Biodiversity under our feet
Associação BIOPOLIS – CIBIO; Município de Lousada
Mata de Vilar – Município de Lousada
07 February 2026
Associação BIOPOLIS & CIBIO; Município de Lousada organised the workshop: “Biodiversity under our feet” at Mata de Vilar, Município de Lousada, Portugal.
The Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Innovation (KEDEK) welcomed 22 participants, including students, school teachers, technical staff from municipalities and Scouts. They did a mixture of activities: a theoretical session and a practical session where the attendees observed soils and identified different invertebrate groups.
Content:
In the workshop the soil as a resource of food and shelter was discussed. The workshop also covered the diversity of life and its distribution in the world, and the bugs that live in the soil. The attendees were also told about the different groups of invertebrates and their different roles.
In the practical part of the workshop the participants tried to finds bugs in the soil and looked at the major characteristics of the bugs.
Goals:
The workshop aimed to achieve several goals
- To create awareness on the diversity and importance of invertebrates, even in winter they are active!
- To improve proximity and public perception of invertebrates – from bugs to animals; from undefined bugs to named animals: beetles, flies, bees, wasps and so on
- To reduce fear and disgust from bugs
- To raise awareness to key roles of invertebrates and ecosystem services regarding the soil
Header: Picture taken at “Biodiversity under our feet”.
