GroundWork’s five Living Labs turn the project’s vision into action. They are collaborative hubs where regenerative livestock practices move from concept to implementation, allowing innovation to be tested, monitored, and scaled in real farming landscapes.
Each Living Lab operates within a specific territorial context, combining scientific knowledge with local experience. They function as open learning environments, supporting experimentation, peer learning and the co-creation of solutions adapted to regional needs.
Across all Living Labs, GroundWork applies a shared framework while allowing flexibility to respond to local challenges, landscapes and farming systems.
GroundWork is implemented through five Living Labs located in different European regions. Each Living Lab addresses distinct environmental and agricultural challenges while contributing to the project’s common objectives through place-based actions on the ground.
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The Living Lab is located in Gospodjinci, in the Vojvodina region of Serbia, an area where farms combine cattle and vegetable production. Manure generated by the livestock is applied on-site to vegetable crops, yet waste management remains a significant challenge. Poor handling of manure and other animal waste contributes to water quality issues and limits the potential for sustainable soil management.
In Wallonia, decades of intensive tillage and simplified crop rotations have degraded soil structure and health, leading to erosion, flooding, and poor water retention. Increasingly frequent and extreme weather events driven by climate change are expected to worsen these issues.
The Göta region in southern Sweden features mostly flat or gently rolling landscapes, with a mosaic of farmland and forests. Its fertile plain, Skåne, Västergötland, and Östergötland, have historically been the heart of Sweden’s crop production. However, decades of intensive agriculture, including heavy fertiliser use, short crop rotations, and mechanisation, have degraded the land. Soil health has declined, organic carbon has been lost, and the land is now more susceptible to erosion, flooding, and drought. At the same time, many traditional grazing areas have been abandoned or converted to monocultures, resulting in a significant drop in biodiversity.
The Living Lab area sits in the northern foothills of the Alps a rolling landscape dominated by grassland used as pastures and meadows. Agriculture remains a key economic activity, with grassland farming and milk production dominating the sector. Despite the small-scale, diverse landscapes, traditional agriculture has become increasingly industrialised, and pastoral farming has declined significantly. In Bavaria, pasture use dropped to only 17% in 2019. At the same time, the Alpine region is experiencing temperature increases above the global average, placing grassland ecosystems under growing pressure from climate change.
The Beira Interior region in Portugal is a challenging environment for grazing, characterised by shallow, rocky soils, limited rainfall, and declining soil fertility. Overgrazing and water shortages have accelerated erosion and land degradation, while rural depopulation and low visibility for local animal products have put additional pressure on local economies. These conditions make it essential to develop livestock systems that are both environmentally sustainable and economically resilient.
Are you a journalist covering food, farming, or soil health? Join our GroundWork Living Lab visits to explore how regenerative livestock farming restores Europe’s soils. Please fill out the form below to express your interest in joining the GroundWork press visits
