economics
• Active contribution to the Danube-Black Sea Lighthouse of the EU Mission "Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030", in collaboration with the projects EcoDaLLi, DANUBE4all, DALIA, DaWetRest, SUNDANSE, and iNNO SED

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