Have you ever thought of soil as a living organism? Or even considered how deeply it impacts your daily life?
For many people, soil is still just “dirt”, a natural resource to be exploited, rather than a living system that sustains us. Yet healthy soil is essential for food production, climate regulation, biodiversity, and the infrastructure we rely on every day. It is crucial to life on Earth, yet it remains overlooked.
“What is hidden is the significance of soils to people’s daily lives and its key role in sustaining all life on land” (Roca Vallejo R et al., 2025). Soil literacy seeks to change that by helping people understand what soil is, why it matters, and how our everyday choices affect its health. Europe is not yet a soil‑literate society, but initiatives like SOILSCAPE are working to change that.
At the forefront of these efforts, SOILSCAPE is harnessing the power of arts and culture to make soil science accessible to all audiences in an interactive and creative way. One of its most ambitious goals is to create a network of Soils & Arts Festivals across 8 European countries. Angers, France, hosted one of the first 2 pilot festivals on 22-23 May 2026, gathering a vast network of soil scientists, artists, and local communities for 2 days of performances that unveiled together the world of soil.
Bringing the festival to life
Creating the first French Soils & Arts Festival was no small feat.
“The organisation came at the same time as the first reporting periodic review of the SOILSCAPE project, so with plenty of doubts and uncertainty,” recalls project manager Mégane Roncier.
A demanding schedule, tight deadlines, and close coordination with the municipality and participating artists required constant communication and mutual understanding. “It was complicated to work together, but now we have built this experience in common,” says Mégane. That shared experience became one of the festival’s greatest strengths.
Another challenge was shifting the audience.
“Being a Soil Science Society (AFES), we are used to targeting professional scientists, and now we are targeting the public. So, our lesson learnt is the different approaches in organising something for the professional scientists and for the public,” Mégane explains.
Despite these challenges, the festival offered a large and varied programme that successfully connected people with soil in new ways. “I was impressed by the richness of the programme, which offered many complementary ways to explore soil,” shares Jeanne Maréchal, independent soil scientist at CADUSOL, member of the French Soils & Arts Orchestra, and volunteer during this festival.
From hands-on workshops to artistic exhibitions and performances, every activity helped make soil science more approachable, connecting soil amongst participants of all ages and backgrounds.
