Art & Science project being developed by Joanna Hoffmann with the ASN Team in the frame of the SPIN-FERT / Horizon Europe (Misson Soil) program
The World Biodiversity Forum brings together scientists, policymakers, practitioners, and civil society representatives from around the world to exchange knowledge and develop solutions for biodiversity conservation and sustainable futures. Within this international context, Prof. Joanna Hoffmann led the participatory workshop Breath of Soil: Memory Nexus, inviting participants to explore the rich soil microbiome and their personal relationships with it through one of our most evocative yet often overlooked senses: smell. With a scientific contribution from Samuel Bickel (TU Graz), the workshop introduced participants to the hidden world of soil biodiversity and the crucial role of microorganisms in maintaining healthy ecosystems.
Participants learned about soil health challenges, the objectives of the EU Mission Soil, and emerging technologies for soil monitoring, including electronic smell detectors that can analyse volatile compounds released by soil microbiomes.
The workshop invited participants to explore soil through the sense of smell. Soil samples provided by ENOMONDO, as well as those collected from the Congress environments (soil of Davos), were presented for sensory exploration, encouraging participants to reflect on the memories, emotions, and associations evoked by each scent. The exercise highlighted how soil is not only a biological resource but also a cultural and emotional medium that connects people to landscapes, places, and personal histories.
Memory Molecule 15 demonstrates that our relationship with biodiversity is shaped not solely by scientific knowledge but also by embodied experience, emotion, and memory. The smell of living soil becomes a powerful medium through which personal stories converge into a shared narrative, reminding us that caring for biodiversity begins with recognising our own place within its interconnected networks.
Click on the circles to uncover the lingering echoes of the past.
This composition is built upon the intricate secondary structure of RNA, which, like DNA, is composed of four essential bases: adenine, uracil, cytosine, and guanine ( denoted by the letters A, U, C and G ). Each RNA molecule folds into a unique shape, a structure dictated by the specific sequence and pairing of these bases. The resulting shape is crucial, as it determines the RNA's function within the cell. 5′-UCAUAAGGCUAACCAGCGACUUGUAGAAGUUGAUGAUAGGCCCCGUGCCCACAAG-3′ |
