For three days earlier this year, from March 17th to 19th, the city of Paphos in Cyprus was host to the “Eleventh International Conference on Remote Sensing and Geoinformation of Environment” (RCSy2025). It was an essential event to network with leading experts from across Europe and the world in the field of remote sensing and geoinformation.  Topics included 3D remote sensing, application to agriculture, earth observation, environment and climate, environmental monitoring and protection, and many more.

The LandShift project was proudly present at this event, and even co-organised the workshop on “Advancing Climate Action, Environmental Sustainability and Food Security through Synergies”. During the workshop, four partners from three partner organisations presented not only the project but also which elements of the project relate to the workshop as well as the conference as a whole.

Notably, coordinator Ioannis VARVARIS (Eratosthenes Centre of Excellence) presented the project, emphasising its integrated, transdisciplinary approach to sustainable land-use planning through co-creation with stakeholders, as well as the use of digital tools, and the implementation of Nature-Based Solutions that are aligned the New European Bauhaus principles.

Representing our Italian partners from the Politecnico di Milano, M. GABRIELE contributed to the workshop by presenting on the implementation of the land use, land use change, and forestry framework (LULUCF – see Glossary) monitoring platforms in the context of the agriculture, forestry, and other land-use (AFOLU) sector and regenerative agriculture. She very much highlighted the potential of advanced monitoring systems to support climate mitigation and land restoration efforts within the land-use sector.

One of the key aspects of attending such events is also to engage in fruitful discussions with other projects and participants present to learn more about other research but also examine the possibilities of future synergies together. The LandShift team present at RCSy2025 did just this, specifically with fellow attendees working on the topics of land-use monitoring, ecosystem restoration, and climate-resilient development. Engaging in such synergies further solidified the LandShift project’s position within the broader network of initiatives tackling land degradation, biodiversity loss, and climate adaptation through collaborative innovation.

In the future, LandShift and LandShift partners will continue to attend and/or present in conferences/events related to the project, and lay the foundation for future synergies to come with a wide array of stakeholders.

For more information on the RSCy 2025 event, please take a look at the link here: https://rscy2025.com/

One of the core methodologies of the LandShift project is to engage in Multi-Actor Approaches (MAA) as a cornerstone for cross-collaborative exercises and project output development. Indeed, utilising an MAA focuses on seizing opportunities and finding solutions to real needs, problems, and challenges faced by a wide range of stakeholders that are facing a similar, if not the same, challenge. In MAA projects, there is a strong collaboration of partners as well, especially those that have complementary expertise (scientific, practical, or any other) to ensure a holistic approach and maximise inclusivity in addressing specific challenges.

A few months ago, Polish partners from the European Rural Development Network engaged in an MAA and platform workshop to set the stage for collaboration and synergies across the project’s five living labs in France, Greece, Poland, and Ukraine.

This is an important step forward for the project as these living labs/living spaces will serve as a real-world testing grounds to tackle land-use challenges, balance competing demands, as well as foster co-creation, trust, and innovation in the long term. Indeed, through a structured co-creation process, from the co-planning stage to establishing co-governance, all stakeholders present will play a crucial in role in shaping sustainable land-use solutions to combat climate change.

Here it is very important to highlight not only the importance of the Living Spaces as testing grounds and also, both figuratively and literally, real-life applications, to understand the difference in approaches across 5 regions/countries, but also building connections across the spaces themselves.

Indeed, it is not only about the 5 spaces to act independently, but it is also about establishing a structure to share best practices, differences, common challenges, and key takeaways to foster shape sustainable land-use solutions in mitigating and adapting to climate change effects.

Learn more about such workshops in our methodology and our approach section.